08 MS3 Orange Peel paint black mica???

[stanley_cup]

I just got a 2008 Mazdaspeed 3 Mica Black and I am amazed at the poor quality paint job. It is orange peel all over. Does any one see this? Is this normal? Are other colors--red, blue, silver the same???

I have seen this problem on domestic cars but is Japan going the way of USA auto manufacturers?? Or was my car re-painted by dealer due to crash?? Please respond. Thank you??

 

[Sierra117]

From speaking with numerous FD owners, paint seems to be an after though sorta thing from Mazda. Mine already has some scratches along the spolier and hood and leading edges.

 

[stanley_cup]

My car IS BRAND NEW WITH 38 MILES

and it has orange peel. Are your scratches from factory??

 

[PeterC]

My 08 Black Mica is smooth as glass. It does have very fine scratches though, but black shows these the most.

 

[LaraS]

Yeah I have had the orange peel on my Phantom Blue Mazda3 since day 1 of ownership.... quite disappointing.

 

[B1GHAM]

every new (mass produced) vehicle is going to have a mild orange peel. I was told it has more to do with the way the vehicles are painted due to the stringent laws regarding emission controls in factories than the manufacturer "rushing" the job.

that said, do you have pictures of it? ALSO, is the orange peel localized? if its not (and its all over the vehicle) then I HIGHLY doubt they repainted the car for any reason. A dealership is not going to repaint an entire car for scratches in a localized area. If this were the case though, youd probably see the masking lines from where certain areas were taped off and painted around. Another big tell is if the paint, on say a bumper or hood, isnt color matched to the rest of the vehicle. The problem with this is that most of us dont have the eyes to judge such a problem unless its an extremely poor job.

The best way to rid yourself of the "orange" peel is to have the vehicle professionally buffed with compound to reduce the effect considerably, this will also take out any swirl marks. That can cost a decent amount though, so my advice would be to 3 stage wax the vehicle (preferably with a random orbital buffer if you know what youre doing: otherwise by hand) after a nice claybaring to help reduce the effect. It will however will still be noticable.

 

[Powerslave]

mine is great i have no idea what your talking about

 

[B1GHAM]

as a side note:

I understand that most of us spent our small fortunes on a vehicle we want to be perfect. HOWEVER, none of us are complaining about the paint job on our ferrari's. The paint on any new mass produced vehicle isnt going to be rediculously pristine, and a little orange peel doesnt bother me much (Im more worried about whats under the hood, the exterior is just for first impressions (naughty)).

As a matter of fact, I challenge you guys to look at the paint of other manufacturer's at your local dealerships. You will find similar (more likely worse) orange peel and other paint effects than on your mazda. Hell I had a Jetta purchased brand new that had a worse paint job than My MSP. Ofcourse, it was black and more noticable, but it really was bad. It never looked better than when I had the vehicle professionally compound buffed. It was like looking @ glass.

 

[IrishMidak]

Orange peel???? Thought you were talking about a new color for the MS3. I got a few nicks and scratches after 16k miles but I dont even know WTF "orange peel" is.

 

[Sierra117]

and it has orange peel. Are your scratches from factory??

Nope, though I do have some marks on the roof where they removed the protective covering. I just need to get a full professional detail/wax, and I'll be gravy. The scratches are from regular driving, but I've only had the car a few months. The clear coat on this car is pretty weaksauce, nothing special. On my last car (BMW), I wasn't noticing any such issues upwards of two years, with never getting a professional detail. Hell, at one point I put duct tape down on it to hold down some wires for the satalite radio while I was installing it. When I pulled it off...nothing. Not even any of the stick part of the tape was left behind.

Like I said, it seems to be just a Mazda thing. Awesome car, crap paint, lol. Trade offs and all. Again, almost every FD owner I have ever talked to has had the car repainted at least once.

 

[Kurt07]

No orange peel here. Just really weak paint on the hood.

 

[chacon101]

That sucks about your paint but didn't you look the car over before buying? I would take it back and see what they can do about it before putting more miles on the car.

..also, I second or triple what people say about the hood paint. A large bug hitting your front end at 90mph can go to the plastic.

 

[Dream]

mine is great i have no idea what your talking about

+1, wtf is orange peal?

 

[LilZoom]

+1, wtf is orange peal?

It isn't like a scratch or marks in the paint but it is more like the quality of the paint job itself. When you look at the car it looks like the peel of an orange (hence the name) sort of like little little bumps almost but very small and the average person wouldn't really notice it. Maybe one of the guys could give a better description than me but I am sure you get the idea.

I have it on the back of mine and it is a 2006.

 

[Kurt07]

Orange Peel

Orange peel is a certain kind of texture that may develop on painted surfaces. The texture resembles the bumpy surface of the skin of an orange (fruit) hence the name.

Gloss paint sprayed on a smooth surface (such as the body of a car) should also dry into a smooth surface. However, various factors can cause it to dry into a bumpy surface resembling the texture of an orange peel. The orange peel phenomenon can then be smoothed out with ultra-fine sandpaper, but it can be prevented altogether by changing the painting technique or the materials used. Orange peel is typically the result of improper painting technique, and is caused by the quick evaporation of thinner, incorrect spray gun setup (e.g., low air pressure or incorrect nozzle), spraying the paint at an angle other than perpendicular, or applying excessive paint.

 

[stanley_cup]

Orange peel is aaallllll overrrr.......

the orange peel is evenly throughout the car. It is hard to see when the sun is shinny and bright but at sunset or cloudy day, man it looks like a jumbo sunkist.

My bro in law bought a BMW 325 smooth as glass no peel any where.

I have ownde Fords all my life and just tired of the peel that is all. I thought the Japanese would not do that. Although Mazda is a Ford made in Japan.

 

[BluMicaR]

I don't have any peel, but my paint is not very resiliant to chipping. Scractching even, not bad. But I have some really bad chips that I've had since the first month of ownership, on the nose. If my whole car had a 'look' that was s*** paint, I'd be getting a new paint job due to manufacturer defect, under warranty.

 

[mazdaspeedwerx]

I almost went to the deal to get my ms3 when I read the intro line. I thought they had a orange ms3 out now.

 

[IrishMidak]

Orange Peel
Originally Posted by WIKI
Orange peel is a certain kind of texture that may develop on painted surfaces. The texture resembles the bumpy surface of the skin of an orange (fruit) hence the name.

Gloss paint sprayed on a smooth surface (such as the body of a car) should also dry into a smooth surface. However, various factors can cause it to dry into a bumpy surface resembling the texture of an orange peel. The orange peel phenomenon can then be smoothed out with ultra-fine sandpaper, but it can be prevented altogether by changing the painting technique or the materials used. Orange peel is typically the result of improper painting technique, and is caused by the quick evaporation of thinner, incorrect spray gun setup (e.g., low air pressure or incorrect nozzle), spraying the paint at an angle other than perpendicular, or applying excessive paint.

Thanks for that. I thought it was clear coat peeling he was talking about. Honestly, I have silver and it would be very difficult to notice. I hand washed and waxed it and don't ever remember seeing that on mine.

 

[Betelgeuse]

Very little orange peel if any. However the paint quality isn't up to lexus/mercedes's standard but that's to be expected with a car in this price range.