Silver foil!

[ansellrk]

I've had my Orient Red PHEV for just 9 weeks and done just under 6000 miles. This morning I've noticed that I have a hole in the front silver bars that run under the lights where the thin silver coating has peeled off. The coating is still there but hanging off, the l size of the hole is about 10cm in diameter.

Should I get this repaired under warranty? I can't believe this is a normal defect?!


Rob

 

[greendwarf]

I've had my Orient Red PHEV for just 9 weeks and done just under 6000 miles. This morning I've noticed that I have a hole in the front silver bars that run under the lights where the thin silver coating has peeled off. The coating is still there but hanging off, the l size of the hole is about 10cm in diameter.

Should I get this repaired under warranty? I can't believe this is a normal defect?!

Rob

Certainly, because at the rate you are using it, you won't have one by the time of the first annual service - limited to 62,500 miles since 1st July 2015 (used to be unlimited!)

 

[ansellrk]

It's starting to bubble under the rest of the silver foil now. I reckon a good long drive and I'll remove the rest of the silver foil on that section.

Not impressed by the thickness or the strength of this coating. On closer inspection it looks like a stone has hit it and made a small hole which is just growing. I don't think now would be a good time to use a jet wash on that area.

 

[user 816]

From the topic title I thought this was going to be a thread about the thickness (or lack of) of the PHEV bodywork!

 

[ansellrk]

The silver coating on the "chrome" bits is thinner than the paint.

 

[SolarBoy]

I've only done 700 miles and mine is coming off as well :?

You get to know a car after a chamois dry.

On a plus also removed some plastic wrapping around the boot edge that I thought was the white paint bubbling already...

 

[maby]

From the topic title I thought this was going to be a thread about the thickness (or lack of) of the PHEV bodywork!

I was tempted to suggest that the OP should desist from peeling off any silver foil otherwise he could find himself driving a bare chassis carrying an engine, battery and seats...

 

[ansellrk]

Well, I've taken it into a local dealer and they are sending off pictures to Mitsubishi for 'assessment' to decide if it can be repaired under warranty. I will update you but the silver foil is so incredibly thin that I'm certain that others are going to have the same problem.

Having material like that on the front of the car knowing it's going to be hit by small stones, flies and other bits is ludicrous. The smallest hole in it will quickly rip.

I've already got scratches and pit marks in other parts of the car. I love the vehicle just amazed how poor the finishing is and considering I'm doing high mileage I've got a feeling it's going to look very tired after 3 years.

The dealers response when I told him my previous car (a Mercedes) had done 90,000 over three years with hardly a mark showing was "Well sir, that's a quality vehicle!!!"

 

[SolarBoy]

The dealers response when I told him my previous car (a Mercedes) had done 90,000 over three years with hardly a mark showing was "Well sir, that's a quality vehicle!!!"

Build quality of the Outlander, a £41,000 vehicle is put to shame by my fourteen year old 2002 Ford Focus that cost me (then) £12,000 new.

I certainly wouldn't buy an Outlander, are all Japanese cars like this? I've only had Fords with a brief foray with a Vauxhall (rust bucket with a clonky engine) and Renault (have the engine and gear box out using special tools to replace a bulb in the instrument panel). If so I may need to reconsider the cash purchase of a new Leaf as a second car?

 

[user 816]

There is Japanese and Japanese, I had two Honda vehicles and they were really well put together although the Japanese built Accord was noticeable better made than the UK made CRV. The Accord was indestructible and left me past 100k miles still driving tight, never failed and paintwork gleaming. The CRV went back at 3 years 90K from new with less stone chips than the PHEV has got in 6 months.

The Koreans seem to have the right idea, build in Europe in cheaper countries, poach good designers and do short replacement cycles to keep improvements coming and adopting some of the better Japanese quality control practices.

Bought a used IX35 last week for the wife, with the new Tucson replacement selling well dealers are keen to shift nearly new IX35's at a good price. The Tucson is very nice but model for model less well equipped than the IX and we don't need a new 2nd car.

 

[ChrisMiller]

I share your experience with Honda. After my wife had had one as a company car, I had a Civic VTi from new 1997-2010. After 12 years and 140,000 miles the only work needed was a new rear wheel bearing. I only parted with it because Mandelson bribed me £2,500 to have it crushed

I also had a Honda mower that ran for over 20 years without missing a beat. The replacement is a Mountfield, but I made sure it had a Honda engine.

 

[Barnfather]

Japanese cars have always had a good record for reliability, but have always been a bit dodgy on the bodywork/paint side.

I had a brand new Honda Civic Type S in 2007 and the forums at the time were full of people complaining about stone chipping. Mine wasn't too bad, but I still managed to pick up a fairly large stone chip within 10 ft of driving the car out of the dealership!

Was considering a Mazda-6 for my new company car, alongside the Outlander and a glance at their forums say the same thing about the softness of the paint, multiple paint chips etc.

The best car I have ever had for paint quality was one you wouldn't expect, in part because it is based on a Mazda although built in the US. It was a Ford Probe in white. Paint so thick it was unreal - not a scratch or a chip on it. If only the brake caliper hadn't kept sticking it would have been a perfect car