Discussion of Stinger paint quality (Was - Paint Chip Issue)

[phxgt]

Because they will not repaint the whole car, most of my chips are on the bumper, they won't repaint the bumper. I offered to keep it for a full respray but they are not willing to do that. She called me to tell me she had already sent the email with forms to me.. she did not, I called Thursday shortly after we hung up to let them know I still don't have them..still no forms!!! I can't make this failure on their end any clearer than I have I believe.

UCinn-I really don't have a dog in this fight as I have a black with no problems but....considering the prompt responses everyone else seems to be getting I suggest you reach out and verify email address. I saw in an earlier post you said it was verified but something is wonky and it is either they have it incorrect or it's going to your spam mail or???

 

[Tonkabob]

@Tonkabob Sorry to read about your Blue case. Did I miss it or did you say what the next steps you were gonna pursue?

First kia said they would cover if i would add PPF after. Then they said they would not cover and asked me to claim it against my insurance! I said i would not ask insurance to pay for my defective paint. I asked them to escalate again. And the next day provided more pictures of small chipping on the doors and rear quarter panels where rocks could not hit.
Basically if you have driven your car they can deny a paint claim because their will be some sign of impact on your car. I literally have hundreds of chips. Most are very small a dozen are decent sized. I'm sure some chips are caused by impact as the paint shouldn't flake on its own. The impact might be wind, rain, car wash or bugs? From what i can tell I've been hit by 2 rocks, both after my initial paint claim and photos. One is in the front plastic and another hit the windshield.
I'm supposed to hear something this week.

 

[somedudedontknowwhoheis]

@Ucinn As I've mentioned, my case has been very poorly communicated (case closed twice ffs), I didn't really start getting traction until I got more KMA members involved. While I agree with phxgt, about checking spam/spelling/case (not sure if some email systems are case sensitive? gmail isn't), if that isn't the issue then I'd try talking to someone else. At least you have stuff in writing and can go from there.

@Tonkabob Honestly your case sounds a lot like mine. Numerous chips right off the bat, and told it's road damage. It got to the point on mine where it felt like I could breath on the car too hard and the paint would flake. Even after the paint protection, the other sides of the car have chipped and scratched way too easily. The silver lining in my case, I think, was having so much extra evidence on the sides and rear after the paint protection was applied, since it was a sign it was continuing in areas that don't really get hit. There are Kia reps over different regions of the country, that over see several dealerships each. I have no idea how you'd look them up, but the one over my region happened to see mine in person and since then they haven't questioned something is wrong (granted, I haven't been given the options Yellow have, which is where I'm at right now, despite the acknowledgement that it's bad). As you've said, I think you'll just have to keep pressing the issue, escalating it, etc, as I did. We have a longer fight ahead of us because ours don't have an "official" problem. Every time you see something new, take more pictures, upload them to your case on the website, keep calling. I'll wait for you to come back and say the website told you your case was closed haha

 

[Ucinn]

As I said earlier, I check my spam everyday along with my inbox. As I also stated earlier, after talking to her Thursday and not having the email, I called back within a half hour of talking to her to verify they have my correct email..and the associate said she put it in the file and Linda would be notified that I haven't received it...it's been crickets since. I only have the number on the letter. The link in the letter doesn't get me to my case as I have to get through it going through different pages and eventually get there. It's just not been a very good experience communication wise. I still like my Kias and think they have a great product, but support has got me wondering about the side I've never had to deal with.

 

[jboulukos]

@MerlintheMad you know you don't have to reply to every comment in this thread

Anyways I took my car to get it serviced this past weekend (non-case related service). I was dropping it off and didn't have time to stick around and look at the other Stingers in great detail, but I took a few quick shots of the headlights of a few of them. Is it just me or do the fitment of these seem loose? The fitment around mine don't seem to have such pronounced gaps.

