The chip, dent, and scratch thread!
 

With so many posts lately by owners lamenting some of the damages done to their Z's on the roads and what not, I figured we should start a thread to share the "imperfections" if you will, on our 370's. These things always seem a little bit easier to take when you know other people are in the same boat.

I for one, have a few small chips on my hood and fenders, as well as a tiny scratch on the plastic grill of the front bumper.

Everybody's in the same boat, guy. Let's see: Sand, bugs, flying little rocks, envious slobs that key our beaZts, bird droppings with their acid content... Accepting that reality makes it easier to live with it, my friend. There's always the clay bar, synthetic waxes, and other detailing thingies to keep us "happy" during those trying times! Greetings!

i've got one or two small little chips on the hood and the nose of my Z. not all that noticeable since I have PG.
had a close call with a door ding yesterday. guy in a g37 parked next to me left his door open while loading up his groceries. wind blew the door open even more and got about 2 cm away from my Z. He was totally oblivious to this and there was nothing I could do as I was rushing to get to my car. He left it open until I revved my engine to back out. Some people just pay not attention to whats going on around them...

Welcome to the world of "NISSAN PAINT"
 

Welcome to the world of "NISSAN PAINT", it sucks!! My 03 350 was perfect when I purchased it new in Aug of 02. By April of 09 and 56K it looked like it had been in a war...................... And it started the day after I got it. BTW: Nissan will not do anything about it.

:thumbsdown:
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Yeah, that's one of Nissan's Achilles' heels, so to speak. They just compensate that flaw with great, solid engines, cooling systems, electrical systems, ATs, strong chassis, etc. So, all in all, I'll stick to Nissan (I've owned 6, so far).

Just for starters, the first thing I did after I bough my Z was to buy the following:

• Nissan touch up paint. (already has clear coat in it)
• Clear coat touch up.
• McGuires Scratch X 2.0.
• Shamois towels.
• Microfiber auto cloth towels.
• Easy Grip Sponge applicator for the Scratch X.
• Turtle Wax bug and tar remover.
• A nice silver wash bucket to match my car. (I mean......ya know)

The car wash soap and wax and anything else are to be purchased next, after I make my decision as to what they will be, along with some good quality sponges for washing the Roadster top.

I am interested it that "road wrap" that someone posted to the Forum about, that sounds like just the thing for trips. I am thinking it's a temporary fix, can be removed, then re-applied as needed. I personally do not want the permanent paint protector.
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This Beautiful 370Z Roadster ain't my first Rodeo. Bring it on!!
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i need to buy touch up for those just in case moments...can you pick it up from the dealership/online? i've never done any paintwork on a car before ::time to search the DIY section::

My dealer provided a bottle of touch up paint for me after I had the Bumper redone (http://www.the370z.com/exterior-inte...-painting.html).
Just in time too, as a rock landed on the hood (10 inches past the clear bra :mad:) and left a nice chip. The touch up paint did the job nicely. It is a little noticeable, but it is better than a chip....

That's where the Scratch-X may help you. "MAY" help. If you don't have too much of a paint blob, Scratch-X may do the trick to help blend the touch up with the rest of the paint. Practice on another car in an area that isn't noticeable to see how to use it. It may take a few applications to get it smooth. Go to Meguiar's site and watch the vid on how to use it, along with other products. I am not endorsing Meguiar's, I only buy some of their products, and the Scratch-X is a very mild rubbing compound/fine scratch and blemish remover.

Mid April my Z arrives, I've already made arrangements with the local decal shop to apply 3Ms clearbra ,although I am a bit worried about possible fading where the clear bra doesn't cover ,hoping this will prevent a few dings an nicks.



Car Bra Clear Bra ClearBra Invisible Auto Paint Protection Film Vancouver ClearBra.ca

sweet! thanks for the tip! :tiphat:

These threads seem to be the most popular and numerous, especially recently! Mspeasl hit it on the nose, could not have said it better myself! Since about 2000 Nissan's paint has been pretty weak, at least on the Max and Z's.

I've got a few tiny chips on my hood and some micro-scratches (gotta love black). I'm getting her detailed this week though, so hopefully I can get both those issues rectified.

Ugh...where do I begin? Most of the imperfections on my Z are very minor, but frustrating nonetheless. Tiny chips, scratches, underbody spoiler is all scraped up. Funny thing is, no one else even notices this stuff, I'm the only one who catches it , lol

I'm bumping this thread for the sole reason of venting my frustration. Got my first rock chip in my hood today :(

Dude, sell your car before your head explodes.

Well for one, my car is black, so that sets the tone right there. But in approx 2500 miles of driving, I have the following:

-3 small chips in the hood
-Light scratches on the hood and trunk lid
-Small chips on all four fender arches from debris being kicked up

This black paint is almost maddening at times.

It has little to do with Nissan. Search around on the forums of any car that has been produced in the last couple of years.

It's threads like this that are making me think more and more about going with white when I get my Z.

Not a ding, yet, hell lot of scratches here and there TT It hurts my heart whenever I see them...

2 days after I pick up my car, some punks put a ding on the driver side. Not on the door panel but right at the edge where the door switch area (outside). I schedule PDR this Sat to see if they can pop it out, It not really noticeable because of the angle...but the paint were damage and knowing it there make me said...:shakes head::shakes head:

if anyone gets red black or blue...color magic wax works wonders!

Black is amazing if you put the proper dedication into it, if you don't plan on doing that, then I wouldn't recommend it.

I'm reviving this thread just because I can not hold back my anger against the poor quality of my Z's paint. My Titan's paint has been really good, not sure the deal with that, I guess maybe cause the Titan is built in America. But my god the paint on my Z is maddening, I swear it chips and scratches when feathers hit it... ahhhhhhhh

scratches and rock chips. I got a HUG scratch under the car from backing out of the drive way.

How effective is a clear coat? (sorry if I used the commercial name, I don't really know the non-commercial one)

Golf ball. Still need to find time for PDR.

Other than that.. scrappage.

Here's my front bumper... it looks worse in person :ugh2: