Does anyone else out their have an 03 with absolute shhit for paint? When I compare the quality of paint on my car to my buddy's black 04 it seems to be thinner and of inferior quality. I have numerous chips to the metal on the hood. There are places where the paint is doing an eggshell crackle thing in areas about the size of a nickel. Bird droppings leave marks after only 4hours. There is also tiny raised bumps on the hood that feel like sap, but will not come off. This is not my first black car so I do not thinks that I am just being sensitive.

 

i own a 2k, and yea, the paint is thin and poopy, i got a whole mess of scratches and pockmarks in the paint.

 

I have a 2k3, Sheer Silver, and yes, just like my 2k1 Glacier Pearl, the paint is CRAP. Luckily I put the 3M invisible bra on the hood, which has saved me from any number of scratches and chips, but I have scratches around the door handles from FINGERNAILS. If that isn't shoddy paint, I don't know what is. Even my three year old's nails (which, if you don't know - kids' nails are usually pretty soft) have left marks. Don't even get me started on the side skirts.

Jack

 

Nissan must use the worst paint.....

I'm getting my front bumper and hood redone next week along with paint/intall of my bodykit....

 

durckelg,
It's a known issue with 5th gen maximas (and other nissans from what I've been reading). I have an 01 black max and the paint on it is sorry as well. 1 week after I bought it new, some idiot tapped the rear bumper while my wife was driving. It left a slight indentation from his front plate so I took it in to get fixed. The tech doing the painting said the paint on the bumper just flaked right off, no work necessary. One of the sorriest paint jobs he's ever seen. He used more than twice the previous amount on the repaint so in 8 years, only my rear bumper will have any paint left =(.

 

I have a spot on my roof that Nissan say is from bird droppings and a bunch of rock chips too. I wonder if Nissan will ever do a TSB on it. If so you can have your own body shop do the work and send Nissan the bill.

 

i noticed after my wash the other day that the front end seems worse than before. I have 19k miles on it and I very disappointed. Damn, this car had an msrp of just under $30k!

 

yeah i've had my car for almost a year and a half now... and my hood and front bumper is ridiculous..... got all sorts of chips... and if i let dead insects stay on for even a week.. it'll eat through the paint like crazy.... nissan paint fuking blows.......

 

My paint sucks too, but in all fairness it has very little to do with Nissan. The EPA regs. require paint to be more environmentally friendly, which has turned out to mean that newer cars have crappy paint. Go to any forum - BMW, Lexus, Porsche, anyone - and if they have a newer car, they whine about how delicate the paint is.

I wonder if other countries have passed the same regulations. Any Canadians here with bad paint?

 

I want to hear about the side skirts. Mine look like crap in front of the back wheels.

Buck

 

I can respect EPA paint regulations, but when did these regulations get passed? My 2k1 Jeep Grand Cherokee has NO paint chips...

 

my front bumper is a mess it looks like half of the paint has come off. granted i bought the car used so i do not know where the driver did to it, but i see other 02 with paint that looks pristine. i love the gray lustre color, but i know that eventually i will have to get the front repainted. could we log a formal complaint with nissan.

 

SUV's ride alot higher off of the ground too.

EPA regs are stoopid if they cause cars to be repainted unnecessarily.

 

Tell me where to sign. I think everyone in this forum would sign. I think almost everyone has said something about crappy paint at one time or another.

 

http://www.tzalaw.com/pages/781520/index.htm

 

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....4&page=1&pp=30

 

Have the same problem!!! Why can't they use a dark colored primer under a dark colored paint? At least the chips won't show as much.

 

Man I can't wait till I get my 2k2 a face lift so I can repaint the car. I'm scared to wash my car thinking the freaking cotton will scrap off my paint.....cheap a$$ paint!

 

My paint is sheight too, but the other day, I bought a blue magic clay bar and used it on the paint, followed immediately by wax (meguiar's gold class) and it made it look MUCH better. (I got the clay bar idea from housecor's site).

I have tons of paint chips and 2 dents from the previous owner, but a black car, when clean looks so beautiful (IMO) that you don't really notice it. I have so many flaws though, that I'm not going to worry about touching them up, I'm just going to maintain the current paint the best I can until I can afford to have the entire car repainted, then it's hopefully going to be done RIGHT.

 

I have the same problem

 

My 350 has the same problem, the paint is low quality and scratches like heck to easily. I'm always out their with a bottle of wax waxing out the scrathes it seems on both cars.

 

Mine have a lot of deep chips/scratches near the driver's door and rear door on driver's side. Now, none of the shoes I wear have any sort of metal or even hard plastic on the sides or soles, so I *know* I'm not dragging my feet and damaging them. That's on the top side. On the bottom edge it's even worse, and no - I don't drive on dirt roads or follow rock trucks.

Get this - the other day I get out of the car and have my hands full, so I very, very carefull use the top (read: soft leather) side of my shoe to nudge the door closed. Right before my eyes - the paint rubbed off. I wouldn't lie to you.

Next day I'm getting in the car, and my pants lightly brushed against the leading edge of the rear door, and something in my pocket (don't recall if it was change or a folded up piece of paper) was apparently all it took to cause my jeans to dig two nice little furrows down to the primer. Talk about ****ed.

Okay, enough ranting from me for now. All 5th gen owners should definitely go by here and sign the class action form:

http://www.tzalaw.com/pages/781520/index.htm

Jack (still in love with my Max but hating the paint)

 

The side skirt paint has worn off of mine just in front of the back wheels. It's down to the yellow plastic and looks like crap. I was dumbfounded when I washed the car last time.

I have no idea how or why this could happen. I haven't driven on any gravel or dirt roads ever.

 

Post whoring here...add me to the "Nissan paint sucks ballz" list.