View attachment 10701 View attachment 10702 View attachment 10703

Three different Stingers just sitting on the lot. Didn't get a chance to check build dates or other paint problems.[/QUOTE]


Agreed. I've been searching for Stingers and checking out the various problem areas discussed on the body. The quality of one car to the next as far as panel fit varies. Some seams between the front bumper cover and the passenger fender are not aligned or demonstrate a "flaring" of the plastic bumper cover at the edge of the seam near the wheel well, and are not identical to the drivers side. About 40% of the cars I've seen in lots have the driver's side (and sometimes passenger side) headlight contact issue showing chips and paint rubbed off of the bumper cover. I've seen many cars with the driver's side wiper arm scratch on the edge of the hood. I've noticed different gaps in the body panels surrounding the headlight including different positions of the rubber surrounding the headlights, sometimes the rubber is folded under more than others. I've seen tight areas and gapped areas on the same headlight...doesn't look good upon inspection. In my experience, I've noticed a lack of uniformity in the bodies upon visual inspection.

 

[somedudedontknowwhoheis]

I hadn't thought about it, but do Yellow owners just now starting the process have case numbers? I know others who started their cases before the "official" letter went out do, but if it's "voluntary" maybe not?

@jboulukos Ok, I'm glad I'm not the only one who's noticed that then, that seemed to be the case with the cars I saw at the dealership over the weekend. My car seems so well put together, it's been a double edged sword for me. On one hand, I wouldn't want a swap/buyback for that very reason, despite the paint, my car seems to be put together very well and I have no other issues with it, so I don't want a different one that has some other set of problems. But on the other, if I get a repaint, who's to say the car will be put back together as well as it currently is? Ignoring potential issues with the new paint itself. Ugh.

 

[jboulukos]

I hadn't thought about it, but do Yellow owners just now starting the process have case numbers? I know others who started their cases before the "official" letter went out do, but if it's "voluntary" maybe not?

@jboulukos Ok, I'm glad I'm not the only one who's noticed that then, that seemed to be the case with the cars I saw at the dealership over the weekend. My car seems so well put together, it's been a double edged sword for me. On one hand, I wouldn't want a swap/buyback for that very reason, despite the paint, my car seems to be put together very well and I have no other issues with it, so I don't want a different one that has some other set of problems. But on the other, if I get a repaint, who's to say the car will be put back together as well as it currently is? Ignoring potential issues with the new paint itself. Ugh.

Tough decision. Grab a 2019. In my opinion, the re-paint would probably be of much higher quality (than all factory colors) however it is of my opinion that a partial paint job would look incomplete and noticeable. Good luck.

At least we all care about this and notice the quality and/or lack of quality in how the car is made. I saw my first Stinger in the wild 2 days ago and the driver did not know of the paint issue on some of the cars. I personally wash and wax my cars myself and am generally interested in the service for them. Many dealerships don't know the transmission/transaxle fluid change interval and I still haven't had a straight answer. The manual states "No check. No service required." Its funny how people can make these large purchases and not examine the pros and cons. To each their own.

 

[Ucinn]

Yes, they made cases for all the yellow owners..my case was made july 28th without even knowing about it until I got the call

 

[LeoDragon]

My baby goes in next Monday morning for the start of the repaint process!

 

[Sabz]

My baby goes in next Monday morning for the start of the repaint process!

Mine should be soon too.. I want to rebadge her when it’s done too

 

[PA_RN]

I’ll just stop chime in and say the paint on my hichroma red seems brittle. Not having the fitment issues around the headlights but picked up two large chips pretty quickly. Also lost a decent chip when rebadging the front Kia emblem. I’ve seen had the car ceramic coated and haven’t seen any new issues. Being that normally ceramic coating doesn’t do much for chipping it just seems like the paint is more fragile than what I’ve had on previous vehicles.

 

[Stinger GT SS]

Mine should be soon too.. I want to rebadge her when it’s done too

Get them to do the rebadge while they are repainting it, a win all round & no chance of damaging your new fresh paint.

