Paint / Clear Coat concerns

Silver

Member
:
Mazda, 3, GT
Good day everyone, I am in the last stages of purchasing a new CX-5 GT and see that there are complaints of the Soul Red paint, but I have seen other colors of the CX-5 with weak paint or at least clear coat.

I'm really worried about the comments on the paint quality in this (and other) forum. I called Mazda Canada and they don't have any issues with paint. I have let them know that there are forums out there with people complaining about the paint quality and if it only pertains to the red. Again, they said that they don't have any issues with the paint. This paint / clear coat problem seems to have started with the 2016.5 and continues on to 2018.

I have test driven black, silver and grey and can tell you that they all have surface scratches and stone chips. This is unacceptable for a vehicle less than one year old with 6,000 to 11,000 KM. I have a rental black Ford Escape and can tell you that the paint used by Ford is much harder than that of Mazda. I really like the car as it meets all my needs and looks great, but I'm really concerned about the paint quality.

Does anyone else have problems with paint / clear coat quality?

Which year/Month of manufacture?

Which color?

I really appreciate your comments.

Silver.
 
I'll take a Mazda with thin paint over a Ford with thicker paint anyday.

My CX-5 is pushing 19k and not one chip or scratch.
 
2016.5 - paint is on the softer side and will scratch easily. But no issues with rust. Nothing that a good detail can't fix. Flying rocks will do more damage though - and there are solutions but its pricey.
Its a crime to park on street and buy a dark CX-5 in USA, specially in Texas where hard water and dust get baked into the top coat.
 
16.5, 15k. Paint's pretty bad. Not happy.
Black.
Still head over heels in love.
May just get a new paint job in a few years.
BECAUSE I LOVE IT THAT MUCH.
hahahaha
;)
 
My paint is pretty destroyed if I am honest. Also black.

Years of not really knowing how to take care of it:

swirl-o-matic car washes
not waxing
small garage meaning I have some times dragged backpack zippers along the side trying to fit in
no protection on hood

Needless to say, I have:

swirl marks
hood has been chipped to hell and back
scratches
some marks on the clear coat (I think I can fix with some scratch X or something)

Anyway, I know how to take care of the car now, wax regularly, avoid swirl o matics, but the damage was already done. At some point I may pay for some paint correction to be done (professional clay/compound/polish) to get all the swirl marks and scratches out, but for now it is what it is.

Ultimately it does not detract from my overall enjoyment of the vehicle.
 
I would add - buy a Silver CX5. Paint film is about a grand - not worth putting that much money because you have to strip it and replace every 3-4 years else the chips on the film look bad.
Silver or White are two best options. I love the new 2018 6 in dark blue specially the wheels in Touring. will be a pain to keep nice and shiny!
 
I would add - buy a Silver CX5. Paint film is about a grand - not worth putting that much money because you have to strip it and replace every 3-4 years else the chips on the film look bad.
Silver or White are two best options. I love the new 2018 6 in dark blue specially the wheels in Touring. will be a pain to keep nice and shiny!

Don't know what you're talking about having to replace PPF (paint protection film) every 3-4 years. I have PPF on the front of my 2016, bought early 2015 and it still looks as good as the day it was installed which was after 1 week of ownership. Most of the films are self healing, meaning that if there is a scratch or ding in them, a day in the warm sun makes them disappear. The film I got came with a 10 year warranty against fading or peeling. I treat the film just like the paint and regularly "wax" it along with the rest of the vehicle. I actually have Optimum Gloss Coat on my car, a SiO2 coating for the past three years. That needs to be redone as I'm at the end of it's life cycle, but in those three years I haven't "waxed" it, only regular washes. Since I'm moving soon and don't have the time to install another coating I just used CarPro HydrO2 lite. Very impressive stuff, spray on, rinse off, 3-6 months of protection and super slick feeling.

Now for the paint, My 2016 has very little in the way of love marks from washing, so no swirls or anything. I use the 2 bucket method for washing with microfiber wash mitts and ONR in the winter months. As long as you take care of the paint properly it's not better or worse then any other paint out there. I would recommend getting PPF on the front end especially if you get the red since that color seems prone to chipping. It's expensive up front, but there is piece of mind that comes with it, knowing the car is protected. No Coating, wax, sealant, or other liquid or paste product is going to protect from rocks flying at 70+ mph causing chips. PPF is the only thing that will reduce the likelihood of chips. Nothing is 100% a quarter sized rock flying down the highway will damage a vehicle no matter what it's painted with or what type of film is on the front.
 
