Ripply, Flaking Paint

[SoCalDMC12]

So this is odd: A couple of weeks ago I drove one of my D's from LA to Vegas. The ride out was warm, but not extremely hot by any measure. On the ride back, however, I encountered high winds, rain, hail, and snow!

Today, I was wiping down my car for the first time since the trip, and noticed that the paint on my front bumper was rippling, and flaking off in some places (see photo)! Could the weather have caused this? (If not, I have no idea what else could have.)

I've got a parking lot rash on the other side of the bumper, so perhaps now is a good time to have the thing res-prayed...9572

[Squall67584]

Was the bumper resprayed before? Looks like the paint didn't adhere well, probably the mold release agent wasn't fully removed before primer/paint went on.

[SoCalDMC12]

Was the bumper resprayed before? Looks like the paint didn't adhere well, probably the mold release agent wasn't fully removed before primer/paint went on.

I had the original, warped, bumper replaced a few years ago - at which time the new one was painted.

[Mike C.]

that's a pretty weird pattern. It does look like a bad adhesion problem from bad prep, but i've never seen paint make that kind of design while doing it. Usually it would just make a bubble and start to pop up. Weather wouldn't do that normally, but that is just nuts.

[Michael]

I have seen that numerous times and it's very common with refinished panels. This was definately caused by poor/lack of surface prep and I cringe when I see this on a car that I must repair.

The reason being is that usually the entire bumper must be stripped because the prep, (or lack of) affects the entire bumper, so even if it's not flaking away elsewhere, it will eventually....not to say it must be stripped, it could have had something happen to just that one area prior to painting and could be spotted in. When you start sanding and it keeps flaking up you will know. I have started correcting a small spot like that and ended up peeling the paint off in huge sheets just like I was removing the back off window tint.

It really is a pain to undo something someone else has screwed up. I would rather paint 3 new bumpers than one that's been jacked up by some hack.

[David T]

Whoever painted it did not do something properly. My guess is either bad prep or not using any or enough "flex" additive in the paint. The paint is definitely not adhering anymore in those spots. Unfortunately the only fix is to remove the paint and start all over again.
David Teitelbaum

[MartyP]

Could it be the heat from light ? Funny that's it's only at that place in front of the light.

[SoCalDMC12]

Could it be the heat from light ? Funny that's it's only at that place in front of the light.

It's flaking off on other parts of the bumper as well. (Though the funky bubble pattern is only in front of the driver's lights.)

I bet that the cold weather I drove through caused the bumper to contract, causing the improperly applied paint to loose adhesion. The hail impacts probably then caused the paint to crack and flake off.

I'm gonna see how much it'll take to properly repaint it. However, I found this product:

http://www.topvinylfilms.com/products/3M_Brushed_Steel_Wrap_Vinyl-1879-77.html

I'm considering wrapping the bumper instead. Might be interesting to see how closely this vinyl can replicate the stainless.