 

[Ucinn]

Just out of curiousity, what Forms did you have to fill out and scan/send back?

Finally got the info, the forms I have to send in is a copy of my sales contract, my registration, payment history and an Authorization to release loan/lease information form they sent in the email. These have to be submitted within 14 days of getting the email.

 

[phxgt]

@MerlintheMad you know you don't have to reply to every comment in this thread

Anyways I took my car to get it serviced this past weekend (non-case related service). I was dropping it off and didn't have time to stick around and look at the other Stingers in great detail, but I took a few quick shots of the headlights of a few of them. Is it just me or do the fitment of these seem loose? The fitment around mine don't seem to have such pronounced gaps.

View attachment 10701 View attachment 10702 View attachment 10703

Three different Stingers just sitting on the lot. Didn't get a chance to check build dates or other paint problems.

Agreed. I've been searching for Stingers and checking out the various problem areas discussed on the body. The quality of one car to the next as far as panel fit varies. Some seams between the front bumper cover and the passenger fender are not aligned or demonstrate a "flaring" of the plastic bumper cover at the edge of the seam near the wheel well, and are not identical to the drivers side. About 40% of the cars I've seen in lots have the driver's side (and sometimes passenger side) headlight contact issue showing chips and paint rubbed off of the bumper cover. I've seen many cars with the driver's side wiper arm scratch on the edge of the hood. I've noticed different gaps in the body panels surrounding the headlight including different positions of the rubber surrounding the headlights, sometimes the rubber is folded under more than others. I've seen tight areas and gapped areas on the same headlight...doesn't look good upon inspection. In my experience, I've noticed a lack of uniformity in the bodies upon visual inspection.[/QUOTE]
Interesting. On mine the fit of the headlights is extremely snug-and no chipping.

 

[Keith Ruff]

Wanted to add FACTS to this topic as there seems to be a lot of opinions being thrown around about what Kia is doing. I just got off the phone with my case manager at Kia about the paint issue:

1. They will pay for re-spray of metal parts. They said the reason they are not painting the plastics is because there was an issue in prep of metal, not the plastics, that is causing the issue with easily chipping/flaking paint. He did agree with me that it would make more sense to paint everything rather than paying for labor to mask off or remove plastic parts for painting of the metal surfaces, but that is what Kia's policy is for this issue and what they told the reps.

2. Kia Motors America said my main contact for the re-spray is the service manager at my local Kia dealer, whom I've already been working with and he personally spoke to. My local dealer will make arrangements for a rental car the entire time they have my Stinger for repaint, which would be comparable to the Stinger in terms of size and comfort (not a sports car rental, probably a luxury car).

3. When the re-paint is complete, if upon inspection I accept the car, KIA WILL CUT ME A CHECK FOR $5000! No "credit" or "reduction of the payoff", a REAL CHECK that will be mailed to me immediately upon acceptance of the car. The KMA rep also told me to let him personally when my car goes in so he could start at that point filling out all of the documentation for that $5K check so it will be ready for me when the car is done.

4. If I don't like the quality of the re-spray, the other 2 options come into play (trade for equivalent Stinger in different color or return for full refund).

5. Existing paint warranty will be in place (3 years I believe?). I asked if there became an issue with fading or mismatch of paint over time, would Kia warrant a re-spray of those parts. He said there shouldn't be an issue since there are strict requirements for this painting process and the paint is the exact match of factory paint, but if there was an issue, Kia would probably address it because of this whole issue. Not a written guarantee but an opinion of this reps since he was not speaking on behalf of KMA. Based on how they are addressing the issue, I would agree that Kia would probably work on a resolution.