2017 Soul Red. About 7 chips on the after 5,000 miles. Mazda USA replaced my hood, and had a body shop paint it. New hood has 0 chips after 1,000 miles.
It was definitely an issue with the factory paint job.
Don't expect Mazda Canada to admit to the issue. They're trying to sell cars
 
Don't know what you're talking about having to replace PPF (paint protection film) every 3-4 years. I have PPF on the front of my 2016, bought early 2015 and it still looks as good as the day it was installed which was after 1 week of ownership. Most of the films are self healing, meaning that if there is a scratch or ding in them, a day in the warm sun makes them disappear. The film I got came with a 10 year warranty against fading or peeling. I treat the film just like the paint and regularly "wax" it along with the rest of the vehicle. I actually have Optimum Gloss Coat on my car, a SiO2 coating for the past three years. That needs to be redone as I'm at the end of it's life cycle, but in those three years I haven't "waxed" it, only regular washes. Since I'm moving soon and don't have the time to install another coating I just used CarPro HydrO2 lite. Very impressive stuff, spray on, rinse off, 3-6 months of protection and super slick feeling.

Now for the paint, My 2016 has very little in the way of love marks from washing, so no swirls or anything. I use the 2 bucket method for washing with microfiber wash mitts and ONR in the winter months. As long as you take care of the paint properly it's not better or worse then any other paint out there. I would recommend getting PPF on the front end especially if you get the red since that color seems prone to chipping. It's expensive up front, but there is piece of mind that comes with it, knowing the car is protected. No Coating, wax, sealant, or other liquid or paste product is going to protect from rocks flying at 70+ mph causing chips. PPF is the only thing that will reduce the likelihood of chips. Nothing is 100% a quarter sized rock flying down the highway will damage a vehicle no matter what it's painted with or what type of film is on the front.

Kaps has a point. Unless you are actively taking care of it like you are (average person won't), I have seen the PPF look like total s*** after a few years. Peeling, extremely dirty. I just saw a car the other day with it, the PPF was brown with dirt and coming off. It was disgusting and looked far worse than just an unprotected car with paint damage (chips, scratches, etc). You'd think they would have it removed and redone at that point, but no.

PPF is fine if you plan on taking care of it. If you plan to be lazy about it, then expect it to look like dog s*** in a few years.
 
2017 machine grey. Had the car for about a year now, 11k km.

I got a ppf film on entire front end + rubber nano coating immediately after purchase. Paint is still immaculate. I love this machine grey!
The paint protection was an investment and not cheap, but the work is guaranteed for 5 years, ppf itself for 10. I plan on keeping the car for many years, so the cost was worth it for me.

If I was looking at buying a cx-5 *today* and reading about these paint issues, I'm not sure how much they would sway me either way. Probably I would rule out the SRC quicker than I did, just to be safe. And likely do some internet research to see if this is a more widespread issue with 2016+ mazdas in particular. I'm sure you could find paint horror stories for ANY vehicle if you googled it, though.
 
Got scratches just now due to low hanging branches. Sucker for trying to find shade in TX. Well I atleast know how to fix em. SiO2 is what I mean Ride92 from the last thread.
I now have to invest in a drill based polisher / w pads. Meguiars is good but I saw a lot of cheaper options on eBay. I just need to research a good quality one.
 
PPF tech is most DEF better now than just 5 years ago. No I don't have the most expensive stuff from Suntek or LLumar or Expel but I do have 3M's best film which is their Pro series and it blows the older 3M stuff away. There's entry level PPF and there's the premium proprietary film like Pro series. Today's premium tiers are more resilient to rock hits more clear, self healing, and easier to clean.

That said this lucky CX-5 is well protected:)

scotchgard-paint-protection-film-steve-burns-fascia-113.jpg
 
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I'll take a Mazda with thin paint over a Ford with thicker paint anyday.

My CX-5 is pushing 19k and not one chip or scratch.

Wlong01, I suppose you have pre 2016.5? I that they may have changed the paint quality from 2016.5.

I appreciate all your comments guys, and I really like the car - I am kind of hung up on the paint. I will check around for PPF around the area.

Keep the comments coming....
 
Wlong01, I suppose you have pre 2016.5? I that they may have changed the paint quality from 2016.5.

I appreciate all your comments guys, and I really like the car - I am kind of hung up on the paint. I will check around for PPF around the area.

Keep the comments coming....


I have the 2017 CX-5 GT with Tech Package - Color - Titianium Flash which is basically a brown.

It's my third Mazda vehicle and whether you like it or not Mazda paint is very thin and is a cheap poor quality paint. Read the forums and search about the many paint problems people have had with their vehicles.

