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Paint Problem - long post

nabbrsnabbrs Member Posts: 5
edited March 2014 in Chrysler
We recently purchased a midnight blue pacifica. The inside of the door jambs,hinges, inside of gas door and underside of the hood are still primer color. When we dropped it off at the service dept. to correct it, as well as several other problems (fish eyes & scratches in the paint),we we were told that there would be no problem painting the jambs etc. These were all items that were pointed out at time of purchase before we took possession. A few days after dropping it off the service manager called back and said that the jambs would not be painted. "That is the way they come off the production line". I am driving a loaner pacifica (white) that also has the unfinished jambs. It only has about 1200 miles on it and it already has four hinges that are peeling paint and have rust spots starting. Did I mention that we are in Southern California where cars aren't supposed to rust?

So, does anyone else have an "incomplete" paint job? Any rust or peeling? Does anyone have any info about a class action lawsuit against Chrysler (for peeling paint) for cars made in the 90s? Did Chrysler do anything to correct the problems? I am open for any suggestions of how to resolve this.

Does anyone have info of the Regional office in Los Angeles?
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Comments

  • twoof1twoof1 Member Posts: 308
    My silver Pacifica has the inside door jams and hinges painted and clear coat finished. The inside of the fuel door and the hood liner are plastic and while they are painted silver, they do not have a clear coat finish on them.
  • nabbrsnabbrs Member Posts: 5
    Thanks for the quick response twoolf1! The primer on the blue Pacifica is gray (very similar to the silver exterior color). Do your jams have the full metallic appearance or is it gray primer with clearcoat? I'm not as worried about the inside hood and fuel door since plastic won't rust. Where did you get your Pacifica?

    I absolutely love my Pacifica, with the only exceptions of the paint job and my dealer's responses.
  • twoof1twoof1 Member Posts: 308
    Door jams are full silver paint with clear coat.
    You may want to "walk the lot" with your dealer and look inside a few more of the Pacifica's in inventory to see if indeed it's normal or not. My belief if that the inside door jams should be finished with the proper paint and clear coat.

    We purchased from Jammin' Chrysler in Chino Hills. The sales experience was wonderful. The service side of it has yet to be seen however my initial impression was not so positive. Part of my deal included a factory trailer hitch receiver which I was notified the day after ordering it, had arrived. I called the service dept. to make an appointment for install and asked about the "premium care" plan with a free loaner. The service rep went "duuhhh" and said he would check with his manager. Later, I had a message saying that they know nothing about it. I faxed over a copy of the web page on Chrysler's site that describes the service and have yet to hear back. They are on the list to call again today.
  • ms_mayorms_mayor Member Posts: 113
    I received my service plan document last week regarding the loaner. Based on what it says, the dealer probably will not give you the loaner.

    The plan says "First Day Rental Allowance provides $30 car rental allowance if the vehicle is to be serviced for any same day mechanical or maintenance service".

    Accessory installation is probably not considered mechanical or maintenance service. Just yesterday I had mine in to get splash guards and the bumper scuff guard installed; I didn't even bother asking about the loaner. I'm lucky though because my dealer also has a free shuttle service and its right across the street from a major indoor shopping mall, so I just hitched a ride there for 90 min., did some shopping and got a ride back after they called and said the work was done.
  • ms_mayorms_mayor Member Posts: 113
    My Pacifica is Lt. Almond, and all my jambs are painted and clear coated. I definitely agree with twoof1 that you should get your dealer to walk the lot with you and look at all the Pacificas he has.

    If that doesn't help, maybe I could get you some photos of mine that show the paint if that will help.

    Good Luck!
  • commofficercommofficer Member Posts: 50
    Hello there,
    I also own a silver Pacifica and it is painted "properly" BUT I did have to have the paint on the driver’s door edge redone. The edge had orange peel from top to bottom and I didn't feel good about future rust resistance.
    I would fire the QA person who watched your car leave the factory and did nothing about the door jambs. The service manager you are working with is an idiot and should be put on a watch list by the dealer he/she works for and Chrysler should watch this dealer too. I would not take my car back to these boobs. I can only hope you have another dealer near you.
    Here is the contact info from Chrysler's web site.

