What's with the bad GM Van white paint jobs?

[JetAgeHobo]

Ok, my van's almost 14 years old, so I expect paint issues and rust. But I see a TON of younger GM vans with bare metal spots where the white paint should be. And quite a few pick up trucks.

Did they ever figure out what they did wrong? If so what year did they start getting the paint job right?

One of those things that nags me when I parked under a tree waiting for the next load.

 

[davekc]

No need for an excellent paint job if they know they will be Penske yellow in a short period of time.

 

[JetAgeHobo]

No need for an excellent paint job if they know they will be Penske yellow in a short period of time.

Ouch, that hurt. Mine was an ex U-Haul from what I was able to find on its pedigree. Thinking of having it painted Schneider Orange. Getting tired of the white/primer/galvanized/rust color scheme.

 

[21cExp]

From what I've seen on the roads, it's usually the hoods and just above the windshields, both of which are areas the bugs hit the most. If left uncleaned, that dead bug juice acts like acid and pits the paint, eventually down to metal. Then, of course, the weather takes over and gets under, causing more problems.

Sure does seem to be more of a problem with GM vans though, so I'm thinking it has to do with the primer they use (is primer still used in production lines?) or their baking/drying/finishing process needs tweaking.

I have an '08 and can see if I wasn't fussy about keeping my van clean, especially the front edge of the hood when running hard in bug season, I'd have a problem too. Wasn't a problem with my '98 Express.

Never thought about it being primarily on white vans; may be because on other colors you can't see it as well.

Dead bug juice...bad stuff.

 

[Murraycroexp]

Yeah, out of our 4 vans 2 are '06 Expresses. Both are starting doing this. The hoods, edge if fender next to the hood & the edge of the front doors by the windows. The bug theory makes some sense, or maybe as these spot all take rough hits by rain, road grime, sleet, salt, and just general friction.

 

[redytrk]

It`s not just vans. My 94 Olds is doing the same thing. started with rear door drivers side then the top. now the passenger door. Paint just pops off.
OK I know its older than dirt but with me being on the road most of the time she dosen`t rack up many miles.

 

[purgoose10]

I to had that problem on an older GM c/van. I took it to the dealer that I used to buy them from and he told me that GM had a problem with the pigmentation of white paint (okay whatever). They repainted the van for free. That was several years ago and the van was 2 yrs old at the time so I don't know if that will apply here. If you bought yours new I would take it back, you never know.

 

[asjssl]

I was told it is a primer issue...a lot of early 90's gm had this same problem..

Sent from my DROID RAZR using EO Forums mobile app

 

[redytrk]

Discussion of the problem from back in 2006 OEM Paint Peel Recall?

 

[redytrk]

I wonder if the bad panels could be covered with the white vinyl like what FedEx is using to wrap vehicle body's?
A bunch of Google employees had Sergei`s car wrapped in orange (I think) as an April Fools joke.
Where do you buy the stuff?

 

[21cExp]

I wonder if the bad panels could be covered with the white vinyl like what FedEx is using to wrap vehicle body's?
A bunch of Google employees had Sergei`s car wrapped in orange (I think) as an April Fools joke.
Where do you buy the stuff?

I don't know about a whole body wrap, but 3M makes clear stuff you can use to protect specific areas.

I can't recall where I got mine (have had it over a year but have not yet applied it) but it was custom cut to do the front edge of my hood, to cover the whole front curve. Maybe 7-8". Protects it from bugs and anything else that may cause pitting, thereby preventing the weather from getting under the paint to start the peeling.

Also bought clear strips to do the door edges.

I'll have to look it up, but will post it here when I find it.

 

[JetAgeHobo]

Anybody old enough to remember "beetle boards?" If you had a VW Beetle you could rent it out as advertising space, the company would paint it up as a billboard, and when the term was done they'd re paint it back.

Wonder if anyone does that with cargo vans these days. Really, I drive about 250 miles a day around town, plain white van, courier company only gives me a little yellow sign to put on the dash. Seems a good opportunity to sell advertising space. Do a full vehicle wrap and kill a couple birds with one stone.

 

[zorry]

Quite a few lettering shops do vinyl wraps. Call to see about individual panels.

 

[JetAgeHobo]

I've pretty much ascertained that if I get any more peeling of the paint job on my van, it's going to be because of bird strikes. Hit two in the last week. One today as dead center on the windshield, no damage to the windshield itself, but a bit of a gooey mess.