Dodge Challenger Forum banner

'15 SRT hazy circles under clearcoat

3K views 27 replies 11 participants last post by  Slowpoke392 
#1 ·
OK so i searched and didn't find much on this issue. Lots of drips or cracks and other paint issues, but those aren't what i have. It seems as if at the factory when they did an inspection before clearcoat they must have found blemishes and used their small hand held air buffers to sand them out. Then cleared the car. There are at least 7 round hazy circular big spots all over the car. On the hood, both quarters, pillars, three on one fender alone. They are definitelty under the clear and when the sun hits them directly they really stand out. They look like big palm prints but under the clear.
Wondering if anyone has encountered this and how it was resolved. I opened a case with SRT but am not sure what to expect. I would never have accepted delivery if i had seen this at the time but it doesnt jump out at you until the sun hits it directly. Really don't want a band new, but repainted $50k car. But i dont want it like this either. Not to mention the power roof that has a mind of its own, closing whenever it feels like it and being stuck open. Is there a real fix to this or will I have to do the ten second reset every time i drive it forever?
Really getting aggravated because I love the car but...
 
#3 · (Edited)
OK got a decent pic but cant seem to find a way to upload it...
 
#4 ·
When you hit reply, scroll down past the box where you enter your text, past the submit reply button, and you should see Manage Attachments. Click that and upload your pictures.
 
#5 · (Edited)
The color and clear aren't shot at the same time on our cars.
FWIW, I have a couple of them in my hood. They're very hard to see and you have to be at just the right angle.
I decided I would rather live with it than fight with FCA and take a chance at it not matching up right after a respray. That and every time someone else works on my cars they come back with some other damage.
 
#7 ·
Sky Sunlight Automotive window part Reflection Glass
Not sure if you can see the oval shaped smudge. This doesnt change or move if u wash, wax, or touch it. Def feels like its under a clearcoat.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Vehicle door Blue Reflection Glass Automotive exterior
From a little further back. Same pic really though.
At first I only noticed one so I thought why risk mismatched paintwork, oh well. But the more sunny days i drove it and washed it, the more of these I noticed. It has to be in direct bright sunlight only. Whichever side of the car is not actually in the sun will not show it. So now I have these on the hood, both fenders, and three of these on one of the fenders, the rear pillars, and both quarters. Basically the car needs a complete paintjob.
These spots dont move at all, as if they are under a clearcoat which there seems to be debate about here. If there is clear, these are def under it. If there isnt then that suggests to me this may be fixable. Either way - WTF.
 
#9 ·
They say the paint and clear coat are done simultaneously but I think they're painting and then immediately clear coating in the same operation or work station. You can see an operator at a station marked "base coat" in the video.
More evidence lies under-hood, trunk and undercarriage where there is no clearcoat - just base coat (notice how dull it is on your car). On a pearl color there is no pearl in those area's either because it's in the clearcoat. I've had enough paint jobs done to see the difference.
So while they may be accomplished at the same time or at the same station, they are not a homogeneous mixture like the horrid paint jobs GM did for so many years.
 
#10 ·
I have to agree. The youtube video is really dated and they may have gone back to separate clearcoating. I'm in the car business and it really looks like these are blemish spots that were hand sanded or buffed before clearing. You can rub ur fingers on them and tell immediately that this is not on the surface.
 
#11 ·
i dont want to sound off-topic (my car is jazz blue) but if im lazy and go to the touchless car wash and when i dont dry off any excess water spots it seems as if they soak into the paint and a real biatch to wax out and even then you can still see them in certain angles in the sunlight...hope this helps
 
  • Like
Reactions: Bad daytona
#12 ·
I think these spots are different. I noticed mine as soon as I got it in the garage and it has never seen a car wash. It really seems to be under the clear because you can't alter the look of them at all by using even an aggressive compound.
 
#14 ·
Wow, interesting pics for sure....
I definitely see it..

I'd go to a private body shop just to get them to look and get their opinion, THEN go to the dealer (maybe they have a body shop?) to see what they say..

Not sure if wet sanding will take that out but I'm sure a re-paint is going to be your ultimate resolve.

To me it looks pretty clear, this is not a water spot, or a fisheye (caused by oil on the surface).
Its definitely some type of flaw/impurity as the factory paint cured.. Doubt it has to do with panel prep, since you say you have a few of them at different spots..

Good luck, keep us posted on this!
 
#15 ·
slowpoke ..for what you paid for that bring it back.bring it to a body shop and see what they say.so when you bring it back to the dealer they cant lie and say thats normal.
 
#18 ·
slowpoke ..for what you paid for that bring it back.bring it to a body shop and see what they say.so when you bring it bacyk to the dealer they cant lie and say thats normal.
Well the service guys all agreed that it needs to be painted more than likely. But even if Dodge goes for that, do i really want a brand new car thats been repainted? Im really picky about paint. Im in the car business so a repaint just jumps out at me immediately. Doesnt matter how good the quality is, it still jumps out. I can imagine when its my own car. it seems like either way im screwed.
 
#21 ·
Either a buy back or you choose the place that does the re-paint. Their body shop will do a quick blast to make it even and what you need is essentially the same service as a color change paint job, very thorough.
 
#22 ·
In the past when I've seen a repaint on a new car it ended up looking better than the other new cars on the lot. They get a lot more paint that's smoothed out and closer to being flawless.
 
#24 ·
Yep, Monday morning I'm headed to a local shop who is very reputable. They do a lot of show cars and lots of Corvettes.
 
#28 ·
I was thinking that too but considering how it doesnt move when i rub across it it seemed like it was under the clear. But ur right, it was either contaminated before clear or its on top of the clear. I'll be hitting it with polish tomorrow to find out.
 
#27 · (Edited)
Ok so i got some advice from Brampton Builder that i was probably at least partially correct. He says there is definitely a separate clearcoat over basecoat and that they do go over blemishes and polish them out, but not in between paint and clear. They do it after clearcoat and hand polish after. He says they dont always do a great polish job so it shows up like this. So those of us with these round hazy areas may be in luck. Tomorrow i will hand polish a spot or two and see if that affects it. If hes right then crisis averted and a good professional machine polish, not a compound buffing, should take these out. No need to use compound and risk burning through the clear.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top