peeling / chipping blizzard pearl paint (1 Viewer)

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Jun 10, 2019
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Location
Atlanta, GA
Hey Y'all,

Didn't want to bog down the "what did you do today" thread with continued discussion of this issue. So I figured I'd make a new thread, summarize the options I've looked into this week, and see if others want to share their feedback and experiences here.

Blizzard pearl / super white paint recall
Toyota and Lexus started a notifying eligible customers in September 2019 about a program being started to remedy the issues with blizzard pearl (color code 070) and super white (color code 040). The lexus letter (here) is more vague than the toyota letter (here). The toyota letter lays out specific eligible vehicles. Per the club lexus post, folks don't seem to be eligible for any help from lexus if the vehicle is older than 2008.
I reached out to lexus corporate and didn't get very far. Was told my vin doesn't show as eligible, and that i need to go to a dealer for an inspection to even start a "case" with corporate. I have an inspection scheduled with nalley lexus of smyrna, but i'm not holding out any hope that lexus is going to help.

Options
There appear to be a variety of options depending on budget and desired outcome. I'm going to do my best to summarize the ones i've found and provide links to helpful threads.

  • Rattle can touch up kits (~$100 - vendor: PaintScratch)
    • by far the cheapest solution, but doesn't seem viable long-term
    • my assumption is that, once the paint starts chipping and peeling, it's not just the visible chips / peeled areas that are bad...the rest will come off later
  • Maaco - quality repaint (~$400-$2000)
    • everyone is probably familiar with maaco quality paint jobs. the biggest impact on quality of a paint job is prep, and maaco jobs are so cheap because there isn't much prep
    • not a great option if you're going for form and function
    • from some general googling, single-stage enamel paint jobs seem somewhat common for vehicles that see a lot of off road use.
      • you dont have to worry about trail rash ruining a clear coat
      • the paint job is (relatively) inexpensive
      • they're not the pretty (they can be really pretty, but you'll pay a lot for it)
  • High-end paint job ($7000+)
    • All of the highly reviewed paint / body shops that i spoke with in Atlanta / around the state quoted a floor of $7000
      • this assumes they do all the work (removing panels, belt moulding, stripping off the old paint, etc.)
      • none of the higher end shops were willing to have me do any of the prep myself as they've had issues in the past with customers damaging the paint when re-attaching panels themselves and fighting over the warranty
    • YMMV in terms of price, but i spoke with 10 or so shops and everyone seemed to start around $7K and go up from there
  • bedliner on the entire exterior (~$500 - $7000K)
    • price varies dramatically based on DIY vs professional job
    • super durable and cheaper than a high quality paint job
    • not the most aesthetically pleasing to some (i dig the look of it, but not for everyone)
    • this thread on bedlining the 100 series mostly focuses on monstaliner, as the vast majority of users seemed to go the DIY route
      • results seem mostly positive with the caveat that a good job required extensive labor to prep (~40 hours for some folks sanded, primed, removed glass, removed panels, etc.)
      • monstaliner is incredibly affordable relative to the professional bedliner options, with a ballpark of ~$500 in supplies and bedliner
    • the line-x shops around GA that i called quoted me anywhere from $3K (one in athens) to ~$4K-7K (one in alpharetta)
      • downside is that line-x corporate does NOT warranty anything other than truck beds
  • vinyl wrap (~$500 - $3K+)
    • the ~$500 option is DIY, but with the peeling paint, there isn't a lot of room for error
    • i called 5 highly reviewed shops around GA today, and the price range i got for a standard wrap using 3M vinyl (recommended as more durable than the thinner wraps like Avery) was $3500 - $5000
      • most shops wanted $3500 - $4000 just to install the wrap, and then ~$1000 to do a ceramic coating. other options included a protective film that could be applied over top to increase durability
    • the major downside to the vinyl (IMO) is that, when it comes time to replace it - either the entire wrap or a panel with a tear - it will likely bring off all the underlying blizzard pearl paint, and you'll need to prime that panel before adding new vinyl
    • another downside is longevity. at best you're looking at 3-5 years, and that's with a wrap that is cleaned regularly and garaged
    • the upside to vinyl (imo) is the variety of colors and the quality of the appearance relative to the cost of a quality paint job
    • all in all, vinyl seems great if you lease a nice car and want to customize while also protecting the factory paint for the life of the lease. it seems less viable for a car you want to own long term