For me as a leaser, after 3 years when the paint warranty expires, if I see issues with the paint, I can simply return the car and move on, so to me this is a win, I should get a better than OEM paint job, $5K in my pocket, and a safety net after 3 years of either turning in the car if I'm not happy with how the paint held up, or buy it if all is good. Hoping for the best, but to me, the risk is ultimately a reward for Kia's mess up. I am happy with how they are handling this issue and the options they have provided. If others aren't happy, they should make your own decision on what to do going forward. The reason I am opting to re-spray now is the risk that if it is not done before the deadline and the paint becomes an issue, it will have to be addressed at that time, and the $5K check is no longer an option/available.

 

[eflyguy]

Thanks for sharing those details (facts!)

They said the reason they are not painting the plastics is because there was an issue in prep of metal, not the plastics, that is causing the issue with easily chipping/flaking paint.

What I thought I had initially read all along - it was a primer issue, metal and plastic primer are not the same!

 

[StungnTn]

I dropped my car off yesterday 8/7, I was provided with an Optima as a replacement. *fingers crossed*

 

[Mach_Tuck]

Finally got the info, the forms I have to send in is a copy of my sales contract, my registration, payment history and an Authorization to release loan/lease information form they sent in the email. These have to be submitted within 14 days of getting the email.

Interesting that once the decision to re-buy is made you have 14 days to gather the paperwork. Any info on how long the re-buy process will take and how they intend to pay off or pay for all the items?

I am still waiting for follow up on all the questions i asked during my initial follow up call. Understand they are busy so no rush for me yet.

I can maybe swallow that primer is different plastic to metal. I CANNOT do the same for metal to metal and them refusing to paint the rather massive rear door jambs that happen to be covered with the same primer and paint...

 

[Ucinn]

Interesting that once the decision to re-buy is made you have 14 days to gather the paperwork. Any info on how long the re-buy process will take and how they intend to pay off or pay for all the items?

I am still waiting for follow up on all the questions i asked during my initial follow up call. Understand they are busy so no rush for me yet.

I can maybe swallow that primer is different plastic to metal. I CANNOT do the same for metal to metal and them refusing to paint the rather massive rear door jambs that happen to be covered with the same primer and paint...

I really have no idea how long it will take or how they intend to do this. I haven't seen or heard of anybody yet going this route and filling out the paperwork yet. I got the paperwork all sent in last night, so I'l keep everybody up to date.

 

[gilthanis1]

Interesting that once the decision to re-buy is made you have 14 days to gather the paperwork. Any info on how long the re-buy process will take and how they intend to pay off or pay for all the items?

I am still waiting for follow up on all the questions i asked during my initial follow up call. Understand they are busy so no rush for me yet.

I can maybe swallow that primer is different plastic to metal. I CANNOT do the same for metal to metal and them refusing to paint the rather massive rear door jambs that happen to be covered with the same primer and paint...

And the best part is, every....single....time...you open the doors, hatch, trunk, fuel door, or just look at the car........YOU GET TO SEE DIFFERENT COLORED PAINT!!!

How in the blue hell they expected us to be happy with this is beyond me. Sand down to the primer, the re-primer with a YELLOW primer and then color and clear.......... But the crap that is left has a WHITE primer under it and is still part of the problem to begin with, not to mention the fact your going to have sharp cutoff lines for this 'respray' and it wont be blended anywhere. But hey, they are 'gracious' enough to offer you the 'reacharound' check of $5k if you can get their shitty job completed for that....... Oh and by the way, it can't be done at the same time because they aren't giving you a dam thing until you accept it (half-done) and then have to pay to get the car torn back apart again, and this time your footing the bill for a rental car while they try and fix/finish what has been done....

Sure, they could've told us to get bent, but this is worse. They are going to expect us to be happy with this, when yellow owners NOT in the US get a complete strip to metal and repaint, a lifetime paint warranty after, and they replace/redo the dam plastic parts....What a concept.

This is not some dam holy gift from on high that we should graciously accept like a grinning idiot and say "Thank you oh great one may I have another". It's a slap in the face for those of us who took a chance with them when everyone said we were crazy as hell for buying a $50,000 Kia, and I'm starting to admit to myself that they may have been right.