What Is The Color Of Your Car??

 

Wow. My wife called me today from work and said "we have some little rust spots showing up on my hood." The timing of this thread is perfect. I'll take a look tonight and report back. We have a 2009 blizzard pearl.

 

2009 Classic Silver Venza

...forgot to mention I have a 3m hood guard...still chipped and rusted through...

 

...forgot to mention I have a 3m hood guard...still chipped and rusted through...

Similar thing happened to me last fall. Assume a rock chip went through the 3m clear bra over the hood and dimpled paint. I showed it to the dealer within a day or so and they took care of it with 3M. The paintwork was done last week and the clear bra is going on in a few days. The work was done with no comments from the dealer, and at no cost to me. I have not seen any paperwork either.

Car color is Aloe green.

Cheers!

 

I have found 1 rock chip in 10,000 miles thats it. I filled with touch up paint and have no problems with rust. When you wash the car, inspect for chips, if the chips go through the primer (bare metal), then expect to see rust if you dont fill them. This is true with any vehicle.

 

With the galvalization of the steel on cars today the underlying layer will automatically form an oxide (typically zinc) and re-seal the surface, but a small iron oxide bloom can happen before. The bloom is more visible on lighter colours (silver, white), but it should never be more than a millimeter or two in diameter. Light buffing usually takes out it out. Touch up paint is never a bad idea.

 

FWIW: no zinc galvanization process used..... read the following article:

http://www.autofieldguide.com/articles/060206.html

It's an old article but the process hasn't changes except for the change to a single stage paint vs. base plus over-coat.... oh yeah....total paint time per coat is minutes......

 

I have a 09 Venza with several rust spots on the hood. They are from stone chips. This is my first Toyota I have never had a problem with stone chips rusting on any other vehicle I have had. I think this will be my last Toyota. If we are getting rust after a year I do not see a very bright future.

 

Rust marks due to stone chips and it's your last Toyota?

Stone chip care is as important as oil changes. Ask the body shop how to properly care for them and you will be much happier.

Some cars just attract stone chips more than other models.

Good luck!

 

one of the downsides of a light paint color is that it shows imperfections more easily

that is one reason i went for dark grey, and in my harsh climate about 1/2 the higher end cars i see are similar colors

 

I totally agree robert. My 04 Accord was silver. The first spring I inspected it and saw these little rust spots. I was all upset until I realized that the underlying galvanization was still working (i.e. the steel auto seals and stops the rust from spreading). A quick buff removed the rust "dirt". I had that car 6 years and there was never any body rust issues with it and I was not particularly diligent in touching up chips - I drove it through an automatic car wash regularly, had her detailed once each spring, and that was about it.

 

Fascinating nhcycle, but isn't this for metal parts and not the full body in white (last sentence of the article)?

Their video shows them treating components (looks like suspension).

http://www.lord.com/Portals/0/MetalJacket/metaljacket_line_video_320x240.wmv

I'd love to see a similar detailed article on the body panel prep. In the new Hyundai Sonata ads you see them dipping the entire body in white into a milky bath using electrostatic bonding and they brag about the Sonata having a better paint process than MB.

 

my understanding it is for the entire metal assy - including unibody...... I read this somewhere else..... the problem is the one-stage paint on top of the "primer" - to save time and close one paint line in TMK..... I have found a few small rust spots about the size of a pin head but the rust is very obvious.... with my 06 Avalon, pits did not rust. Other articles indicate water-based auto paint is difficult to get a quality finish....... which is why TMK has a near "clean room" environment where they try to remove all dust particles...... My guess here is there are small pimples or bubbles in th paint that rupture.... the pits are very uniform and do not look like strikes from sand..... JMHO

 

Is it possible these small dots might be rail dust that's oxidizing? If so, a quick clay bar clean will prevent it. I waxed mine when I first bought it, but since then, I've stripped the wax, clay barred, used an all-in-one cleaner/wax, and applied a double coat of sealant glaze.

 

I'm seeingfeeling a depression in the paint - it's definitely not on the surface surface. People in the RAV$world Forum are complaining about the same issue.... I'm bring the car in next week to get the complaint on file as the car only has 8200 miles after one year..... I don't want to get into it later down stream....