Short term, I'll probably go with one of the $100 touch up kits just to get the bare metal spots protected and hopefully stop rust. Long term...i'm weighing my options between the most expensive maaco-style paint job i can get, professional line-x, and monstaliner. if i go the maaco-style route, i'd try to find the best-reviewed maaco shop in GA, and see what is the best single stage job they could do <= $2000. if i go the bedliner route, the professional option will likely be much better quality than i could do with monstaliner, and it also saves me the extensive labor hours. if i end up in a place with a garage / driveway / yard where i could set up a shade tree paint tent, i'd consider doing it myself. for now, though, this isn't something i could do while living in atlanta.

am i being too pessimistic about vinyl? should i consider it more than i am?

anyone with experience wrapping their truck, painting their truck, or bedlining their vehicle, please chime in! your experience is a valuable data point for myself and others dealing with the blizzard pearl issues.

any folks with blizzard pearl issues, what route did you pursue?
 
Another option you may want to look into is PlastiDip.
While definitely possible to DIY, the professional applications I've seen look significantly better and will likely carry some kind of warranty.
 
Another option you may want to look into is PlastiDip.
While definitely possible to DIY, the professional applications I've seen look significantly better and will likely carry some kind of warranty.

i'll look into this one, too, thanks! while i love plastidip for things like emblems and trim, i'm hesitant to pay a premium for a less than permanent option. are there shops that do professional plastidip applications? i've always looked into the diy resources for it.
 
Depending on your area there should be plenty of professional applicators. I would definitely look at reviews first.
A quality application should last at least as long as vinyl, and be a bit cheaper.
 
Thanks for looking into this so much. I have an 04 in blizzard with awesome hood chips and flakes, but it's just the hood. I'm debating a lot of the same options, but at the end of the day it's a trail rig so cost is the first consideration.

I just wish it faded to patina like the good old days.
 
I've already had my hood and roof repainted out of pocket, and now have to address the driver's side doors and rear quarter (top 6" under the windows). I simply cannot justify the cost of a whole repaint, or spraying the driver's side and knowing the passenger side is next. Your research / getting this out there really helps me visualize the options.

I tried a couple of touch-ups - Paintscratch and some others. They look like a$$, nowhere close to original color, and the texture is terrible (yes I followed directions).

I've favoring 2 courses now:
  1. Sell it, and eat the diminished value. Assuming anyone would buy it...
  2. A vinyl stripe down each side to cover up the problem areas (after they've been prepped). In all seriousness, I found some 3M white/gray digital camo I really like, as none of the vinyl samples I got were close to factory color.
The 3rd idea I have is to find a sub-$5k ash blue or salsa GX, preferably with a blown engine or tranny, move my stuff to that, and part out remainder of mine. Leave the peeling panels of mine at Lexus HQ. Not likely to ever happen, though.

I had the hood and roof repainted because every time I walked to my vehicle, it made me sick to see the peeling. I am now at that point with the driver's side, and quite frankly don't value spending money on appearance - would rather spend on mechanical/upgrades. This is pushing me to do something (stripe or sell) asap.
 
If you're having issues with the blizzard pearl peeling/chipping then don't go plastidip. It's made to peel so you will be trading one peeling paint for another.
 
For those of you who have obtained vinyl samples - are they matte? I want to kill two birds with one stone and matte wrap the hood for glare and also cover the chips, but my wife doesn't like the black hood look. Wondering if a matte white hood wrap on a white truck would look silly.

PS - I wouldn't go full bedliner on a GX unless it's a hardcore wheeling rig. Just my opinion though
 
I got numerous pearl white vinyl samples, plus other shades of white, from Metro Restyling. Probably got 20+? Not one of them was close to factory GX paint, incl the matte samples.
 
