Q: Paint is chipping badly, what can I do?

asked by on October 29, 2015

My 2007 Honda Civic has such a bad problem with peeling paint that it is starting to look like a car from twenty years ago! I bought the car expecting that the clearcoat and paint would last longer than most of the rest of the car. But now I have a shabby looking car that runs great. This is not optimal! I would buy an old, used car if I wanted to look like I was driving an old, used car! Is there anything I can do to reduce the chipping problem without painting the entire car? I cannot afford a whole new paint job and I shouldn’t have to repaint a car with 45,000 miles on it!

Honda is aware of paint issues on certain models and is offering to repair at least some of them, extending the paint warranty to seven years from the original purchase date with no mileage limit. Honda has released a couple of bulletins regarding this matter. The extended warranty on repainting applies to only some body panels, in some cases only to vehicles originally sold in 25 northern states, and in other cases only to certain colors. Honda has sent out notification letters to affected owners which not all owners have received. What is covered vs what is not covered is very specific. Take Civics for instance - bulletin number 12-049 covers just the hood and top of the front fenders on 2006 to 2010 models that came in one of nine specified colors (four shades of blue, two shades of black, and three in gray or silver), and 2011 Civics of any color. Another bulletin, 13-060, covers the roof and trunk of the same cars in any of the nine colors. Finally, bulletin 13-004 applies to just the trunk lid of 2009 to 2011 Civics sold in 25 northern states, excluding the Pacific Northwest. You should grab your VIN number and give Honda of North America a call and see if you covered.

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