[HemiCommander]

Hey guys - just wanted to give you a heads up on this!

I just called to dealer service dept to re-schedule a visit to handle several MORE issues - one being a paint bubble on the hood and paint pimples on the roof, and I was told by a friend in the paint business that I have orange peal

I was told by the person that I spoke to that DCX is now requiring all DCX service departments to take and submit pictures for approval prior to any paint work - and that it was taking up to 3 weeks for approval

Seems that if DCX keeps this kind of service up they will not be around very long!

 

[rubicontrail.net]

Or they may just trying to keep costs down from somebody getting their car keyed and have it fixed under warranty.

 

[HemiCommander]

Or they may just trying to keep costs down from somebody getting their car keyed and have it fixed under warranty.

I fully understand that approach... however, I'd hope they have enough faith in their "certified service departments" to not have that kind of dishonesty

Heck, I had two paint belmishes from the factory and a few self inflicted scratches fixed at the same time... service department applied the two factory blemishes to warrenty and charged me $60.00 for the scratches. Which I gladly paid

 

[XKPearl]

I don't think anything is odd w/ such requirements. You would need someone much higher up the food chain to document any defect in the paint, especially if it is determined there is a recall issue. My brother's elderly Cherokee that he refuses to leave had a paint issue w/ excessive fading on the roof and hood over 5 years after new. They did the same thing w/ him and he got a new paint job! I thought that was great service.

As far as orange peel goes; it is not a pimple or blister but is more like having a light skim of an oily substance on the surface prior to painting and the paint draws away and pools leaving numerous small craters on the surface like an orange peel. If your paint is blistering/popping up then that is something different. If this was the case, you could pop one of the pimples to find that the exterior paint has bubbled up beneath.

Did you opt for the Mopar ("plastic"??) coat from the dealer? The factory puts a coating on the paint now to prevent sap, bird poop damage, etc. to the finish during delivery. This is now offered as a reapplication by the dealer after purchase. I did not get it but sat through a DCX presentation. Maybe this will bubble up?

XKPearl

 

[HemiCommander]

I am not aware of having any type of extra coating - nor was it offered to me. I appreciate the tip and will ask the service manager about it.

As for the paint - the pimples I am referring to are more like defects in the metal where it looks like pimples.. they are hard (located on the roof above the passanger side close to the door) and I do not want to try and mess with them myself and have to foot the bill for a factory defect. There is one spot on the hood - again passanger side - that has a small white spot in the center and seems to have a raised area around the spot. As for the orange peal - I would have never noticed or realized this until I had my friend look at the other "pimples" - basically upon walking up to the JC he said "man you have orange peal" My joke back was - should it not be blueberry?

I will try to get pics this weekend and post.

 

[XKPearl]

I haven't been keeping track but it seems like hardly nothing works properly on your Commander and that you are dealing with the crappiest service department around. It makes me feel blessed that I'm not dealing w/ your issues but that does little to help you out. Though this comes nowhere near your bad luck and misfortune, I'd like to share one small misfortune I had w/ mine:

While at the dealership removing the tags from my trade-in, I thought I'd double check under the spare tire cover in the trunk in case I had left something. When I looked I was pleased to find my 4year old son's small wooden hand carved pirate captain that he had lost months before. My son was standing beside me and shared this moment of discovery with great joy. He grabbed his captain which he proclaimed "Davey Jones" (from watching Pirates of the Carribean) and took off out of sight. As I was closing up my old car I could hear several loud bangs beside me that sounded like wood on metal. This coincided w/ my son making cannon "boom" sounds. When I looked up I saw that he had put several small dents down the side of my new Commander, which he had named "The Pearl" (also from the movie). This was all as he recreated a pivotal battle scene between "Jack Sparrow" of the "Pearl" and "Davey Jones" of the "Flying Dutchman".

Luckily I have a good sense of humor, the Commander is a 4x4 (they are ment to be dinged up), and it is white ('cause the dents can't be found 'less ye know where to find 'em).