We have a peeling ‘08. I was at my local Toyota and they pointed me to lexus to start a claim. Said only Lexus had the power to fix it. We had an appointment at the lexus dealer, they took pics and video. They felt strongly that I’d be covered but I’m still waiting for an official answer. It’s only been 5 days. We shall see.
Nice write up on all the other options though.
 
For those of you who have obtained vinyl samples - are they matte? I want to kill two birds with one stone and matte wrap the hood for glare and also cover the chips, but my wife doesn't like the black hood look. Wondering if a matte white hood wrap on a white truck would look silly.

PS - I wouldn't go full bedliner on a GX unless it's a hardcore wheeling rig. Just my opinion though

All the major manufacturers of vinyl make gloss or matte options. The matte vinyl will be very obvious as the white will be very 'white' compared to the faded white on the truck, and look like your hood is missing its clear coat. It doesn't hurt to try, and covering just the center won't cost much (unless your blizzard paint peels off if/when you take the vinyl off).
 
Here’s another option, but maybe not a great one. Prep yourself, then take to Maaco for the paint. Since they don’t prep, they shouldn’t care.
Mine is peeling too on the hood - I hope the rest doesn’t start also! I’ve got a quote from a cheap of $850 to $1500. I’d rather just pick up another hood but anything I’ve seen is out of state and probably not worth the cost to ship.

thanks for starting this thread!
 
Depending on your area there should be plenty of professional applicators. I would definitely look at reviews first.
A quality application should last at least as long as vinyl, and be a bit cheaper.

I'm starting to look into this option as a temporary solution. Something that I could do to get through a year while I figure out longer term solutions like bedlining or repainting.

If you're having issues with the blizzard pearl peeling/chipping then don't go plastidip. It's made to peel so you will be trading one peeling paint for another.

I'm mostly concerned about the exposed metal from the chips / peels. Fortunately rust isn't a major issue on GA vehicles, but I don't want to leave metal exposed to long. Plastidip certainly isn't a long term solution, but it can at least provide a protective coating for approximately a year and, unlike vinyl, shouldn't tear off the paint underneath it when it's removed.

There's some folks over on the toyota-4runner.org forum who have plastidipped their offroad-only vehicles and seem pretty happy with the results. It doesn't seem like a terrible short-term solution. Monstalining the truck solves my problems, but there's no going back once that's done.

We have a peeling ‘08. I was at my local Toyota and they pointed me to lexus to start a claim. Said only Lexus had the power to fix it. We had an appointment at the lexus dealer, they took pics and video. They felt strongly that I’d be covered but I’m still waiting for an official answer. It’s only been 5 days. We shall see.
Nice write up on all the other options though.

The dealer I spoke to said pretty much the same thing. Bring it in, have them take pictures, and start a case with lexus. He did caution me that he hasn't seen lexus cover any of the claims made for pre-2008 GXs. Also mentioned that the claims he's seen approved were ones where the entire hood or roof had peeled off. The ones without much damage were rejected. I'll keep my fingers crossed they approve yours. It's far and away the best option, and Lexus should be handling this for all customers with blizzard pearl. With an old truck and minimal paint peel, I just don't see them jumping to help me, and I don't want to wait for the peel to get worse to take action.

Here’s another option, but maybe not a great one. Prep yourself, then take to Maaco for the paint. Since they don’t prep, they shouldn’t care.
Mine is peeling too on the hood - I hope the rest doesn’t start also! I’ve got a quote from a cheap of $850 to $1500. I’d rather just pick up another hood but anything I’ve seen is out of state and probably not worth the cost to ship.

thanks for starting this thread!

If I go with an actual repaint, I think this will be what I do. I can remove the front and rear bumper, I can sand down / clean / prime. There's a maaco place about 45 minutes from me with a 4.8 on Google and 200+ reviews. It's still maaco, but all the other ones I see in GA hover around 3.0 or less on Google. Sent them in pictures of the car, explained the situation and my budget, and they're supposed to follow up with some options.

At this point, I think my most likely route is dip it in the near future, and figure out long term if I'm cool with monstaliner / line-x or want to try the prep + maaco route. If I could wrap it professionally for under a grand, I'd do that instead of dip, but the wrap cost is way more than I want to drop right now (it's ~25% of what the truck is even worth).