I already knew this before purchasing my third Mazda and took some simple precautions to avoid this. As soon as I took possession of the CX-5 I had it booked in for PPF. I got the full front bumper, partial wings, full hood, door mirrors, door cups (under handles) and also the area where our feet sometimes touch the paint when entering / exiting the car (maybe called door sills?).

I also had the paint protected with a professional detailer who put on a triple coat of Optimum Gloss Coat. Prior to that the detailer did Iron-x, clay bar and a one step polish before coating the whole vehicle including all the glass on the car.

I only wash the car by hand using a two bucket method using Optimum No Rinse Wash and dry it sometimes using Optimum Opti Seal. If you take car of the paint and follow some simple steps, your paint will look and last for at least ten years. It's all about how you maintain the paint and whether or not you have the time to do it.

I say purchase the CX-5 - whatever the color and protect it immediately. Remember though that a ceramic coating will NOT protect the paint from paint chips - only PPF will give you that protection.

Best of luck.
 
Good day everyone, I am in the last stages of purchasing a new CX-5 GT and see that there are complaints of the Soul Red paint, but I have seen other colors of the CX-5 with weak paint or at least clear coat.

I'm really worried about the comments on the paint quality in this (and other) forum. I called Mazda Canada and they don't have any issues with paint. I have let them know that there are forums out there with people complaining about the paint quality and if it only pertains to the red. Again, they said that they don't have any issues with the paint. This paint / clear coat problem seems to have started with the 2016.5 and continues on to 2018.

I have test driven black, silver and grey and can tell you that they all have surface scratches and stone chips. This is unacceptable for a vehicle less than one year old with 6,000 to 11,000 KM. I have a rental black Ford Escape and can tell you that the paint used by Ford is much harder than that of Mazda. I really like the car as it meets all my needs and looks great, but I'm really concerned about the paint quality.

Does anyone else have problems with paint / clear coat quality?

Which year/Month of manufacture?

Which color?

I really appreciate your comments.

Silver.

2015, blue, typical low end Japanese paint. Thin and soft. Its nothing special though, just the norm.
 
Got scratches just now due to low hanging branches. Sucker for trying to find shade in TX. Well I atleast know how to fix em. SiO2 is what I mean Ride92 from the last thread.
I now have to invest in a drill based polisher / w pads. Meguiars is good but I saw a lot of cheaper options on eBay. I just need to research a good quality one.

Why invest in a drill based polisher? You'd be much better served getting something like the Harbor freight Dual action polisher. The 6" backing plate and pads aren't terrible but they aren't that good either. 6" is a bit much for that machine to spin with out stalling out all the time. A decent 5" backing plate and a 6-pack of Lake country pads with some M205 and you should be good to go. For the Mazda paint I recommend the orange and white pads, those should take care of most anything needing correcting on the paint.

Unless the drill polisher is something like the Meguiars DA power system polisher, you're essentially getting a small rotary polisher which is very difficult to use correctly and you run the risk of holograms and possibly burning thru the paint if your not careful. Rotary polishers have their place but can do a lot of damage if not used properly. I would encourage you to get a dual action polisher. Even ones from ebay will be better then nothing. I just know the HF one is decent for the price point, I can't speak to any of the ebay ones. The HF DA polisher with 20% off coupon comes to about $56, it's a good machine.
 
Why invest in a drill based polisher? You'd be much better served getting something like the Harbor freight Dual action polisher. The 6" backing plate and pads aren't terrible but they aren't that good either. 6" is a bit much for that machine to spin with out stalling out all the time. A decent 5" backing plate and a 6-pack of Lake country pads with some M205 and you should be good to go. For the Mazda paint I recommend the orange and white pads, those should take care of most anything needing correcting on the paint.

Unless the drill polisher is something like the Meguiars DA power system polisher, you're essentially getting a small rotary polisher which is very difficult to use correctly and you run the risk of holograms and possibly burning thru the paint if your not careful. Rotary polishers have their place but can do a lot of damage if not used properly. I would encourage you to get a dual action polisher. Even ones from ebay will be better then nothing. I just know the HF one is decent for the price point, I can't speak to any of the ebay ones. The HF DA polisher with 20% off coupon comes to about $56, it's a good machine.

The only problem with the HF DA is that the vibrations kill my hands. And I stripped the screws trying to do the grease mod, so I'm screwed there.
 
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The only problem with the HF DA is that the vibrations kill my hands.

Have you tried replacing the grease inside the unit? It's one of the first things I did to mine and made a huge difference in noise and vibration. The 5" backing plate and pads also help as well as any vibration isn't amplified by the larger pads. I use some Lucas sticky red synthetic grease in mine and it runs much smoother know. You'll also be able to make sure the counter weight is properly tightened when you have it apart.
 
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