XKPearl

 

[HemiCommander]

XK,

That is an interesting story. I appreciate your reply

I am really looking forward to the day when I can truly enjoy driving the Commander without issue. I am the type that purchases a vehicle and drives it for about 200,000 miles before looking for somehting else. Hopefully they will get all of the issues worked out on this visit as I have gotten the president of the dealership involved and have sent him docmented proof of all the repairs they have made thusfor.

Cheers,
Chad

 

[XKPearl]

I washed and hand waxed the Commander today and while doing so I looked over the paint. Mine has the slightest orange peel that is barely perceptible to the naked eye. Otherwise the paint is nearly as slick as glass w/out any defects such as those you described. I was actually impressed at the overall quality of the fit and finish as the paint looked as well in the jambs, under the hood, hinges, etc. and the panels were nearly perfectly aligned. I even hosed all the areas that many complained leaked water into the interior and found mine to be bone dry.

I hope yours gets worked out to your satisfaction.

XKPearl

 

[TPS]

I've got the midnight blue Commander - it's got some noticable orange peel. I asked a friend of mine who used to be in the body shop business about it - he said most new cars today have some degree of orange peel. On most factory paint jobs, it's usually caused a heavy coat (or coats) of clearcoat. While it's not a mirror finish, it will give you extra paint durability over the years - not a bad thing for a Jeep to have, especially if you plan on any off-roading.

 

[aglio]

i've got some orange peel myself...going to give her a good waxing and evaluate how bad it is, then go from there.

 

[mikey]

Common, guys, with this orange peal stuff!
All Commanders have this orange peel but it is bearly visible and you really have to look for that under correct light and angle. The truck is nice and shiny like dog's balls. Until all the talk started I did not know what the hell all this orange peel was about. As long as the paint does its job (that means holds), forget about it. If only those idiots put a bigger gas tank so that it does not run out of gas in 200 miles, that would be just dandy.
Also, any mention of 20 mph is utter nonsense. I've got 6K miles on V8 4.7 and the averaged mileage is 11.2 miles per gallon. 'nuff said.

 

[Creek]

Must have tough commute. Got 16.9 on my last trip. My old GC best was 19mpg

 

[HemiCommander]

Mikey,

The orange peal along with all the white spots that look like white head pimples are bad enough that DSX is having the hood re-painted. I have an appt to take in on 9/7 and have inforned the dealership that if the paint job is not up to my expectations, ie factory finish, they will be replacing the hood with one ordered from the factory.

 

[Dabitz]

My Commander is Silver, and has a few black dots. It it like holes in the paint and you can see what I guess is the black primer. There are perfect dots. Would it be worth taking this to the dealership?

 

[EODJEEPXK]

i searched clearcoat and this was the close. I took in my XK to a local dealer and they said they would fix the the paint bubble and rust on the front leading edge of the hood, but would not fix the clear coat that is flaking off on a different part of the jeep. is this right? i thought that clear coat was covered under the 5 year 100,000 corrosion warranty?

 

[robby]

i searched clearcoat and this was the close. I took in my XK to a local dealer and they said they would fix the the paint bubble and rust on the front leading edge of the hood, but would not fix the clear coat that is flaking off on a different part of the jeep. is this right? i thought that clear coat was covered under the 5 year 100,000 corrosion warranty?

No my friend,
Corrosion is corrosion.
Clear coat flaking is under 3/36.....but....are you getting close with a pressure washer?
Unless an old refinish job (before you got it) can't think of a thing that would cause flaking on a original finish nowadays.
Some years back cars looked good going into the carwash and came out the other end looking like they been cleaned w/500 psi water guns.
That really doesn't happen anymore.

Rob

 

[EODJEEPXK]

I will try to take a pic of the clear coat. it is under the hood but not the hood. it is on the passanger side on top of the quarter panel but when the hood is down you can not see it. i wash the XK with the hose and a bucket. i am way too cheap to buy a pressure washer, lol! i guess it was wishful thinking. looks like i will have to pay to get it fixed. thanks again robby. very informative as always.
EOD OUT!!!