When new isn't always better?

ultrarunner · May 30, 2012

The thread on trailer tires got me to thinking the other day of things automotive that just don't seem to last anymore.

Tires... lots of discussions about trailer tire problems on TBN...

Paint is another problem... at least with newer cars.

I have several cars from the 50's, 60's and 70's with original factory paint that look great as compared to cars even a few years old today where the paint just doesn't hole up worth a darn... going down the road I see GM, Honda, Toyota, etc with paint blotches, peeling, crazing etc... just doesn't make sense the technology to put a lasting finish on a car cannot be duplicated with modern materials...

Chrome... my 57 Ford has been in a carport most of it's life... so it is exposed to the elements... the chrome is like new... zero defects.

I doubt what little chrome on today's cars would last 50+ years... Chrome from the 80's and 90's just isn't of the same quality.

Ford Motor Company had specs in the 1920's that chrome had to be unaffected by repeated salt water brine baths...

Just seems modern finishes don't last...

Diamondpilot · May 30, 2012

You can think the EPA for all this. All the "good stuff" that was in these products that made them last is now no longer allowed. Long story short, for a cleaner environment and better health we will have to paint more often, replace tires more often, ect, ect, ect.....

Chris

deerefan · May 31, 2012

Diamondpilot said:
You can think the EPA for all this. All the "good stuff" that was in these products that made them last is now no longer allowed. Long story short, for a cleaner environment and better health we will have to paint more often, replace tires more often, ect, ect, ect.....

Chris

Exactly. Lacquer paint was way more durable and not as sensitive as the new stuff.

dodge man · May 31, 2012

I would disagree about laquer paint being more durable, modern paints are much better.

The problem is, all of the automakers have made certain colors that failed. We have all seen them, they fade or delaminate and peel. Its a particlular problem with that paint color, and not a sign of the times. I've restored cars from the early 70's, and they had the same problems then, plus they were more rust prone.

jeffsw6 · May 31, 2012

I remember those purple Dodge Neons. They quit bothering to make that color after a few years, since every single one you saw on the road had paint falling off. I dated a girl in college who owned one, and Dodge would not make it right. Did everyone who owned that color get screwed?

That Neon ate head gaskets for breakfast too.

ultrarunner · May 31, 2012

A friend only bought Cadillacs... after 40 years he stopped.

The last two had terrible paint problems... he passed away in 2004.

My 91 Chevrolet has paint issues and my Dad's 71 doesn't...

I'm no painter... I have painted a number of cars with DuPont Acrylic Enamel with hardener over the years and even the ones I did in the late 70's look good...

If I was an auto manufacturer... I would be embarrassed seeing all the cars with bad paint going down the road and I live in a mild California climate

Diamondpilot · May 31, 2012

It was not just the purple Dodges. I remember the 90's white cars and trucks from GM and Ford seemed to just peel off the hoods in sheets.

Chris

JJZ 109 · May 31, 2012

dodge man said:
Its a particlular problem with that paint color, and not a sign of the times. I've restored cars from the early 70's, and they had the same problems then, plus they were more rust prone.

Yup. I remember late 70's/early 80's Chevy trucks that were Hawaiian Blue having peeling issues.
Also, my stepdad bought a brand new 2 tone gray Ford in the '87-'89 era. They had enough paint issues to have a recall and the truck was repainted for free.

whodat526 · Jun 1, 2012

JJZ 109 said:
my stepdad bought a brand new 2 tone gray Ford in the '87-'89 era. They had enough paint issues to have a recall and the truck was repainted for free.

yep i know of three that this was done to

77bronco · Jun 1, 2012

whodat526 said:
yep i know of three that this was done to

A lot of the paint peeling problems in the late '80s was due to poor metal prep before painting.

I think the paint on older vehicles lasted longer because there was more of it, they were dipped, not sprayed back then.