Accord Exterior Issues
industrialrep
Member Posts: 2
Back in September I purchsed a 2006 Honda Accord. I have been extremely pleased with my choice but it seems as though the car scratches and dents very easily. Is there anyone with similar experiences??
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For the dent, i paid 63 dollars for paintless dent removal. For the scratch on the back bumper, i asked what the new car sales people would do if this happened in the lot and they directed me to a patch repair guy who said he will do it next wednesday but i doubt if the finish would be the same. Buff did not help as the paint was scratched probably by a kid with his bicycle
My 2005 Accord got nicked on the way home from the dealer. I waxed it today and found about 3 or 4 others.
The dealer offers you paint protection for a reason. Crappy paint. Better get a leather suit because by the time these cars hit 50,000 they're going to look like we drove them through and asteroid belt.
I would think in todays day and age with technology that match the plastic with the metal wouldn't be a problem but apparantly it is. Has Anyone else had a problem with the paint not matching?
Color matching can be difficult, until the final clear coat is applied, you can't tell if you have an exact match. The dealer needs to work with their paint supplier when the match is off, the supplier will adjust the color (hopefully) to correct the mismatch. This can take a few tries to get right, it's somewhat of a guessing game on what to add to correct the mismatch. Ask someone at a body shop, it's a talent to match paints. Try matching some of the pearlescent paints out there!!
I don't think asking for a Honda painted bumper will work, things like that will come unpainted from Honda. Even if it did come painted, there is no guarantee that it will match. Paint is made in batches, and although close, no two batches are 100% perfect to one another. Honda (or anyone else) gets a match by painting the whole car with the same batch of paint. If you ever bought floor tiles, wallpaper, carpet squares or many other things, they always recommend checking the batch numbers (lot codes) so the colors match, it's the same with paint.
My suggestion would be to bring it back and complain. They can get it right, it just takes time and energy on their part.
Mrbill
Not perfect, but not nearly as bad as your experience, and for that I'm sorry for ya.
By chance the Mexican Honda facility?
Frankly, reports such as yours have scared the cr*p out of me, since I'm probably more picky than I should be about the fit/finish issues-- and they run counter to the generally good experience I've had with the 3 previous Hondas I've owned, not to mention 3 more owned by other family members. All in all, I'm talking about fairly intimate knowledge of the history of Accords representing the '88, '89, '96, '97, '00, and '03 model years.
All were in fine shape when delivered, held up well, didn't rust, rattle, or for that matter require any unscheduled service with the exception of a slow driver's side power window motor on the '97 replaced under warranty, a seat belt buckle recall (forget which car that was for) and another recall having something to do with an A/C wiring inspection (maybe on the '97 again; I forget).
Anyway, after waiting to see what the '07 Camry had to offer (I'm also a former Camry owner) I decided the '06 Accord was still the car for me. I've owned an Alabaster Silver EX V6 sedan for several weeks now and so far it's met or exceeded just about all of my expectations, with a couple of minor exceptions.
Powertrain performance is outstanding; power comes on strong and smoothly with no hint of drive-by-wire surging or hesitation that seems to be filling the 'Camry Woes' forum. It's a QUIET car-- by far the quietest Accord I've driven; noticeably quieter than the '03 EX owned by my father. This surprised me since road noise seems to be one of the few negatives in that comes up regularly in older Accord reviews. There may be quieter cars, but it's certainly quiet enough that I notice and appreciate the lack of wind and drivetrain noise every time I drive it. The climate control is truly set and forget, and a joy in operation. I'm still discovering clever design features (like the speed sensitive wipers, and the passenger power window switches that either 'go dark' or illuminate depending on whether the driver's master window switch is off or on)-- and I thought I had found them all on my father's '03. Switch gear is first rate and all the panels fit tight. Nothing rattles except the keys on the key chain, and I have been paying attention.
Interior quality is (in my opinion, as this is somewhat subjective) superior to any Japanese make in its class, in both design and materials. I've never seen any better uniformity of gauge cluster, control, and radio illumination-- even better this year now that they've made even the instrument pointers white to match the white on black look of all the interior displays. With the black interior and aluminum trim that I have in my car, it looks more like a business-like cockpit than a make-believe Lexus, and that's the look I prefer. To my eye, the '07 Camry looks like a distracting toy by night-- and at least one review I read agreed, comparing the interior of the new Camry to a 'designer food fight that nobody won'. It's 'flashy/cheesy' interior was the swing factor in my decision not to purchase that car.
Anyway, this thread is about exterior issues, and that is probably the only area that if I had any nits to pick, I could find a couple. But I'd have to say that they are very tiny and haven't diminished my satisfaction with the car in any significant way. The Alabaster Silver finish is completely uniform and looks great on my car, though in some lighting conditions I can tell a very slight difference in the tone of the paint on the plastic surfaces (bumpers and rocker panel moldings. But I don't find it objectionable. I did find a tiny speck of what appears to be grit (literally the size of a tiny grain of sand) in the paint on the corner of one fender; and there was a tiny nick in the finish on one of the door handles (it appeared to have been touched up; I'd pin that one on my dealer). There have been no issues with paint chipping. I did notice brake rotor rust for the first week I owned the car (it had sat for weeks in the dealer's inventory) but it's now polished away except for the perimeter area not contacted by the brake pads. From what I've noticed on other makes of cars, this isn't unusual.
In a nutshell, if this were a high priced exotic car, even tiny flaws of this nature would be disappointing. But for what it is in this day and age (namely, a mass produced sedan in the family-friendly price category) I think just about anything else in its class would be a downgrade.
