Poll for Those with Paint Blistering / Bubbling Defect

[Gooner]

You may well be right. I’ve seen a fair few instances crop up in the UK recently and we’ve had pretty heavy rain, followed by warm(ish) conditions.

My hope is that any doors being replaced aren’t just replaced with a door that will exhibit the same problems after a few months. That said, I haven’t seen any info that indicates a change has been made to the manufacturing process, so…………..

 

[kennyn]

My hope is that any doors being replaced aren’t just replaced with a door that will exhibit the same problems after a few months.

I know of an early car that was sent back to Hethel to have all panels except the roof replaced. However, it has developed blistering once again, indicating that the production process has not been improved to resolve the issue. Regrettably, it seems to be more of a "when" rather than an "if" type problem.

 

[Yas.totti10]

I know of an early car that was sent back to Hethel to have all panels except the roof replaced. However, it has developed blistering once again, indicating that the production process has not been improved to resolve the issue. Regrettably, it seems to be more of a "when" rather than an "if" type problem.

I am absolutely blessed to have managed to get a full refund on my car 1 year in!!!!!

 

[Gooner]

I am absolutely blessed to have managed to get a full refund on my car 1 year in!!!!!

That’s crazy.

What issues did you have that meant you were able to get the refund?

 

[Bulls-Vivid-Red]

So PPF place just called to say they found what appears to be 2 little bubbles on the driver side quarter panel. They at first thought it was something with the PPF they had just applied and so removed the PPF only to discover these babies. I'm stuck at work today, but will be heading out first thing tomorrow morning to inspect for myself.

 

[seriously]

So PPF place just called to say they found what appears to be 2 little bubbles on the driver side quarter panel. They at first thought it was something with the PPF they had just applied and so removed the PPF only to discover these babies. I'm stuck at work today, but will be heading out first thing tomorrow morning to inspect for myself.

Isn’t it strange to see that on a new car?

 

[grezex]

So PPF place just called to say they found what appears to be 2 little bubbles on the driver side quarter panel. They at first thought it was something with the PPF they had just applied and so removed the PPF only to discover these babies. I'm stuck at work today, but will be heading out first thing tomorrow morning to inspect for myself.

Guessing the bubbles didn't appear during initial inspection / paint correction process prior to PPF install?

 

[Bulls-Vivid-Red]

Guessing the bubbles didn't appear during initial inspection / paint correction process prior to PPF install?

I'm so baffled at this point, I was there on Monday morning due to paint bubbling/crumbling on the rear bumper (posted earlier in this thread #268 and #277) and did not notice these. The installer swears that they did not see them during multiple inspections or during the pre-PPF prep process......implying that they popped up. I'll post more detailed pics after I visit in person tomorrow.

I don't believe the rear bumper and quarter panel are even the same underlying material.......this is so amazingly frustrating.

 

[Go Kart]

I'm so baffled at this point, I was there on Monday morning due to paint bubbling/crumbling on the rear bumper (posted earlier in this thread #268 and #277) and did not notice these. The installer swears that they did not see them during multiple inspections or during the pre-PPF prep process......implying that they popped up. I'll post more detailed pics after I visit in person tomorrow.

I don't believe the rear bumper and quarter panel are even the same underlying material.......this is so amazingly frustrating.

What’s the build date on your car?
4/14/2024 here.

 

[Bulls-Vivid-Red]

What’s the build date on your car?
4/14/2024 here.

My Emira was a 5/26 Baltimore arrival, so 4/14 sounds about right.....I'll confirm for certain when I see the car in person tomorrow. In the meantime you can compare your VIN to mine SCCLEKAX0RHBxxxxx to see if they were close.

 

[Go Kart]

My Emira was a 5/26 Baltimore arrival, so 4/14 sounds about right.....I'll confirm for certain when I see the car in person tomorrow. In the meantime you can compare your VIN to mine SCCLEKAX0RHBxxxxx to see if they were close.

Like others have said before, the VINs aren’t really a reliable metric to use for build dates. They can be out of order, BUT I do believe the most recent off the production line are closer to being sequential builds than Emiras built a year or two ago.

