Poll for Those with Paint Blistering / Bubbling Defect

[Man.v.Cars]

I have read all the 35 pages of this. I’ve also looked at the poll. Still feel none the wiser. It doesn’t appear that ‘every’ Emira has or will suffer from this issue. That would indicate the problem isn’t universal- it’s not every set of doors or all panels on all cars.
That said, it’s likely many cars aren’t dailies. As such, they perhaps don’t see rain. But, they must get washed. So- why are some cars suffering and not others?
I have an early car built around the same time as Harry Metcalfes. It’s done 7k which I’d consider high for an Emira. No blisters. Yet reading this thread would have me thinking the doors should look like bubble wrap. What is the common denominator?

My thoughts are that the treatment applied may not have been applied evenly on the panels. When you look where the blistering occurs it seems to be in the same places, top and bottom of the door, around door handles and under the mirrors. Mine have gone in those places and replicate pictures of others.

Batches where the applied coating was running low before being topped up? I doubt we will ever know the truth as it would involve admitting liability, even though it's clear it is an at source manufacturing fault.

 

[sonor8s]

The impression I got from the service manager at my local dealer was that he thought all Emiras were affected, but then he was at the sharp end dealing with a backlog of cars with their doors needing replaced and an overstretched body shop. I agree with you that the evidence so far points to only some, although possibly large, batches being affected.

One thing is certain. There are going to be some very, very unhappy Lotus customers within the next year when some early cars inevitably start getting blisters after the 3 year warranty is up. I had a very pointed email exchange with Lotus CC a while back, pushing them about whether my car was in the affected batches (they must know) and what they would do if the blisters occurred after 3 years. After a lengthy silence they basically refused to say anything meaningful and came out with some weasel words about treating issues after 3 years on a case by case basis.

Lotus clearly haven't remotely grasped customer service 101 which states that good service is all about being transparent and taking ownership of problems...

Ughh. I did not even think of this. I will be inspecting my panels very closely as I approach the three-year warranty. This is certainly a repair I do not want to undertake outside of warranty.

 

[SteveB]

I'm the same, mine is not a particularly early car (July 2023 pick up, no idea of build date, but the amount of bird lime marks on it at collection for a brand new car suggest that it had sat outside for at least some time prior to it being finished which surprised me as my order was finalised in mid July and I picked it up at the end of July).

Mine got very wet in the first few days after delivery (biblical rain storm and the doors partially filled with water until I took out the rubber bungs that kept the water in!) However since then it has been garaged and not really driven in heavy rain if I can avoid it. I'm also careful washing it, always hand wash and although I will use a pressure washer I'm careful not to spray too much onto the door window gaps.

It's a dilemma really as part of me thinks I should drive it in as much rain as possible to try and get the doors to bubble whilst in warranty but then again I'd rather not have to go through the hassle of having new doors. I'm hoping that keeping it garaged is the answer.

Exactly the same for me. I collected my Emira from Hethel July 23 and have driven it in epic wet weather a few times, though its normally parked under a car port at home. Mine is PPFd so while I use a jet wash its set to low power to avoid lifting the PPF at exposed edges. So far, after 19 months of ownership, there is no sign of paint blistering.

Would be interesting to see if any correlation between manufacturing/delivery date and the appearance of blisters. If there is a link this would support the hypothesis that only certain batches of cars are/will be affected.

I am going to start leaving mine parked on the drive as if blisters are going to form, I want them to do so before the 3 (5!) year warranty expires!

 

[Beachbum]

I thought the paint warranty was 5yrs for most cars up to now, with Lotus recently reducing it to 3yrs for only recent/future cars
They cannot legally reduce the warranty of cars that were sold with the 5yr warranty, before anyone asks

 

[freefall_junkie]

I thought the paint warranty was 5yrs for most cars up to now, with Lotus recently reducing it to 3yrs for only recent/future cars
They cannot legally reduce the warranty of cars that were sold with the 5yr warranty, before anyone asks

The official line from Lotus is that the warranty has always been 3 years and the 5 years clearly stated on the website for over two years was a 'mistake'. Yeah, right. I strongly suspect this is just cynical backtracking due to their soaring warranty costs. I've no idea about the legality of this stance but it is clearly completely unethical and I hope it is open to challenge in court.

 

[Beardedbradley]

I thought the paint warranty was 5yrs for most cars up to now, with Lotus recently reducing it to 3yrs for only recent/future cars
They cannot legally reduce the warranty of cars that were sold with the 5yr warranty, before anyone asks

100%. Here are my screenshots of paint warranty I’m not sure when the changes were.

 

[Man.v.Cars]

100%. Here are my screenshots of paint warranty I’m not sure when the changes were.View attachment 58294View attachment 582952 days before CS & Escalations got back to me on the matter. I laid out that 5 years had been on the site since they began taking deposits and formed part of the contract with customers. If they had sold via their dealership network they could get away with the 'mistake', I agree the change is due to the warranty claims so far, as it would have been the duty of dealers to inform of warranty periods. The fault was in manufacturing, and under English law faults up to 10 yrs could be pursued through litigation, not saying they definitely would win, I informed Lotus of this and I was told it was being discussed at the highest level, including the legal department.

 

[Beardedbradley]

I believe that all cars registered before the change are entitled to 5years and all registered after are 3years. That’s just my personal opinion based on fairness.

 

[Man.v.Cars]

I believe that all cars registered before the change are entitled to 5years and all registered after are 3years. That’s just my personal opinion based on fairness.

Which is what I said to them, any new purchases get 3 yrs but those who have paid a deposit get 5 yrs.

 

[Beardedbradley]

Which is what I said to them, any new purchases get 3 yrs but those who have paid a deposit get 5 yrs.

Which to the majority seems like common sense but we all know that Lotus headquarters will find some way of cocking it up.