I'd tend to agree that you got a lemon. The cars aren't perfect, but the multitude of the defects that you describe all piling up on the same car seems to be an aberration. That's when you have to rely on the dealer to make it right, and it doesn't sound like you're getting satisfaction in that regard either... that's unfortunate.
2 questions:
Has this been experienced before by others?
What recourse do I have with the Company or dealer?
Bird crap, if it has the right acidity in it (depends on what the bird has eaten...berries are particularly bad for paint), will eat right through the paint of any car, including our old Hondas and Chryslers.
Always, ALWAYS wash off the bird poop the day it happens (the sooner the better), or you run the risk of paint damage.
It's not just Honda that will be ruined by bird poop...My girlfriend's 2004 Corolla has a round spot on her roof where clearcoat is missing...she went a week without washing bird poop off. Paint's still there, though it wasn't left in the heat for 10 days.
If you are lucky, the dealer might help you out, but I wouldn't think they'd be inclined to do much.
(And I might not get away with it at all!! :P )
Good luck and keep us posted.
I have a friend who is the owner of a body shop with 25yrs experience. He receives numerous referrals from local high end car dealers including Jaguar, Mercedes and Volvo. Mind you these referrals are for the dealer's customers.
He has also repaired new cars, with window sticker and all, for the dealers. Keep in mind that new vehicles, foreign and domestic, generally travel great distances before they arrive at your local dealer. The potential exists for chains, hooks, hail and other debris to cause damage during transport. Have you ever watched cars being loaded/unloaded on a hauler? Tight spaces with many opportunities for damage. Dealers do not pull off the window sticker and sell the car as used because of said damages.
I don't buy new for two reasons... depreciation and that gut wrenching feeling when your new ride gets scratched, dented, or worse yet... wrecked. It's quite hard to replicate the paint work of Mr. Roboto at the factory. It also has the advantage of painting the vehicle's disassembled shell.
Kelly
From what I've read online, there are basically two options:
1. A made-to-order bra
2. 3M Protective Film
Here are some of the products I've looked at:
http://www.invisiblemask.com/site.html
http://www.clearbra.net/
http://www.xpel.com/
http://www.honda-parts.net/acnosmasful.html
Does anyone have any experience with any of these?
BTW, I decied to go with this product: http://www.xpel.com/
Although there are similar products, I have to admit that their web site demonstration is what really sold me. Check it out here: http://www.xpel.com/video_gravel.asp
Here are a few other incredible photos: http://www.xpel.com/relations/viewrelease.asp?id=24
Kelly
I drove a Civic 234,000 miles with few chips and no fading.
I have a 98 Ford Taurus with 120,000 miles, no chips , no fading.
I have a 2005 Accord with 3 or for chips and one the size of a small fingernail.
Honda paint sucks and I hope Consumer Report eventually reflects this instead of giving them full "red dots" for everything. :mad:
Plus, as luck would have it, I was driving to an appointment the following morning and heard a big bang on the hood of my car. I looked up and there was a large dump truck about 5 car lengths in front of me.
When I got out of the car and surveyed the strike all I found was a large clump of dirt which was embedded in the surface of the X-pel material. I thought for sure that it had torn the vinyl, but it didn't. I wiped it away with a wet cloth and it looks like new.
If I didn't have this product on my car I can almost guarantee that there would have been a major chip on the hood of my new baby. The bottom line is that I highly recommend this product, especially for those of you considering a bra. Just make sure that whomever you get to install the X-pel knows what he or she is doing. It's tricky stuff to work with, but if done properly it's almost invisible.
I've also noticed that the windshield gets scratched if a speck of dust brushes against it. Has anyone else had problems with this?
Plus I'm dealing with anoying rattles from the dash and driver's side door.
I know these are all minor issues, but I really doubt my next car will be a Honda. I think the quality has just slipped too much.
No windshield chips for me either, although I'm not a tailgater (I leave at least 2 seconds between me and the lead car, if possible).
27,900 miles.
I don't tailgate but NJ traffic means a lot of stop and go driving and not much in the way of safe-following distance.
I hope your Accord stays trouble free!
Other than a faulty rear-view mirror (interior) and a sticky gas flap that were that way when I got the car, I've had no issues at all arise.
Unfortunately paint is not what it was then. From what I hear environmental concerns have cause a change in either the paint or the painting processes, and the paint is not as tough as it used to be. Maybe you could do some research on it. I have the nose mask for my 03, but I only use it when I plan to take the car on an extended highway trip. It's not really needed around town, and don't want to constantly have to remove it, clean it and the car, and put it back on. Something you may want to think about.
I'll probably invest in a nose mask of some sort before the next long road trip to visit family (about 600 miles round trip). It breaks my heart to see all the chips in hood.
Yes, I think it affects all the automotive paints, and some if not all other types of paint too.
You can take a look at what I am talking about.
http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/7c523ab7be.jpg
http://pc.dupont.com/dpc/en/US/html/visitor/s/trouble/PDSG_Mottling.html
Your hood looks like the painting robot was programmed to the point where almost enough color coat was applied. Almost, but not enough.
Or, your hood was buffed prior to delivery for some reason, and what I'm seeing are buffer swirl marks. I just can't tell for sure from the photo.
Either way, I concur that it's sure ugly. :confuse:
BTW- In an effort to save even more money, some manufacturers do not bother painting the roofs of bigger trucks & vans. If it can't be seen from the ground, it may not be painted with the color coat. Base coat & clear coat is all they have. Weird, huh?