sluggballz

While I was setting at a stop light this morning, there was a brand new Cadillac next to me. The way the sun shone on it, there was an awful lot of orange peel in the finish.
Question is, and take into account I know nothing on how the production process for car goes: if the new paint shop is so new and big, could they actually use that as a central paint facility for caddy? Paint the panels there and send them to assembly plants?
Maybe this has been addressed before, maybe not. Maybe a stupid question. Logistics might be a nightmare. But for a supposed high end car, the finish wasn't all that.
Thanks

Zora.Info

You're right, logistics would be a nightmare. And with Cadillac having quite a bit of trouble right now, it would make no sense. Most Cadillac buyers are spending their retirement checks on it and don't care about the quality. Cadillacs are cars they always fantasized and they always wanted. But the Cadillacs they wanted are very different from the new ones. Corvettes are basically a halo brand for GM, so they want to focus on quality. New Corvettes have basically nearly perfect paint. Other GM vehicles not so much. Although Cadilac is technically a halo brand as well. The Cadillac ME will be made at BG, so it will be painted there as well. But painting all Cadillacs there would be not worth it.

ojm

Just a side note, my buddy said they have a lot of coats of paint makes me wonder why the orange peel. As said before these are massed produced cars with probably little wet sanding or whatever the more exotics have done.

Zora.Info

Paint has next to nothing to do with it. It's all the clear coat. Every vehicle has orange peel. It just depends on the painting method and the clear coat which is why some have a ton and some have next to none. And the exotic manufacturers spend time wet sanding and/or polishing to get the finish right.

tooold2race

My cousin won a new C7 a couple years ago at the Museum. He just traded it in for a 2019 Grand Sport. It's white. He says it is the worst paint job he's had on a Corvette..... and it came through the new paint process in BG. He even had communications with Kai (in writing) that explained why his was below expectations. With that said, our dozen plus Corvettes since 1968 are what they are..... mass produced production line vehicles. If you want show quality, have 'em repainted at a custom shop for $10K+ or go buy a Porsche or other limited production exotic for a $50-100K+ premium. . Remember, these are just Chevys.....

Sorry, but welcome to the real world.....

Zora.Info

How did he win a C7? And if the paint was so bad, why did he buy it? I'm sorry but I see too many holes in this story. And there is no reason for a repaint on a brand new car. Most problems are in the clear coat and are easy to repair by simply polishing. If the defects are really bad, westsanding is an option too.

tooold2race

Please read!!! He won one a couple years ago. They have drawings once a month since 'forever'..... He sold it and bought a NEW 2019. Do I need to read the rest to you????

ShagVette

Sorry, not acceptable at all. A new GS is how much, with a worse paint finish than the average family sedan at half the price.

They aren't just Chevys. Ridiculous for all the money spent investing in BG and the C8, if it ends up having the same **** pore orange peel.

It's an insult other vehicles look better, and your suggestion to have a new car repainted is OMFG laughable.

Zora.Info

No, I think you need to reread my reply before rudely suggesting that I should be read to. I understand he won the FIRST car, and then asked how. I understood he sold the FIRST car to buy the SECOND car, the 2019. I then asked why did he BUY the SECOND car if the paint supposedly is so bad. I think you are the one that needs to read.

tooold2race

He bought the 2nd car then found the paint to be significantly below expectations AFTER all the noise about the NEW paint facility.

My point is that 'paint' has been an issue on Corvettes for closing on 70 years!!! I still buy 'em because they are Corvettes but I don't try to compare 'em to my Ferrari or Aston Martin or Mercedes. They are what they are and to quote the motoring press since day 1, " a GREAT value... for the money". I'm tired about all the whining about the paint finish. I think it darn good for what it is at the price point. If it isn't good enough for others expectations, move on....

Zora.Info

I do agree with the second part of your statement, however I still have to argue with you about the first. Expectations don't really matter, the simple fact is if paint is in bad shape (like you said it is) it is in bad shape, plain and simple. Meeting expectations has nothing to do with that. Unless your expectations are set really really low to the point that you would accept bad paint on a $70K car.

Sin City

My C7 had the worst paint job on any car I ever owned. Places on it looked like someone painted over a pizza. It was so bad I was afraid to take it down would cut through the paint.

I'm hoping the new paint facility takes care of this issue.

ojm

Yes that was what I meant to say. My buddy said his caddy had so many layers of clear coats.

JABCAT

This entire reply is nonsense from you claiming to know "most Cadillac buyers" & why they are buying Cadillacs, to GM "wanting to focus on quality" of Corvettes, to new Corvettes having basically near perfect paint. I don't think I've read one post from you yet that contains any factual information, but you sure are confident in your mis-information & dismissing those whose information you feel is just opinion. :roll eyes:

To the OP, GM has always had issues with paint & orange peel. I can't think of one GM vehicle I've owned that did not have substantial orange peel, yet many other of my vehicles from other manufacturers have nearly no noticeable orange peel so it obviously can be done

Bill Dearborn

Most major brands have orange peeled paint. Orange peel seems to be prevalent since the manufacturers switched over to more environmentally safer paints and solvents along with the base coat/clear coat paint jobs. The other thing I have noticed is the orange peel isn't consistent from one car to the next of one brand. I have seen Camry's with almost no orange peel and others on the same dealer lot with lots of orange peel. Sort of like maybe the weather at the plant the day the car is painted affects the paint.

Bill

AORoads

I guess after awhile I don't worry about orange peel.

Two incidents: at a car show, my older C6 car was parked outside the "show cars"--guy walks up and asks, is that a re-paint--says he's been a car painter for 30+ years? No, it's factory. He said, damn, they are really getting it right. It's an '08.

Second one was a Porsche friend went Corvette shopping with me a few years back, commented on the lousy paint on the outdoor Corvettes in the gleaming mid-day sun. I asked him if we could look at his fav brand, Porsche across a very busy street. We crossed and as were walking the new-car lot of Porsches, in the bright sun it was easy to see the waves and "peel" of the cars. When we got inside, several new ones were also easy to see the "peel."

He was, to say the least, very dismayed. Why? Because now he knew when he went home he had to look at his car and would see the same as these new cars, Corvette AND Porsche.

Bill D is right: most new cars have some form of "peel". If Corvette gets it down below a certain level due to the new paint booth, I say, great! If not, so what? It doesn't lessen the ride, handling and punch of the Corvette to me. jmo.

Zora.Info

Oh look, we got a know it all.

Foosh

All production cars have OP if you look closely enough under the right lights, from various angles. It's in both base and clear coats.

The only way to avoid it entirely is wet sanding and polishing after base coat application, then wet sanding and polishing after clear coat application. That's a paint job starting at $40K, and robots can't do it.

It is done on some very high $$$ cars, but nothing I'm aware of under $300K. You'll also see some of these crazy expensive paint jobs on high-end custom cars.

The new paint plant has most definitely reduced it on C7s, but it has not eliminated it. That would be impossible in the C7 price bracket.

Zora.Info

None under $300K? All McLarens are polished and/or wetsanded from the factory, leaving no orange peel. The finish is basically perfect. This is done on even the $200K 570S.

Actually, it would be nice to see this done on the ZR1's. Another way to make it more high end and more special than it already is. Something extra to set it apart from the lesser models. The C6 ZR1 was delivered in enclosed trailers for example. I think there are some things, even simple ones, that could be done by Chevy to enhance the ZR1 buying and ownership experience.

plasboy