[Jeffs386]

Ok so the wife gets me a complete Zaino kit for Xmas and Sunday afternoon it clears up enough to wash and clay the car....so I get down to doing a thorough wash job and while drying the car I see it.....THE DREADED BLOTCHINESS in 2 areas one on the drivers side 1/4 panel and one on the very bottom of the door.Needless to say I felt sick about this discovery because I knew this was a concern before I bought my car and went over it completely before I took delivery,I wonder if this condition can occur at any time because I swear it wasn't there......anyway I take the car to a local Pontiac dealership that is open on Monday and the bodyshop manager says "yup factory defect in the paint,we will have to paint almost the entire drivers side"
I have read that some people have been able to resolve this by using a heat gun because what I'm seeing is moisture under the clear,I would be ok with the heat fix but I'm not so crazy about having almost half the car re-painted especially since this car only has 158 miles on itand I haven't made the first payment yet
IMO..dealerships are in the business of selling cars not painting them and as I looked around the shop it didn't look very modern or even particularly clean,I understand theses cars are painted then heated to cure the paint,my local dealer can't do that,I didn't even see a downdraft system in the paint booth
My question is do I have to allow the car to be painted or can I demand that GM take the car back? what would you do?

 

[b_a_betterperson]

Man, that stinks.

The first question is -- can you live with it? If it was that hard to spot -- then it may be best to just leave it alone. Yeah, it will bug you for a little while -- but you'll probably forgetaboutit once you get that first rock chip on the nose.

Then again, you're probably like me -- and will allow it drive you nuts! Here's what I'd do:

-- Ask and search around this and other forums and see what non-paint related cures are out there. If a heat gun can cure it -- why not?

-- Get a second opinion. Go to someone who paints show cars or high-end cars, because they're held to a higher standard than the typical dealership. Who knows, they might have an approach that will work.

-- Another thing you can do is talk to a supplier of paints to the automotive industry. I used to know a regional rep from DuPont -- and he was verrrrry helpful after one of my best cars got hit. Recommended a good shop -- and my particular problem was solved correctly the first time.

-- If it looks like repainting is the only way to go, talk to the General Manager about getting into another car. If the guy is reasonable, he'll take a look at it. If he's a jerk -- tell him you're really going to clobber him on the Customer Satisfaction Survey from Pontiac. That should get his attention.

Only allow your car to get repainted as an absolute last resort. If you go this route, only do it at a shop that has digital matching capabilities. I forgot to see if your car's metallic or not -- but if it is -- you're going to have to find someone good at blending the new paint against the old.

Not a good situation to be in, that's for sure. But you have plenty of options to choose from -- so I'm confident, with a diligent approach, you'll come out OK. Good luck.

 

[YouHolden?]

Ouch...I have three spots on the top of my spoiler...please post once you find your solution, especially if the heat gun turns out to work. :confused

 

[dealernut]

Re-painting

I would highly reccomend against repainting the car. There is no way a body shop can 100% match the paint of your factory paint. Your factory paint is applied and then cured in a 200+ degree curing room. This cannot be done with your car now becasue the seats, weatherstripping, and interior would melt under the temperature.

A body shop can only make a guess to the color and pattern of the paint. Even a master painter will not get it perfect. Now keep in mind the average person will not notice the variation of the color. But I know I can see corrections from a mile away.

 

[6QTS11OZ]

I had the heat gun thing done to mine. In less than 3 minutes the spots were gone. That was in April and the spots have not reappeared. My friend that did it at a local dealership said that every GM dealership should have gotten the service bulletin on removing the spots. He's even removed the same type of spots on the Cadillacs. So I recommend the heat gun treatment before anything else. It's quick, painless and it works :cheers

 

[Jeffs386]

Thanks guys for the suggestions
I did ask the dealer about the heat gun fix and he looked at me like I was crazy........but I will take it elsewhere for another opinion
I hope and pray the heat gun works because repainting a car with less than 200 miles on it is unacceptable to me,I know it won't match and besides the last time I had paint work done by a GM dealer it was a disaster,I'm not going through that again
If there is a TSB about the heat fix can someone email it to me?

Thanks again and I hope everyone has a safe New Years

 

[johnebgoode]

In order to make the car perfect the affected panel will have to be refinished and the adjacent panels would have to be blended. As far as color match , if it was unobtainable then Bodyshops across the world would go out of business. To do it right all trim, mldgs, qtr glass, etc. will have to be pulled out so there is no tell tale sign of repainting. Todays spraybooths will bake your car at 165 degrees and will not affect the interior components at all. My facility uses top of the line reifinshing materials by Spies Hecker. The car can be done to a satifactory level if given to the right shop as long as the dealer uses one that doesnt cut corners. Would I do it to mine......NO!!! This coming from a guy thats in the business and has the facilities at his disposal. When ever possible.......keep the car original...! Try the heat gun, but ya need a commercially rated gun. Be very careful as not to make it too hot or ya may damage the clear coat. Keep the gun moving back and forth constantly. Any other questions feel free to PM me. Doing this for 32 yrs.