My wife’s allocation hit Baltimore 5/13 (before yours) with the VIN ending in 2869 (also before yours)… so the timing sounds about right imo.

Her Emira has been perfect with fit and finish, paint (knock on wood), and no electrical gremlins at 800 miles so far. It’s currently at the shop getting ceramic coating, and they have not reported any issues with the paint. They’re the best in the area, so I’d imagine they’d be good at spotting anything.

The only issue we’ve had was the trunk would not open at delivery, and our rep had to have a mechanic manually release it from the inner panel behind the driver seat. Took about 5 minutes. Since then it’s opened fine.

Your example is useful though, so thank you for that. It shows the blistering issue is a ticking time bomb for daily drivers, and nobody is going to be safe from it unless they seal the car in an environment controlled bubble.

 

[Nick in Sydney]

So PPF place just called to say they found what appears to be 2 little bubbles on the driver side quarter panel.

That sucks, sorry to hear it. And your car is another example that proves this issue isn't limited to the doors.
Frustrating that, as usual, Lotus isn't getting out ahead of the problem and communicating with customers. God forbid they should put out some information on what is obviously a growing issue. By now they must be very aware of this at the factory.

 

[Bulls-Vivid-Red]

So some good news for most you on this thread. I've now checked this out in person and I don't believe these little bumps are the blistering issue. The bumps are so tiny that my 47 year old eyes had quite the time even seeing them. They are so slight, roughly the size of a grain of salt, that I'm thinking they were there all along and did not pop up afterwards. The bumps only became visible due to the PPF having a sort of tent effect over these tiny raised grains. If this was a 10 year old Chevy I would have done a quick wet-sand to get them down......

At this stage I'm more concerned about the crumbled/peeled paint bubble on my rear bumper (post #277) and will focus with the dealer to get that replaced when the Chicagoland weather turns late in the year.

TLDR = Not the blistering issue, hopefully just a one off case of someone's Emira with a crap factory paint job.

 

[kennyn]

Micro blisters magnified by the PPF? They look like tiny pinholes before bigger blisters appear.

 

[Hobiedick]

Micro blisters magnified by the PPF? They look like tiny pinholes before bigger blisters appear.

That's how mine started, then a white substance, presumably part of the resin, started to appear.

 

[smapmap]

I'd put a deposit down on an Emira a couple of weeks ago.

I've been waiting to get the car registered and thought, in the meantime, I'd head over to the dealership and give the car a proper once over. Unfortunately I found some bubbles on the drivers door. The rest of the car seems fine but it really made my heart sink. I told the dealer I'm going to reject the car. I had my heart set on it - so I'm really disappointed.

it was a late 23 model according to the dealer.

 

[Bulls-Vivid-Red]

Micro blisters magnified by the PPF? They look like tiny pinholes before bigger blisters appear.

I wouldn't describe what I saw as "pinholes".....more like a red grain of salt stuck to the surface. They were so miniscule that I couldn't even photograph them with the PPF removed. I just went back through this entire thread and can say that what is on my car does not match any of the pics posted of the blistering. Maybe it's a case of wishful thinking on my part, but based on my eyes I'm currently believing this is not the same issue. I get the car back late Monday and I plan on driving it plenty........I'll keep everyone posted if things remain static or progress for the worse.

Obviously I'm super frustrated that I have a paint bubble crumbling/peeling away near my taillight and now the added stress of this BS on the quarter panel. All I know at this point is that I'm going to drive the shit out of my car, blistering or not!

 

[Nick in Sydney]

I wouldn't describe what I saw as "pinholes".....more like a red grain of salt stuck to the surface. They were so miniscule that I couldn't even photograph them with the PPF removed.

It sounds more like some minor contamination of the paint at the factory. Frustrating but much better than paint blisters from moisture!

 

[scoates]

Noticed a bubble on the boot lid when washing the car this weekend. That makes driver door, passenger door, driver rear quarter panel, passenger rear quarter panel, and boot lid. Nearing 50% of my panels being affected now!

 

[SJones]

Noticed a bubble on the boot lid when washing the car this weekend. That makes driver door, passenger door, driver rear quarter panel, passenger rear quarter panel, and boot lid. Nearing 50% of my panels being affected now!

All the panels made by Teijin