Stone chips on E9x models

[ASH]

Hi Fanatics

Can someone explain to me why the paintwork on E9x models are so easily pitted by stone chips. I've seen Nissans and Toyotas with many 100s of thousands of kms, but their front ends are not as bad as the equivalent E9x with +- 100000km, its a head stratching moment. :argh:

Is it the massive surface area of the front end, design angle of the front end, weak paint, the lowness of the front end, tailgating, speed?

Can someone enlighten me on this, or share opinions?

 

[moesaley]

quit tailgating :thumbdo:

 

[ASH]

I dont tail gate, but virtual most used E9xs I see all have stone chip pitted front ends :argh:

 

[moesaley]

i've got a white E90 '08. done long distance an daily city driving
dont really have a chip issue

 

[Sabretooth tiger]

its thanks mostly to the bad roads we have

 

[mo_s]

yep its the bad roads...but I kinda agree..my E90 gets easier chipped than any previous BM's Iv had..its very odd...maybe different paint manufacturer..

 

[Arbee]

I know what you mean... Its not the car or the paint, its the roads and other inconsiderate people throwing stuff out there cars.

My front end is going to get repainted this weekend. But, give it a month and it will be chipped somewhere all over again. They Joy! :yuck:

 

[333wez]

Open up your intake and see how much gets sucked up. I vacuumed almost a handful of stones from the base of my air box!

 

[abmi0000]

Open up your intake and see how much gets sucked up. I vacuumed almost a handful of stones from the base of my air box!

+1

 

[Mike1]

One of the main reasons the newer cars, and this is not limited to BMW suffer from stone chips whereas the older cars dont is down to the paint itself.

A lot of car pre-2000 were painted with Acrylic Paint, whereas the newer cars are painted with waterbased paint which naturally is a softer paint.

Along with the clearcoat on the newer cars being much softer you end up with this result.

Its normal and it happens. :thumbs:

 

[Sabretooth tiger]

One of the main reasons the newer cars, and this is not limited to BMW suffer from stone chips whereas the older cars dont is down to the paint itself.

A lot of car pre-2000 were painted with Acrylic Paint, whereas the newer cars are painted with waterbased paint which naturally is a softer paint.

Along with the clearcoat on the newer cars being much softer you end up with this result.

Its normal and it happens. :thumbs:

Why go backwards in terms of paint quality?

 

[prado]

Toyotas and Nissans don't get to cruise at high speeds as BMWs, so their paintwork doesn't take such a beating! :biglol:

 

[NavZ]

Same here, E90 Black Sapphire Metallic (worst color for dirt/imperfections) & front is covered with stone chips:argh:

 

[Mike1]

One of the main reasons the newer cars, and this is not limited to BMW suffer from stone chips whereas the older cars dont is down to the paint itself.

A lot of car pre-2000 were painted with Acrylic Paint, whereas the newer cars are painted with waterbased paint which naturally is a softer paint.

Along with the clearcoat on the newer cars being much softer you end up with this result.

Its normal and it happens. :thumbs:

Why go backwards in terms of paint quality?

Several reasons, firstly being cost and secondly being uniformity for repairs as well as the drive towards a "greener" manufacturing process.

The lack of a solvent also means that spot repairs are easier to execute and whilst water based paints take marginally longer to cure they have no solvents like Acrylic paint does which means they are not harmful.

Water based paints also do not always require primer and can bond to almost any surface with ease.

So besides the savings in production, the biggest drive away from Acrylic paint is the environmental impact. And of course manufacturers need to comply.

Also dont forget, a lot of the older cars were hand sprayed, meaning the paint can at times be two or three times thicker than your machines sprayed E90 paint with twice the clear.

Mercedes Benz actually uses a Ceramic Clear on their cars which is hard as nails. Horrible for detailers but fantastic for longevity. :thumbs:

 

[Sabretooth tiger]

ok, makes sense

 

[AshG108]

well i have gotten some stone chips and its a bit noticable with my colour but recently i see also my clear coat got damaged and is peeling on the lower front end of the bumper.

must i get the bumper re-sprayed fully or just the clear coat?

 

[Mike1]

Unfortunately you cannot just spray clearcoat onto existing paint. :nonono:

You would either need to get someone like Leonard to do a "spot repair" using a bonding agent but ideally the entire bumper should be sprayed.

We recently had a case with a spot repair on a Z4M which I detailed about 6 months ago where the job had to be repeated as the wax on the paint (Put on 6 months ago) made the bonding agent bead upsetting the join between the old paint and new repair. :yuck:

Now my repair team knows that Collonite Wax is a stubborn fook to remove! :rollsmile:

So either a spot repair or sand-down and whole bumper respray. :thumbs:

 

[ASH]

Thanks Mike, really informative! Merc actually say their paint is scratch resistant! Is this true? Their cars paint longevity matches the age of the owners. :fencelook: lol

I was actually thinking about wrapping my front bumper with glossy clear film, because on a black as Navz said is the worst colour for dirt/imperfections.

Thanks for all the comments guys!

 

[Mike1]

Mercedes Benz paint, dont get me started. :rollsmile:

The other day I got a call to do a classic 380SE in Gloss Black, I swear I went and sat in the corner for a bit, whimpered and sobbed a bit and then called the customer back to confirm the booking. :roflol:

They are superb when corrected and the paint is mean. :joy:

 

[A B]

I can handle the stone chips but what's disappointing to me is the quality/durability of the rims especially the 18"