 

[b_a_betterperson]

johnebgoode -- glad you saw this member's post and helped him out. You're the best guy for these kinds of issues on the board.

Is this issue really moisture between the paint and clearcoat? Can't imagine something like that happening in a modern automotive production plant...

 

[johnebgoode]

johnebgoode -- glad you saw this member's post and helped him out. You're the best guy for these kinds of issues on the board.

Is this issue really moisture between the paint and clearcoat? Can't imagine something like that happening in a modern automotive production plant...

The problem described is indicative of paint work that was not cured properly....if it's what I read it to be. Sometimes when the clearcoat isnt given sufficient time..(cutting corners), to cure, the difference in outdoor temps will cause this blotching or Blushing as we call it , to appear. Pics would help a lot to help me determine if it is in fact blushing.

 

[ShAkz05GTO]

For the 1/4 panel... Couldn't they just replace them with another car of the same color?
For the door... Maybe they could do the same? Just replace it?
I mean... Theoretically, every black car is the exact same black. It COULD be as simple as a few bolts.
Whaddaya think?

 

[johnebgoode]

For the 1/4 panel... Couldn't they just replace them with another car of the same color?
For the door... Maybe they could do the same? Just replace it?
I mean... Theoretically, every black car is the exact same black. It COULD be as simple as a few bolts.
Whaddaya think?

As far as swapping panels out there is always a difference between the original and swapped panels because they were painted at different times. For instance my SAP kit which came painted from factory is not a 100% match. However I choose not to persue it because of the labor involved and the difference in miniscule.All ya need is 5 lbs. difference in a spray gun and you will see a difference in color, (because of the metallic saturated colors today), unless blended....

 

[Jeffs386]

got the goat fixed today...........sure enought the heat gun did the trick
so for anybody with the cloudy looking blotches...DO NOT let the dealer polish,wet sand or paint your car it is completely unnecessary tell them to check the TSB on this issue and its a 20 min. fix
oh yea ..............on the way home I wasted some kid in a Ford SVT Lightning pickup truck,first light to light on RT50 then he wanted some more so I smoked him on I4

 

[johnebgoode]

Glad to see it worked out for you.....

 

[Jeffs386]

Thanks John...........I'm a happy camper now ,arty: even put another coat of Zaino on the goat

 

[6QTS11OZ]

got the goat fixed today...........sure enought the heat gun did the trick
so for anybody with the cloudy looking blotches...DO NOT let the dealer polish,wet sand or paint your car it is completely unnecessary tell them to check the TSB on this issue and its a 20 min. fix
oh yea ..............on the way home I wasted some kid in a Ford SVT Lightning pickup truck,first light to light on RT50 then he wanted some more so I smoked him on I4

I'm glad it worked for you because a few had doubted my suggestion to go with the heat gun on a previous thread. Like I said before the blotches have not reappeared since being removed in April. Congrats on the fix :cheers

 

[Jeffs386]

Thanks again for the help:cheers .......I actually had to drive 130 miles back to the dealer I bought the car from because none of the local Pontiac dealers here believed me about the moisture issue......I guess its due to the protective coating they install to transport the cars
Anyway I'm buying a heat gun just in case I get anymore

 

[nardulli]

Ok so the wife gets me a complete Zaino kit for Xmas and Sunday afternoon it clears up enough to wash and clay the car....so I get down to doing a thorough wash job and while drying the car I see it.....THE DREADED BLOTCHINESS in 2 areas one on the drivers side 1/4 panel and one on the very bottom of the door.Needless to say I felt sick about this discovery because I knew this was a concern before I bought my car and went over it completely before I took delivery,I wonder if this condition can occur at any time because I swear it wasn't there......anyway I take the car to a local Pontiac dealership that is open on Monday and the bodyshop manager says "yup factory defect in the paint,we will have to paint almost the entire drivers side"
I have read that some people have been able to resolve this by using a heat gun because what I'm seeing is moisture under the clear,I would be ok with the heat fix but I'm not so crazy about having almost half the car re-painted especially since this car only has 158 miles on itand I haven't made the first payment yet
IMO..dealerships are in the business of selling cars not painting them and as I looked around the shop it didn't look very modern or even particularly clean,I understand theses cars are painted then heated to cure the paint,my local dealer can't do that,I didn't even see a downdraft system in the paint booth
My question is do I have to allow the car to be painted or can I demand that GM take the car back? what would you do?

I had the blotches on my 06 (Brazen Orange). One on the hood, and another on the Right Rear QP. Local dealer repainted the hood and blended the front fenders, same with the rear QP. I was worried, but the end result is perfect. It is about the only proper solution.