Kinda looks like the last Mercedes I owned...worst orange peel I've ever seen on a car

 

FWIW Corvette's composite panels are slightly wavy by nature. Even a perfect paint job will have some waviness when viewing down the side of the car. This is not the same as orange peel, but an orange peeled paint job on top of slightly wavy composite panels just makes it look that much worse.

 

Well that rules that out. Didn't realize that was possible. Maybe the panel is to warm when the color coat is applied and the paint starts to setup to soon, that would cause orange peel. One thing positive, the dirt that seems to always appear magically isn't a problem. Still think management is afraid of paint runs, maybe that has been a problem and this is their short term solution. Seems to be a long term problem though, my 1995 C4 also has orange peel, though not to this degree.

 

Talk to quality control on here for starts.

 

As they say " you only get one chance @ a first impression ". I would have to say the paint job is the first impression for the C7. A sub par paint job would drive me nuts after spending that kind of money on a 2014 C7.
The C7 I owned had a decent paint job allmost as good as my 67. Notice the white shadow is brighter on the 67.

 

I am no paint expert, but I had a few thoughts:

I think we have a perfect storm here: brand new car and new assembly line with perhaps some new manufacturing equipment, new body panel shapes that affect adhesion and drying, maybe the SMC material from which the new panels are made has changed slightly since the C6, and possibly different paint formulations as the EPA continually tries to save us from quality paint (exterior house paint has gone through quite a transition with often terrible results). And Chevy may be rushing the process to keep up with demand, which means shame on them--but I do not know for sure.

I think historically factory Corvette paint has been less than top notch. I had a silver 04 Z06 and both of the flexible end caps had slightly different hues than the rest of the body panels, and I saw that on a number of silver C5s. I do not think somewhat flexible plastic/composite panels ever hold paint as well as metal panels (although I have nothing technical to base this on).

I have seen some great paint on Corvettes from shops, but there is lots of hand work involved that will go far beyond what could be expected from any mass produced car.

Frankly, I think Team Corvette should consider (sacrilege) going to metal body panels or maybe more carbon fiber (as it does not flex) that hold the paint better. I think the best paint finishes we see today come on metal panels.

Until then, I guess a trip to the paint shop for a good wet sanding is the best bet....

 

So, then it was the paint 'n panels all along, for the "Corvette Wave/Waviness?!"

This gives credence, to the "wave" then......

 

Electrostatic process works with fiberglass? ...new to me!

 

Hand sand and polish, problem solved. I remember GM bragging about this new paint process and I also remember the car on Jay Lenos garage having horrible orange peel that was easily detected on video. Why they have ignored this problem is baffling.

 

WTF is Orange Peel? I have an Arctic White. What should I be looking for? BTW, the paint code for Arctic White hasn't changed in 20 years. I needed to get my mirrors repainted (long story) and it took my dealer getting Dupont involved with a special camera to match the paint because the paint code for Arctic White didn't produced a matching white the first go round.

 

It's when the paint has a "waviness" to it and is not completely glass smooth. Resembles the peel of an orange. It is often associated with cheap paint jobs. Whenever I see a car with orange peel, I almost always assume it's been re painted.

 

Gotcha. Is that different from overspray? I had some overspray on my car and a clay bar smoothed it out.

 

Someone mentioned a electrostatic primer. I don't know anything about this product, or how effective the results are.

 

Yep, different than overspray. Look at the picture of the blue C7 above. On the back section near the reflector on the quarter panel, you can see the roughness to the paint where the light is reflecting off of it. Almost as if the paint has a texture to it.

Also, the term orange peel is used for certain textures on interior walls in homes. The term between autos and homes pretty much means the same thing. Only in homes you want a texture, on a vehicle you don't....

 

No…

Hand sanding to people who don't know what they are doing will only make it worse. Each panel will have different thicknesses of orange peel and will have to be assessed professionally to get it done right….

There are no easy solutions to orange peel. I'd just live with the factory coat and know that you have good paint protection. People that pay large for sanding and polish risk clear coat issues down the line with future polishing. Bottom line: you have to be real upset with the finish to get it completely redone by a pro. And weigh those costs on how much different it's going to look in the end…..

 

Dave you sound like you know your stuff. Let me ask, what do you think it would cost to cut/buff/polish and re-clear the car? For me if I spent 60-80k on a car I'd want the finish to be like glass so if it cost me hundreds of dollars (under 1k) it would be worth it, at least for me it would be.

 

If people would stop accepting these cars in this condition from the dealership, GM might actually do something about it.

As the OP stated tho, he bought the car unseen. As with any new car this should be fine because you shouldn't have to worry about QC issues like this. Now that he has already taken delivery of the car, he's at the mercy of the dealership and GM whether or not he's just stuck with it the way it is.

 

Just a note: show car Corvette paint jobs were $10K in 1990. Suspect they are more, now....

 

Good point. That is why I have only taken delivery of cars that I have seen up close and driven. Will never order a car again. Too many variables regarding quality since you won't know the paint or panel alignment quality until it arrives. Too bad GM cannot get their act together on this. Some of these cars should never leave the factory. We don't expect show car quality but cars costing a lot less should not be looking a lot better.

 

Exactly!!!...GM will never do anything about it as long as people keep accepting the car with that quality paint and coming up with every excuse as to why it's OK like that I just don't get it...like I said before on here I have a Z06 on order and if it don't have the paint quality that my 09 Z06 had and my ZR1 HAS they can keep it and I've already made them aware of this.