    Contact Us by Telephone
    1-800-992-1997
    M-F 8:00AM-5:00PM
    All Time Zones

    I have had a really good experience with my dealer, Bob Moore in Oklahoma City, and I was given a free loaner Pacifica for 11 days while they painted the door edge and installed aftermarket leather into mine. We put 500+ miles on the loaner and they could not have cared less. I know it's too long a drive to take your car to them but there are good dealers out there and you will need to go on the prowl and find one. Phone around and talk to other service managers. They will probably take on your problem without hesitation.
    Your dealer should beg for your forgiveness at this point and offer you a different vehicle. Call Chrysler and bring the Hammer of Thor down on them. I paid $27,500 for my AWD Pacifica which is more than the average spent on a new car so I expect service to be better than average or I will be on first name basis with the regional Chrysler rep. I have no time or patience for the type of individual you are working with.

    Phil
  • nabbrsnabbrs Member Posts: 5
    I had a great purchase experience at Westoaks Chrysler! My salesman Phil was very patient with me, always answered my questions and he never used pressure tactics. I finally bought the Pacifica after many visits to the lot over the course of a month. Also, Phil seemed to be the only person at the dealership that knew about the Premium Care Plan. Unfortunately, he is the one guy who is catching most of the grief for saying "yeah that looks like a factory defect. We can fix that for you". So, great sales experience, rotten service.

    I called another dealership in the next county and when I described my problem (I didn't say any colors), the guy said "It's dark blue, right? I've already fixed this problem on a couple of them". He also couldn't believe that Westoaks was trying to back out of the repair that they said they would do. Obviously there was a bad painter on the dark blue production line.
  • maxmommaxmom Member Posts: 62
    Just wanted to chime in. I just finished cleaning up my Pacifica and checked the door jambs in the process. Mine (butane blue) are color matched and clearcoated. It sounds from some of the other posts as if this is a problem specific to the dark blue. It may have started as one of those "well, maybe no one will notice kind of situations", but will turn into much more if ignored by DC. Best of luck in getting it handled. I'm sure it will be corrected when you "run to earth" the right person.
  • nabbrsnabbrs Member Posts: 5
    If anyone out there has a Midnight Blue Pacifica could you please check your door jambs and hinge areas for primer? If they are properly painted could you post photos of this area so that I can see what it is supposed to look like?

    As always any assistance and advice is greatly appreciated.

    Nabbrs
  • sequoiasoonsequoiasoon Member Posts: 223
    I would seriously have the car examined by independent body shop also. Call DC and start complaint file #. If these very obvious areas were not painted what else was missed and is not protected? How long is the corrosion / rust through warranty on the Pacifica? Will that warranty be extended since they screwed it up at the factory? The last time I saw auto manufacturing the vehicles are painted by computer controlled spray guns as part of the assembly line. This was frame / unibody first and all the rest of the parts on a separate part of the line but with same technology. If the roof got painted the door jambs should have also! I think? Definitely walk the lot with sales manager and service manager (and regional rep if possible) If EVERY Pacifica has unpainted jambs so be it, if one or more of any color have painted jambs, get rid of yours and get one that is painted from factory not "touch up". Do they plan to take off all the fenders and doors to get the "other side" of the hinge area that you can't see easily? I think you got a raw deal and a POOR service dealer.
  • grndefxgrndefx Member Posts: 4
    I have Midnioght Blue AWD and door jams are painted and clearcoated midnight blue.
  • pacificaoregonpacificaoregon Member Posts: 38
    I have a Midnight Blue AWD fully loaded model delivered in May and door jams are painted and clearcoated midnight blue. The only place where it looks like the paint might be less desirable is deep in the wheel wells near the springs, looks like it is just midnight blue w/o clearcoat. I could find no primer coat in all the places I looked without removing anything that could be in place to cover things up.
  • nabbrsnabbrs Member Posts: 5
    After going up the ladder to the owner of the dealership, they finally corrected the paint problem at their cost. They kept my car for three weeks, stripped it down and repainted almost the entire vehicle. It looks great! The only problem is the inside driver door has dark blue speckles of paint. I guess someone didn't cover it properly when it was in the shop. The parts that can be cleaned will be, and I expect that the part that is speckled as well as scratched will be replaced. While the dealership had my car I was driving a loaner Pacifica, and despite the paint problem I am still glad that I got the Pacifica. Thanks to everyone who posted and let me know that my incomplete paint job was not "the way they all come". I appreciate your assistance and advice.
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