Chevy / GMC paint peeling years?

[AntiGroundhogDay]

Are there definitive years to avoid if one is concerned with paint peeling on these cargo vans?  Many thanks!

 

[highdesertranger]

it's not just GM and it's all the newer paint that must be clear coated. highdesertranger

 

[AntiGroundhogDay]

it's not just GM and it's all the newer paint that must be clear coated.  highdesertranger

If it is all the "newer" paint your out there, then why do I see it so much more on cargo van vs. your avg. used car with clearcoat?

 

[blmkid]

I notice all the white color paint peeling. Even vans looking 6 - 10 years old. Seen Ford vans white paint peeling.

 

[95Astro]

I have a blue 1995 Astro passenger van that is peeling, too.

 

[highdesertranger]

I see it on all vehicles on all colors. highdesertranger

 

[musicman]

Are there definitive years to avoid if one is concerned with paint peeling on these cargo vans?  Many thanks!

Its not just Chevy, its everyone. Unfortunately clear kote is not UV proof just UV resistant. Enough sun and it will start peeling. The actual RV's use a UV proof clear kote which is why you just see vehicles peeling and the RV's do not. Follow the money, lol.

Unfortunately the only solution is sanding it down , re painting with UV proof clear Kote. Not my area of expertise but I posed the same question to a body shop friend of mine and  that's the explanation he gave me

 

[Gideon33w]

To answer your question, the REALLY bad years were 96-03 but the GM white paint that comes off like poorly done plastidip continued on.
I've pulled off sections over a square foot like it was a sheet of vinyl. It just didn't bond worth a crud to the undercoat.

 

[Patrick46]

To answer your question, the REALLY bad years were 96-03 but the GM white paint that comes off like poorly done plastidip continued on.
I've pulled off sections over a square foot like it was a sheet of vinyl. It just didn't bond worth a crud to the undercoat.

Precisely!

The clearcoat is delaminating, is what's the problem. These were the years where they got away from using single stage paints, and were going through the 'learning curve' on how to work with this new stuff. Unfortunately, most major manufacturers had issues with it, and some still do.

btw...there's no cure for it, other than to sand 'er down and repaint

 

[tx2sturgis]

There is peeling paint like what is common on certain years of white GM vans, mainly the hood, and then there is oxidation which is more common on the darker colors of many brands of older clear coated vehicles, mostly on the roofs.

That same sun that gives us solar energy also eventually destroys paint...darnit...and especially poorly applied paint.

Some of the oxidation has been caused by rail dust but that is less common now due to more coverage (and smaller openings) of the rail cars used to transport new autos to the railheads in major cities.

 

[accrete]

as an FYI...
Our 2010 Chevy cargo in white looks factory fresh.
Might be the fact that we see ~80 days of sunshine here in the PNW?

Thom

 

[dextours]

Personal observation the higher your elevation the worse the sun damage. IMHO best cheapest protection is to regularly wax you car. Carnuba wax looks best but doesn't last, maybe 8 weeks. A polymer sealer can last 6 months. My routine is to wash my vehicle regularly, maybe two or three times a month. Wax it three or four times a year winter weather permitting with a sealer polymer wax.

I don't care which is the "best" any name brand will as long as you use it regularly. Also keep in mind there isn't a law saying you have to wax the entire vehicle in one go. Wash it, wax as much as you can or want to. Wait a couple weeks wash it again and wax what you didn't get to the last time. 

One last thing you if you haven't waxed a car since Turtle paste was what everyone used you will find the new liquid wax goes on and comes off much easier.

 

[tx2sturgis]

Wax?

:huh:

 

[John61CT]

Is there a DIY UV protection product that works?

Or a UV clear coat job at a cheap paint place if your 6-8 year vehicle still looks good but you want to prevent problems down the road?

 

[Gideon33w]

If you see spots where the paint is coming right off it is delaminating everywhere.
You can extend things but there is an underlying unsolvable problem short or repainting it.
My fix is simple ... Dish soap, soft scotch brite pad, and duplicolor ...

 

[doublegregg]

um, anything definitive on this peeling paint problem? i'm thinking of getting a chevy cargo van, which seems to always be in white...... the vans i see where the white paint is leaping off the vehicle, leaving lovely metal patches --- large empty areas devoid of paint ---- are chevys. which is the vehicle i am interested in.

should i count on carrying a bucket of white paint with me? and i'm not interested in continually waxing the vehicle, nor clear coating it. i'm used to buying a vehicle, and the paint stays where it's supposed to - on the vehicle. my 1999 honda accord is perfect, and all my cars have been fine, in terms of paint staying put.

getting paint to stick to a vehicle shouldn't be such a problem. i don't notice imports peeling. basically, chevy's... maybe other american vans.... i don't notice it with fords....

 

[John61CT]

It is a defect from that era, maybe they saved some money.

DIY job done right should last a fair while.

If you're keeping a vehicle in top shape, it would need a new paint job several times in its life.

Other vehicles have other issues, more fundamental and expensive than a bit of paint.

Many of them you don't see their paint peel because at the age you're shopping for 99.9% are in the junkyard.

 

[doublegregg]

It is a defect from that era, maybe they saved some money.

afaict, it is still happening. the vans i see with paint peeling off are pretty recent - 5 or 10 years old i'd guess. i have never had this paint peeling happen to me, but i buy imported cars. i don't notice this happening as much with imports, particularly where the paint has peeled or otherwise come off, leaving bare sheets of metal, no rust.

DIY job done right should last a fair while.

If you're keeping a vehicle in top shape, it would need a new paint job several times in its life.

i've never repainted vehicles. the original paint has served fine.

Other vehicles have other issues, more fundamental and expensive than a bit of paint.

the bare fact is, i'm not interested in spending money to paint sections of a vehicle in which the paint is prematurely and mysteriously coming off the vehicle....... 

Many of them you don't see their paint peel because at the age you're shopping for 99.9% are in the junkyard.

no, these vehicles look relatively recent...

 

[tx2sturgis]

 the vans i see where the white paint is leaping off the vehicle, leaving lovely metal patches --- large empty areas devoid of paint

Hey I think you might be seeing the grey primer coat, not bare metal. And it seems to mostly be a problem on the hoods, which makes me think its a combination of solar UV and heat from the engine. 

I've seen a few vans with hood 'bras' or 'wraps' that hide it or maybe even help prevent the paint from peeling.

 

[bullfrog]

Light colored bed liner, preferrably tan, yeah baby!