Clear coat failure, is this how it starts?

[Big Dave]

The vehicle is my FJ Cruiser, which is nearly 13 years old, parked outside 24/7 mostly. I noticed this bubble on the hood yesterday morning, it had rained the night before, and it looked different amongst the water beads. I wiped the area down but it was still there. When I touched it, it was soft, like a bubble in a sticker, but softer, not what I expected. Today, after sitting in the sun, the bubble was gone, the paint feels smooth, but there is a mark.

To be expected I guess, a more than 10 year old Toyota sitting in the Australian sun.

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[Tasmania]

Touch up guy's should be the go for this, Sucks but like you said 10 year's out in the elements 24/7 does this.

[2black1s]

Clear coat failure can manifest itself in many different ways, i.e., loss of gloss and clarity, micro cracks, blistering, peeling, etc.

I'm not sure from your pictures if this is a classic case of clear coat failure, it very well could be, but it's definitely some type of paint film failure.

[Flash Gordon]

Clear coat failure can manifest itself in many different ways, i.e., loss of gloss and clarity, micro cracks, blistering, peeling, etc.

I'm not sure from your pictures if this is a classic case of clear coat failure, it very well could be, but it's definitely some type of paint film failure.

I agree.

Clear coat failure to me is when repair becomes faded beyond any amount of wetsanding and/or polishing.


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What you have going on I would call poor prepping of the panel or maybe just the cheap clear they've resorted to using to save a nickel per car for the shareholders that don't give a damn about your paint problems.

[Big Dave]

Clear coat failure can manifest itself in many different ways, i.e., loss of gloss and clarity, micro cracks, blistering, peeling, etc.

I'm not sure from your pictures if this is a classic case of clear coat failure, it very well could be, but it's definitely some type of paint film failure.

There are some spots elsewhere on the hood that show some loss of gloss, I did have a matt vinyl wrap on the centre section for a few years, but it went bad so I removed it. The less glossy spots are in both areas, side and centre, so the vinyl has nothing to do with the degradation. It's almost impossible to get pics of the spots, I think I'm the only one who can see them.

Maybe I'll wrap the hood again.

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[Tasmania]

The water is getting under the surface some how and making it bubble and when the sun hits it and warms the panel up it evaporates and you are left with these spots?

[Paul A.]

Could also be rust coming up from underneath. Only way to tell is to break those bubbled pieces off and have a look.

Of course only when you're committed to a repair of the area.

[Lance Mark]

i have a theory, we see all these fancy automotive paint lines, with robots and such, but i had a brother work on a paint line....these guys drink coffee, sneeze, sweat, etc....and every once in a while, a surface gets contaminated before it goes to the next step

If a paint job is failing in a uniform fashion, or where it's been overworked with abrasives or sanding that to me is a clear coat failure, whether it be a result of poor manufacturing, or too much 'correcting'....these spots look like defects in the manufacturing process or maybe chemical damage?

[Big Dave]

Definitely not rust, although that was my first thought when I saw it, it did look a lot like a rust bubble, but it was very soft, it moved around like a bubble in a sticker or under vinyl wrap, but even softer than that.

Possibly contamination when it was painted, I have no idea if it's had a respray, I haven't owned it since new. It's possible because there's one spot on the cowl, between the hood and the windscreen, where there is something like a bit of grit under the paint, unlikely to be from the factory, but possible.

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[Big Dave]

We've had 5 and a half inches of rain since midnight, and the bubble is bigger, so water is definitely getting in. I might get to practise a clear coat repair, now that it's only going to get worse. I bet it doesn't stop raining for weeks now.

Another option is to spray some matt black Plastidip in the same shape as the vinyl wrap I used to have. It will be cheaper, I can do it myself, and it will be easier to remove.

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