Thank you to everyone who has chimed into this thread. Hopefully this can keep building into a solid source of info for folks dealing with paint peeling issues. I'll be sure to add more info as I get it.
 
Another option you may want to look into is PlastiDip.
While definitely possible to DIY, the professional applications I've seen look significantly better and will likely carry some kind of warranty.


update: still considering plastidip, but not professionally done. haven't been able to find many professional installers in GA, but the handful I called all want around $2k (lol!) for that price, i'll build a paint tent in my gf's parking lot and just use the high end sprayer and kit from dipyourcar
 
All the major manufacturers of vinyl make gloss or matte options. The matte vinyl will be very obvious as the white will be very 'white' compared to the faded white on the truck, and look like your hood is missing its clear coat. It doesn't hurt to try, and covering just the center won't cost much (unless your blizzard paint peels off if/when you take the vinyl off).
I know there's no perfect match, and my concern is I don't want to look like I tried and failed to match. So I'd rather have something obviously different that doesn't look stupid... not sure if possible.

I'm also going to get quotes from local shops (including Maaco) especially if they let me do the prep work.
 
I'm starting to look into this option as a temporary solution. Something that I could do to get through a year while I figure out longer term solutions like bedlining or repainting.



I'm mostly concerned about the exposed metal from the chips / peels. Fortunately rust isn't a major issue on GA vehicles, but I don't want to leave metal exposed to long. Plastidip certainly isn't a long term solution, but it can at least provide a protective coating for approximately a year and, unlike vinyl, shouldn't tear off the paint underneath it when it's removed.

There's some folks over on the toyota-4runner.org forum who have plastidipped their offroad-only vehicles and seem pretty happy with the results. It doesn't seem like a terrible short-term solution. Monstalining the truck solves my problems, but there's no going back once that's done.



The dealer I spoke to said pretty much the same thing. Bring it in, have them take pictures, and start a case with lexus. He did caution me that he hasn't seen lexus cover any of the claims made for pre-2008 GXs. Also mentioned that the claims he's seen approved were ones where the entire hood or roof had peeled off. The ones without much damage were rejected. I'll keep my fingers crossed they approve yours. It's far and away the best option, and Lexus should be handling this for all customers with blizzard pearl. With an old truck and minimal paint peel, I just don't see them jumping to help me, and I don't want to wait for the peel to get worse to take action.



If I go with an actual repaint, I think this will be what I do. I can remove the front and rear bumper, I can sand down / clean / prime. There's a maaco place about 45 minutes from me with a 4.8 on Google and 200+ reviews. It's still maaco, but all the other ones I see in GA hover around 3.0 or less on Google. Sent them in pictures of the car, explained the situation and my budget, and they're supposed to follow up with some options.

At this point, I think my most likely route is dip it in the near future, and figure out long term if I'm cool with monstaliner / line-x or want to try the prep + maaco route. If I could wrap it professionally for under a grand, I'd do that instead of dip, but the wrap cost is way more than I want to drop right now (it's ~25% of what the truck is even worth).


Thank you to everyone who has chimed into this thread. Hopefully this can keep building into a solid source of info for folks dealing with paint peeling issues. I'll be sure to add more info as I get it.

I’m in Gainesville, Ga and considering some paint options primarily for my cladding and bumpers. You mind sharing who you’ve spoken with regarding Maaco jobs (the 4.8 star) and monstalining?
 
I’m in Gainesville, Ga and considering some paint options primarily for my cladding and bumpers. You mind sharing who you’ve spoken with regarding Maaco jobs (the 4.8 star) and monstalining?

Sure thing!

Maaco in Kennesaw (4.6 with 130 reviews)

Sprayglo in Conyers (4.7 with 172 reviews)

Line-X of Athens

I think for monstaliner you gotta diy. At least, I haven’t found a shop that does it. But it doesn’t seem like a terribly difficult job if you have the space to do it. Just a lot of prep time to get it right.
 
No update. The spot by the headlight hasn’t gotten worse, fortunately. Ended up focusing on other mods, and may reconsider my options when / if it gets worse.
 

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