Yaris Paint Work

[Ant182]

Hi All, as some of you may know from my threads (Ant182) 13 plate SR and 52 plate SR, that I like to clean my cars ott but I have come across something I need to pick your brains on. MK3 owners does your paint work seem rather thin and when polishing see the orange peel affect ?  Is anyone else seeing these things or having any other paint problems?   

I took it to my local body shop guy who said it's because Toyota don't put enough coats of lacquer on top of the finished paint work. 

The paint does feel thicker on my MK2 yaris and also seem thicker on my E12 Corolla. 

 

Thanks in advance. 

 

[FROSTYBALLS]

One thing that is common to all mass market manufacturers is weight saving. Back when the second generation Mazda 2 came out in 2007, there was a fair bit of publicity about the weight saving methods - 'the gram strategy' - which shaved 100kg of weight when compared to the first generation.

This strategy included not having top coat applied to areas which are generally unseen - e.g.. engine bay, behind interior trim panels, boot floor and spare wheel well, etc - and having thinner paint. Most other manufacturers have adopted similar practices.

[Ant182]

That will be it then, it's just a shame I can't get the doors and wings to match due to the orange peel affect. 

[Agent Orange]

@Ant182

Crikey, Steve....If you want to see thin paint, check out a Mark 1 Aygo, like mine

Open the bonnet and underneath it and in the engine bay...Primer, lift the carpet up in the boot...Primer, duck down and have a look underneath...Yes, you guessed it...Primer.

I have to admit that I have had the seats out of the back and painted the floor/spare wheel well with some Hammerite (Smooth Spray) and I have had the underside of the car and the rear arches undersealed so It's a bit better but I always think, "Would a bit more paint really have hurt?"

I am like you and I polish my little orange Aygo to within an inch of it's life and I know that the paintwork is better than when I bought it due to considerable amounts of effort and various Auto Glym products that I've polished into it.....I have to wonder if your Mark2 Yaris and Corolla look and feel better/thicker because of all the effort you have put in on them...The lacquer might be thin but the top coats of wax that you have put on, compensate for that, if you get my meaning.

To be honest, I don't think that this is just a Toyota problem as many manufacturers are charging extra on new cars for some kind of paint protection/top coat finish and it's not cheap as some friends of ours paid a few hundred pounds for this kind of treatment on their new Hyundai Tucson.

Keep up the good work on your cars, Steve...They are a credit to you!

All the best. 

[Ant182]

Thanks Neil, never really looked at the Aygo, but that does sound bad.  Daft thing it's only noticeable to me close up on the doors. 

[monkeydave]

the thinest paint on mine is where the rear hatch hinges are on the gutter at the rear of the car, it is so thin you can see the metal through the paint and on the top inside of the rear hatch is the same, everywhere else is good and thick paint, even under the bonnet

 

i dont see orange peel on the outer body of car, it looks very smooth

 

[Ant182]

12 hours ago, monkeydave said:

the thinest paint on mine is where the rear hatch hinges are on the gutter at the rear of the car, it is so thin you can see the metal through the paint and on the top inside of the rear hatch is the same, everywhere else is good and thick paint, even under the bonnet

 

i dont see orange peel on the outer body of car, it looks very smooth

 

That's strange then, but what I will do next time I'm giving it a good clean I'll take a pic so you can see it.

[monkeydave]

4 hours ago, Ant182 said:

That's strange then, but what I will do next time I'm giving it a good clean I'll take a pic so you can see it.

my car is standard white not metalic

[Mr Wolf]

Orange peel is caused by improper painting technique – often by the manufacturer of the car or a body shop. It can be caused by premature evaporation of thinner, incorrect spray gun setup (ie. low air pressure or incorrect nozzle), spraying at an angle other than perpendicularly, or applying excessive paint.

To remove it you need to wet sand if the orange peel is bad enough. But it's worth starting with a compounding polish to see if you can address the problem without being too abrasive at first. If that doesn’t work, you should progressively get more aggressive as needed. However, wet sanding is the most common solution. Basically you wet the surface and the sandpaper, and diminish the clear coat until the surface is smooth. Then you follow with a polishing procedure to further smooth out the scratches you have created with the sandpaper. Because this correction is an abrasive process in which you are removing microns of clear coat, in no way does this restore the finish to factory quality or thickness.

If you want orange peel gone for good and your finish restored to factory-like condition (with a full clear coat), the area will have to be repainted.

[Ant182]

Thanks Mickey, those thoughts did cross my mind, but I do forgive Toyota as I do love my Yaris's. Depending what happens I may just get it repainted black or wrapped in that grey colour Ford have being doing the new RS in, I do like different colours.

[monkeydave]

yeah that solid grey is a great colour