Went to go check out a nebula gray pearl 2019 RC F-Sport today. I was quite shocked to notice right away that part of the paint had a significant amount of noticeable orange peel. Now, I know that orange peel is here to stay due to low VOC regulations. However, Lexus has been good at keeping it to an acceptable amount unlike BMW, Tesla, and Range Rover.”

What was even more strange is that the level, or degree of orange peel, varied throughout as if the car was painted in segments.

To what extent can orange peel be remedied by a good detail shop via wet sanding? I wouldn’t mind purchasing the vehicle knowing that the paint issue can be rectified. However if the more pronounced areas of orange peel cannot be corrected, then I want nothing of it. I know that Lexus has very thin paint and it’s easy to go right through to the primer.

Has anyone had their RC undergo paint correction for this reason? How did it turn out?

 

Without measuring paint thickness it's hard to give an accurate representation of how much of a mirror finish can be achieved, but it's likely that the difference would be significant.

Not to conspire here, but cars can get damaged during transit and are often repaired in-house and without disclosure. This includes CarFax. Since you mention a variance in the degree of orange peel, that's what came to mind first. Was there variance between adjacent panels of different or same materials?

 

Just as a comparison, we did a paint correction the other day on a 2017 Kia Optima. It was eat up, and I do mean eat up, with acid rain and had a significant amount of orange peel as well. We used a 3000 grit buffing wheel on a 4.5" orbital buffer to "cut" it. You don't have to actually wet sand it to get it smooth. We did it dry. But I will say, it is best to leave this sort of thing to professionals. My boss and I both used to detail professionally, so we knew what we were doing. You aren't going to really be sanding a lot of paint off, so I don't believe you would hurt it. On the flip side, I would talk to the dealership who has the car and tell them you are interested but the orange peel concerns you. See if they are willing to have a good detail shop rectify it for you. Not the clean up crew working in the back, they most likely aren't detailers. If they are willing to play ball, let them take a shot on it. If they mess it up, then they have to paint it, not you. If you take delivery and then have it detailed, then that is another story and more headache for you.

On another note, I am surprised a new Lexus has paint issues honestly. We have two Lexus' and neither of them have much if any orange peel. That leads me to believe it may have been damaged somewhere along the line and it wasn't fixed properly. But for the most part, ALL manufacturers vehicles are getting pretty bad paint jobs. One of the worst we have seen is the new Jeep Gladiators. It looks like they brushed the paint on instead of spraying it. Worst quality control on the market in my opinion.

 

Thread worthless without pics.

 

I am pretty sure the OP bought an Atomic Silver one, so it's a mute point now...other than a Lexus has a crappy paint job sitting on their lot somewhere.

 

No issues at all with my NGP RC. It has a mirror finish, but I did have it ceramic coated also.

 

I tried to take pictures but it was negligible. It was noticeable enough standing 10 feet away and more pronounced without sun shining on it. There was an infrared one on the lot as well where the orange peel seemed more than typical.

Again I’m sure it could be rectified beautifully with paint correction but I was a bit shocked to see that amount of orange peel on a Lexus.