Fatally Disappointed--The Thread I never wanted to write.

The pictures look worse than I had imagined. Mine came with some brown dots embedded in the clear coat on the roof. I just left it alone. They did not grow.

 

After taking some time to think about what I saw in the pictures, it looks just like what the insect does to 3M film. But we don't have that here. There is no way bugs would splatter on -top- of the hood. And you don't have 3M film. And those bugs aren't that common, at least here and since nobody else around you is complaining probably not there either.

You will have to examine the paint spots with a high magnification to really understand what is happening.
There are only two possibilities.
First, -something- in the environment did it. After reading about where you park etc. I think this is less likely, but still possible (perhaps a truck you passed was spewing -something- very bad).
More likely, and needing verification, is it is something that was in the paint from the beginning and the sun is now causing it to react and discolour. I think high magnification might tell you which. If there is a pinhole over each spot then it's caused by the environment, and if not it's probably caused by some problem at the factory.

I'm a little surprised Toyota aren't more interested in finding out the truth. They could be in for a big problem if it's factory related. Catching or understanding it early is much less expensive than later! I understand their reluctance to take responsibility for finding the truth in the legal nightmare that is consumer law in the US. Other posters "going for the jugular" is an example of this. Wish we had even half your protection!

You'd think they learned a lesson with the floormat nonsense.
Guess not!

 

If insurance won't cover it, then look into out of pocket repaint at a reputable paint / body shop in your area. This will cost you, however. Get estimates, and if you currently can't afford to repaint, then start saving for the eventual paint job.
If your thinking of trading it in, that is the other option, but the trade in value will be lower than KBB, or other sources.

Wish I had better news for you, but if it was me, I would start saving for a professional paint job.

DBCassidy

 

I would not be in any hurry to have it repainted, more of these things may show up. It seems very curious that these brown spots are under the clear coat unless, as mentioned above, there are little pin holes over each spot. If there are no pin holes it just about has to be a factory paint problem. There are other cases of this on various forums, you have probably already done a Google search. I didn't find anyone else who said the damage was under the clear coat.

In this state, Oregon, comprehensive claims do not cause your insurance to go up, I suspect other states are the same. Over the last 20 years I have had two vehicles badly damaged in separate hail storms and both were fixed with no increase in rates by State Farm.

 

I would try Iron X first. Nothing to lose.

Iron X in Action! - Auto Geek Online Auto Detailing Forum

This is an example of rail dust and certainly looks similar to OP's problem.

 

Find a good body shop that is comfortable doing wet sanding.... I got many things out of paint wet sanding myself.

DO NOT TRY IT YOURSELF. You can very easily cause permenant damage to your paint if your not careful.... But if a wet sand and polish does not get it out all there is left is a repaint..... Not many shops are good with wet sanding so most that will even do it are good shops. Usually custom paint job places with do it. Just to hit one spot to see if it works shouldnt cost you mush either. It would take them 15 min total to try one spot.

 

Yup, I pretty much guarantee it is iron dust. Like I say, I've dealt with this a lot on my white cars. It's tiny slivers of iron that embed in the clear coat and then rust. Clay bars with lots of elbow grease usually remove hem, sometimes I have to get out the polish and the random orbital. I've never seen them not come out.

A new paint job and getting insurance involved is getting way ahead of yourself right now.

 

Wet sanding is a rather extreme step at this point. Before that there are compounds, polishes, and all manner of cutting pads to choose from that can probably solve the issue.

All polishing/sanding aims to work on the clear coat without getting to the paint layers below. Sanding is the most aggressive option and will remove the most clear, so it's a last resort. The clear is generally much thicker than the paint below, so you have lots of room to work.

 

And this is an issue that affects ALL makes not just Toyota. It is a bit unreasonable to expect toyota to pay for condition that happens out in the real world has nothing to do with anything they did or their product as can potentially affect all cars on the road.

Samsung Galaxy S4 mobile cellular device

 

Anyone from the neighborhood have a new iron/steel fence or gate or.. something like that what needs wirebrushing? Did you park near some workshop - even for a short time?

 

My question is, why haven't you called a lawyer when you first found out you'd be talking with 4 reps vs. you...

No it isn't. We all get charged "delivery" fees don't we? And have you seen that amount? It's a lot. We pay a lot for quality delivery. What do you think this is, FedEx? Like those employees tossing packages around?

 

The pictures are striking, so I think this gives evidence that Toyota will fix (if this is a warranty issue).
The only thing I can think of, and this is a huge long shot, Hurricane Sandy impacted some cars sitting the NY port, and there have been some news stories about impacted cars being sold as new cars with no disclosure. Check out when your car was manufactured on the label vs. when you bought it. I think you are on West Coast so very unlikely scenario.

Seems to me Toyota has been quite good covering warranty problems, but some people say they are more difficult. For example, take the HV battery. Other companies (eg; FORD) cover HV batt warranty if car is CA-certified and you live in CARB state. Some folks here say Toyota is more strict, requiring that the car was always registered in a CARB state. I am not sure I believe it but some reports.

In this case the issue is, is this something that happened since you owned it, or was it caused before you owned it? It seem like an expert opinion ought to help answer that question. If it points to Toyota I think the correct approach would get coverage.

 

Everything I've heard thus far (not just this thread) makes me hope I never have to deal with Toyota for warranty work. In my experience it has seemed that other manufacturers are more eager to fix their product. No offense to anyone.

 

none taken, but there are plenty of instances here when people out of warranty have received discounted or free battery's and etc.

 

That is a plus to hear. Also I know there are instances when other manufacturers try to screw people. Just seems in my opinion, which doesn't mean much... More common among Toyota.

 

It seems like there is a pretty good chance that this is something that happened after you purchased the car. The folks from Toyota probably felt this way from the start but were willing to put a bit of work and $ into trying to fix it and keep you happy. They did just that. You did not get the answer you wanted, but it is now up to you to prove it is a defect in the car. Right now I have to say the experts looked at the car, tried a fix, and in doing the work came up with evidence that it is not a problem with the paint.

It sounds like they went beyond what they needed to. I think that your post was not fair and balanced.

You need to do some work on your end. Find an expert who puts into writing that it is a paint problem then Toyota should pay for repairs. Until then however I think that they treated you more than fairly.

 

Cant agree more on the above post!

 

I had some similar spots suddenly show up on my 2012 blizzard pearl PIP when it was less than 6 months old. It also looked like they were under the clear coat. I never did figure out how they got there- but we had a few major road projects going on in our area last spring so I suspect they somehow originated there.
I tried the usual "cleaners" and nothing got rid of them, so I went to my boat maintenance shelf and tried some Collinite Fiberglass Cleaner (Mild-cut, compound removes film, light oxidation/discoloration/chalkiness, and tough stains from fiberglass boat finishes.).
Fiberglass Boat Cleaner » Collinite
Well, I was pleasantly surprised how easily and quickly the fiberglass cleaner removed the spots!

It looks like Collinite also sell an automotive version of the cleaner too:
Pre-wax Cleaner » Collinite

I would give one of the Collinite products a try- it worked for me with a similar condition.