 

Update:

Brought the car into dealer today and they saw the spots - even after a thorough wash yesterday.... he looked at few and gave me an 800# to report and get a claim # as the local dealerships have to kick it there with all paint issues (his words) and send a factory Rep out to see the paint. so we'll see.

 

Update:

The rust spots were reviewed by the dealership SVC Mgr. after discussion with Toyota.

The rusts spots are there and the root cause is being attributed to fine metal particles coming off the brakes and attaching to the paint surface.

Unlike others reporting rust spots, mine are not on the hood area. Rather, they are on the doors and fender panels (behind wheel wells) with some on the "ledge" on the liftgate.

The SVC Mgr did admit they are seeing this frequently and is most obvious on white and silver paint finishes.

The solution is thorough cleaning of the areas and frequent waxing..... as the hot metal particles adhere easily to the clearcoat.

It's documented and I will detail the car and keep an eye on it.....

FWIW: the SVC Mge do admit that the paint is softer and more vulnerable to damage and highly recommends the clear bra on all leading edges of the car as a level of protection.

 

Update:

FWIW: the SVC Mge do admit that the paint is softer and more vulnerable to damage and highly recommends the clear bra on all leading edges of the car as a level of protection.

So let me get this straight. They want you to install the 3M Clear Bra on all leading edges to preserve their soft paint job? Wow!!
I guess another option would to cover the whole with a vinyl car wrap, to protect their soft paint or how about we construct a bubble that surrounds the car while you drive. Give me a break Toyota!

Here is something that I have noticed on my Venza. Look at the screws that are located on the edge of the fenderwells on both the front and rear. Mine are rusting. I have a 05 PT Cruiser as our second car and have driven it thru the 5 winters and the screws don't look that bad. I know that doesn't compare to body panel rust spots. but it is still odd.

Some may say that the US government is behind a lot of the negativity towards Toyota, I am not going to discuss that, but I can assure you that the US government has nothing to do with Toyota rust problems, whether it be the Tacoma frames, Sienna spare tire cable or the Venza problems that are occuring.

 

If its brake particles, would mud flaps help to keep them off the paint? I've heard of brake dust adhering to the wheels, but not to the body.

I'm not seeing anything like the rust spots, but then I live in So. California, paint is magnetic gray, and my Venza is only 5 months old.

 

I have mud guards and may be mitigating some of the contact to the paint.....it's most obvious on the light colors.

It's not so much brake dust as it is small metal particulates that oxidize and bloom into rust spots......... and they really stick to the paint surface...... since Venza's hace ceramic pads, I suspect t's coming from the brake rotors - I have noticed surface rust forming on the rotors after only a couple of day of non-use.... my o6 Avalon had this condition.....

My plan going forward: map the exoisting spots.... remove during detailing, multi-coat waxing and monitoring...... and see where it goes.... if it re-appears in same spot, will re-open the case #.

 

Yep, I see my brake rotors covered with rust in less than 1 day when I've washed the car. It looks like constant cleaning/waxing is the only solution (NOT cleaning/waxing the rotors!).

 

I bought my Red 09 Venza in November 2009. In February noticed 8-10 small stone chips on the hood and leading edges of the front quarter panels were rusting. When in for servicing in April, showed dealer rust spots which were now expanding larger than original chip. Local Toyota dealership was no help, saying it was not an issue with Toyota. The 3rd party chip repair technicians I ended up seeing were flabbergasted that such a new car was rusting in that manner. Am now trying to get a response from Toyota Canada, and will invest in the 3M clear coat. It just doesn't seem right to rust so aggresively, when chips on my 05 Mazda and my wife's 95 Acura remained just chips - no rust.

 

It's hard to imagine Toyota cutting corners on metal quality and rust control, or they will be reverting back to rust bucket status. People drove those 80's/early 90's those rust buckets because they wouldn't quit and mechanical problems were rare.

With the obvious cost cutting in material/build quality of Toyota's current models people will not stay loyal if their now just above average quality vehicle rusts out in 5 years.

