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Comments
Do you assume she only waxed THIS Toyota in that manner? If she waxed the others in the same manner, then this particular one shouldn't be acting any differently.
On a side note, I have made acquaintances with someone who works with Toyota and he saw my car and agreed it's unacceptable. He will be seeing me this week at the dealership to see if they can do more for me. FINALLY. Wish me luck, everyone. I will post the results.
What I do assume is that if it is a 2003 Toyota and she waxed it 37 times with a harsh product that she might not have used before, she could have removed some of the finish.
I am one of the first ones to defend a good product, but by the same token, I won't turn a blind eye when I think quality has slipped.
I have owned Toyotas for thirty years, including four Corollas (1984, 1997, 2004, and 2009 [I also owned a 1978 Celica hatchback from 1982 - 2008]) and I have generally been a satisfied customer. In my humble opinion, the 2009 seems to have a slightly 'cheaper' feel overall compared to my 2004. Mostly small things like too much cheap-looking plastic in the interior, floating foam blocks in the front fenders (visible from the driver's seat with the door open), wheel wells without gravel shields, and even the fuel door is so light it feels cheap (lighter materials = better gas mileage?). I mainly bought the 2009 b/c of my past (good) experience with Toyotas and the excellent fuel economy. No mechanical problems to date other than a 'false' check engine code (cylinder #3), although i've read that water pumps in the 2009 may be prone to failure.
Paint
The in-service date for the 2009 is Nov 2008 an I bought it ('certified') in Nov 2010. It has blue streak metallic paint and looked great when I bought it as the dealer's 'make-ready' department did an excellent prep job. Once the dealer's wax (or whatever they used) wore off, I saw what I thought was an excessive number of nicks in the nose piece, but I assumed that the previous owner dove on roads with loose gravel.
The car has primarily been garage kept over the last two years (not sure about the first 2 years), although it does see some sun. While waxing the car last weekend, I saw a lot of small, mostly roundish areas of cracked paint (liked dried, cracked mud) on the trunk lid where I can see down to the primer. Other areas of the roof are also starting to 'crack', with some areas the size of a quarter. The paint on the top surfaces (hood, roof, and trunk lid) seem to have thinner paint than the sides, which are fine far. You would think that a chemical was spilled on the surface, but I know that is not the case. Seeing many other similar posts confirms my suspicion that it's just a low quality paint job.
Again, it's just one man's opinion - sorry for the long winded post, it's my first one, but I was compelled to finally respond after reading other posts where Toyota defenders suggest that this is normal paint wear.
I'll visit the dealer's 'make ready' shop to see what products they recommend to retard the deterioration, but that's just a stop-gap measure.
I checked out Toyotanation - thanks.
Hi,
I am new to this forum and ran it across it for the first time yesterday after being at the body shop to quote a paint job for my 06 Corolla. The paint is peeling so badly off the roof and I just saw it for the first time over the Christmas/New Year holiday when nothing could be done because everyone was off or closed. I am extremely upset as this should not be happening to a car of this age, regardless of the make or model. I have been the only owner of this car as I purchased it brand new. When I went to the body shop I asked if they had been aware of other Toyota Corollas with a similar problem and the guy said yes he had seen a few this way. He also confirmed that due to the nature of the paint peeling there is no way to just sand it and repaint that spot because there is obviously a defect in the original paint or the way the original paint was to adhere. Therefore it will be a minimum of $1200 to fix this problem because the entire roof has to be stripped and the windshield (back and front) has to be removed. And it is rusting! So time is of an essence. Would you please reply to my post about what you all have done regarding your issues? I am currently searching the internet to see if any legal actions that have been taken because this is obviously a wide spread problem over the course of many years. Please help!
Thanks!
My friend has a white 2005 Echo with similar symptoms. I suppose you could buff them off but would that be a good idea? Then some acrylic treatment?
Thank you!!
I just spent a frustrating few hours at the dealership where I bought my 2007 Camry. I showed it to the service director who noted it but said mine was the only Camry he has seen that has this problem (He showed me the cars on the lot and said none of them have this problem!) and said that since it is out of warranty, he could do nothing about it. He told me to call the main office 800 number and that if they authorized it, he could get it done. When I called the central number, I was told that they have no records of any paint problems with the 2007 Camry and therefore they would nothing about it. The agent gave me a case number and that's it!
So do you think that Toyota is aware of this problem or not? If they are aware, how can they get away with this? Should I contact the Better Business Bureau or some other agency?
I have not seen any complaints on Toyotanation forums.
Just for the record I own a 2007 corolla LE "Blue color", it chipped/lost paint on the hood and looks ugly. Everything else is in perfect working condition, dealer serviced etc but I cannot put it up for sale because the ugly hood only invites embarrassing offers/trade-in. So I have no choice but to keep it. And like many others I got a quote for $1200 and one body shop offered to do it for $600 but he would replace entire hood and I thought it was a bad idea.
I would like to know of anyone with a Canadian Toyota Corolla, with the paint peeling on it. I have a 2009 Toyota Rav4, with the paint peeling on it. I am gathering info on Toyota's with paint problems. Preferably 2007-2014's. Preferably Canadian manufactured, as I am not sure of complaint process in the U.S.
Buyer Beware - My wife owns a 2010 Rave 4 and the paint is peeling off the roof just above the windshield. The car is one year beyond the 3 year warranty. No help is available from either the dealership or Toyota. Upon inspection the paint in this area is blistering and evidently begins peeling off from wind and rain. I have owned more than 10 new automobiles of different makes in my lifetime. I usually own my cars for 8 to 10 years. I have never had a problem with the paint finish on any of them. Toyota, never again!
I was thinking about buying another Toyota, but given these problems I'm leaning toward something that isn't going to start experiencing leprosy after 5 years.