25th Oct 2003, 21:43
Fight back. Document what is happening to your car with pictures and keep detailed notes of when you noticed the problems, who you talked to about them, dates of each event, and so on.
Contact the dealer and tell them what you want the paint repaired at no cost to you, under warranty, promptly. If they refuse to work with you, take your car to three paint shops and get estimates for the repair. If you feel the entire car needs a paint job, get an estimate for that. Then file a small claim suit against the manufacturer. The manufacturer may not send anyone to deal with a claim of a few hundred dollars, in which you would win by default. If they do show, you have a good chance of winning since you are the original owner of the car, it is within the warranty period, you have documentation of how you care for the car (you are not exceeding design specifications, etc), and it's typically expected that paint last more than a few months.
It's unfortunate that you have to go though this. It really takes the fun out of owning a new car. But when you mention legal pursuits, you typically get attention to your problem. Good luck!
17th May 2004, 08:18
I am having the same problem that the first person wrote about except my vehicle is a 2003. So basically it is 1 year old. I was wondering what if anything happened in your situation. Cause I am about to start the same process with my vehicle. Since I notice it on Sat. while washing and waxing my vehicle. This is horrible. I wish there was a way to get in contact with you. Since I believe we are in the same area. I'm in Queens County. I believe you are close in Brooklyn. Please respond on this site. Thank you and good luck.
19th Aug 2004, 19:35
I own a 2002 Hyundai Elantra (2 yrs-old) with paint problems. A month ago I noticed crackling in a small area (about 1/2 sq. in.) on the roof of the car that revealed the primer. I Took it to the dealer to have the Service Manager look at it--he said he had to okay everything with his supervisor who could tell me more, because he "wasn't experienced" in paint. Said it would be a few weeks before he got back to me because his supervisor happened to be in the hospital and on vacation for another week. He then attempted to explain that it was probably a cause of bird droppings, sap, or "chemical rain" (which he says is typical on the east coast). The first two are out of the question, and even if it was chemical rain, why aren't any of my neighbors having the same problem? I then told him that my brother is a body shop mechanic who said it was clearly due to poor prep work at the factory. The excuses changed and he then tried to say that Hyundai uses an upgraded 4-stage painting process, the same as Mercedes. I asked him if the quality of paint and materials is the same as Mercedes, and he avoided answering. He then said that if it was poor factory work, I would be seeing it all over the car (not true), and that one spot was because something of high acidity had accrued to the surface and eaten away at it.
It seems clear to me that he is making up any excuse possible--but the fact is, is that the paint on a 2-yr-old car, under no natural circumstances, should be corroding in this manner. It is clearly either poor factory practices or poor paint quality. (By the way, I am noticing more areas where the paint is beginning to chip away on the roof)
24th Oct 2003, 13:34
I have a 2002 elantra and have a huge paint problem also.
Ever time it is touched by anything at all, it's scratched!
I've owned about 10 cars from MGBs to Toyotas Volkswagons, etc and never have I seen such a poor paint job. I have complained several times and have been told that the scratches were made by other cars and not theproblem of my cars paint! Just exactly what is covered under the 36 month warranty??