If they have cut corners on metal quality and rust control, they've pre-written their eulogy, but I would think they have more than a 10 year business plan.

 

Rust

I noticed rust on the front edge of the hood and around the emblem of my 2009 Metalic Grey Venza on Friday, February 12, 2010. I immediately drove over to my Toyota Service Rep who thought it was coming from the inside. Said he'd have them look at it the next time I brought the car in for my oil change and tire rotation. He told me it was no hurry. Had my oil changed in April, and again he said no hurry - let's wait until you are done traveling.

So he scheduled an appointment for today with a complimentary loaner of a white venza. Unfortunately he was out with the flu but everything was set to go. Until someone from service called, blammed it on stone chips and said it was not covered. Long story short, Service Manager is getting an estimate and talking to the factory rep. I called Toyota who has contacted Customer Relations at the dealership. We'll see where this goes...

IMO - a $40K automobile should not start rusting after one year. I have a 2002 Camry and Highlander in the driveway at home and neither has any rust like this and they have been driven many places. Even my first new car (in the late 80's Pontiac LeMans) had to have the hood painted because of a stupid decision on my part - and it orange peeled and looked terrible - but never rusted...

Service counted 30 spots... I believe this should be covered by Toyota - I have never seen anything like this. We'll see what happens.

 

AScovered previously..... thinner, softer paint isn't anyone's friend which is why I have and highly recommended clear bra on all leading edges ans hood surface..... that doesn't mitigate the extreme agrevation of seeing rust on a new car......If this keeps up as I expect it will, I can easily expect a class action suit as tosme time - my suggestion to evreyone --rbing the car in at the earliest indication of a proble and get a service Reoari order (RO) and call the toyota 800# and get a case number assigned to establish a timeframe/mileage with the complaint.... for future reference. Rememebr - the Tacoma frame rust-out issue too several years to get to a setlledment that was VERY generous. Fortunately, my rust" spots are not related to the front of the car at this point....

All the same - it is absolutely unacceptable that this condition should exist......:headbang::headbang:

 

report the rust

reach:by the way - when I called the Toyota 800#, she was not aware of any other reports of rust issues. So if you've got them on your Venza, I'd highly recommend making that phone call so they realize these are not isolated issues.

 

My 2002 silver Sienna constatly gets rust spots. Same thing with my sister-in-laws RX330 Pearl white. I wax the cars once a year minimum. Everytime i wax, i rub the rust spots with good wax (or rubbing compond if it was there over winter) and they disappear.

 

Very curious about all the rust issues? Do all of you that have these problems live in a damp/coastal environment? I'm here in the Alberta prairies where we get 16" of moisture a year.

 

Living in Saskatchewan, I figure that I'm about as far away from a damp/coastal environment as can be...

 

Dealership made good on Service Rep's Commitment

Well, I am very happy to report that my Service Rep documented our first discussion when the rust bubbles first appearred and he had agreed they were not from stone chips and that they would take care of it. And despite his Manager disagreeing with his assessment, he had the integrity to support his decision and make good on his commitment to have the hood painted.

I live in Western NY state, but have traveled all over the eastern coast. We get snow, rain, etc... Regardless, I have two other Toyota's with stone chips and have never had bubbling rusts on these other cars that are 7 years old.

If you get bubbling rust, report it and try to get it covered. I think it is a design flaw. I thought the new Camry had a similar front end but noticed the other day that the emblem is not part of the hood on the camry like it is on the Venza - but they definately look similar.

Still love my Venza but I am extra happy now that they fixed the bubbling rust!:clap:

 

Have lots of chips but no rust as yet. I have complained about soft paint earlier on TN but can not find anyone local (DC-MD) that I would trust to do the 3M clear stuff for a reasonable price as yet. Have already given up worrying about the appearance of the car months ago. Someone said all paints are like this, but I do not believe it for one second. May be for those painted here, but not so for other parts of the world.

 

I have thought that the paint on Toyota's was subpar within about three months of owning my brand new Camry

None of my other Vehicles have had paint like this car. I don't have rust yet but I am sure it will come.