2011 Audi A4 Avant: Front Bumper Paint Peeling Issue

[mnitup]

Hello all. I'll keep this short for now and expand if/when questions arise.

Eight months ago I purchased a 2011 A4 Avant CPO with 43,000 miles and all was good. On about the sixth month, while hand washing the car, I noticed the tow eye cover paint was blistered and about to peel, this was not good, but thought it would be a fairly easy fix since it was isolated to just that small plastic cover. Well, about a week later, after a Spring interstate ride home at dusk I noticed about 20-30 small chips where bugs had made contact with the front bump cover. Two days later, after driving home from work through a rain storm; the chips had turned to 1/4"-1/2" diameter paint voids. So, I contacted Audi of America (AoA) and explained the issue and asked how best to proceed with a warranty claim. Long story short, I was referred to my local dealer, back to AoA, back to the out of state dealer I purchased from, back to my local dealer, and full circle back to AoA. I asked to bring the car in for examination, sent photos (without there requesting any), and after a few weeks was told via email from my local dealer's Service Manager (with AoA Cced), that my claim was denied because this issue did not fall under the corrosion and perforation warranty. They expanded by stating it was a plastic part and could not corrode, blah, blah, blah. So, I am here to inform all readers of this case. I have also made the choice to not repaint the car (for $1,420, as quoted by an authorized Audi collision center) until after I complete stage II oil consumption and prepare it for sale. In the mean time, I added a European tag to the front of the car the reads "AUDIPAINTFAIL". Yeah, I'm pissed!

Are there any other forum members that have experienced similar A4 B8 paint issues? If so, what was your outcome? Thanks for reading, and I assure you this is really the short version.

[dropshadow]

Was the car ever involved in a front end collision? It may not show up on a Carfax, but a trained eye could tell. I'm sure you've been asked this many times already by Audi and your dealers.

[bermudakid]

I have some pretty ugly paint chips just like yours on the end of my hood and around my fog lights on the front bumper.

Never asked audi because I already knew what the answer would be.

[S-Liner]

Yea, I'm thinking it may have been resprayed once already and the peeling and paint issues are all because shoddy prep.


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[Project Quattro]

+4 for a crappily-done respray. After 6 years of New England driving my bumper and hood definitely have some rock chips, but the paint around them has held on just fine.


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[FLYINGLEGGS]

Audi definitely does not have the best paint. My last Audi, I had repainted because of all the rock chips. Let it sit for a month without driving it, then had the entire front of it clear bra'd. I'm fine getting my new car I drove it directly to the clear bra guy from the dealership. The only way to do it. Sorry you're having trouble man. That sucks

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[B G 8er]

It is difficult for anyone to make judgement without seeing this in person however, I am going to concur that there is a good chance this failing paint was resprayed. For all we know, this is not even an original OEM front bumper cover. How do you know if the entire front bumper cover was previously swapped out due to a mild fender bender or the original stripped and redone?? An improper preparation and painting could be the culprit. I feel your frustration and this paint situation is on top of your already major oil consumption issue. In all fairness to Audi, if they end up correcting your oil consumption issue and you have the front bumper properly resprayed, I believe if your were willing to give this car another chance, you could end up being extremely happy with this car. I have read most Owners with Stage 2 new motors are very satisfied. So if you do end upo selling it, chances are pretty good, someone's going to end up with a very good car!

By the way, what was the body shop's opinion as to why the paint on your front bumper was failing? Also, $1400+ to respray the front bumper sounds exorbitant to me. My guess is $700-$800 should more than cover it. I don't blame AoA for denying you warranty coverage on the paint failure, especially if there is no proof that it was their negligence. That said, I would try to find out what the CPO warranty covers and see if it does in fact cover repair of possible damage done by the original Owner.

You might also approach the dealer you purchased the car from. Sounds like they are throwing you under the bus. However, if they were the ones that sent it out for repair, maybe their body shop will end up standing behind their work.

Sorry about your troubles and best of luck.

[B G 8er]

Audi definitely does not have the best paint. My last Audi, I had repainted because of all the rock chips. Let it sit for a month without driving it, then had the entire front of it clear bra'd. I'm fine getting my new car I drove it directly to the clear bra guy from the dealership. The only way to do it. Sorry you're having trouble man. That sucks

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It is true, most auto makers now utilize harder, more brittle water based paints. Its much better for the environment but it is much harder, brittle and prone to chipping . Especially Audi's paint is hard, so even removing scratches and paint defects is extremely challenging.

There have been some issues with our models and rust issues, like the lower front fender well/rocker area, behind the front wheels. I believe mostly in cold weather climates.

[W7407AC]

mnitup- sorry to hear about your issue. A high end detailer in your area might have a paint thickness gauge capable of reading on a plastic body part like where you have the issue. This reading in comparison to the rest of the car will help you decide if it has been resprayed or not.

[uberwgn]

Mini, that's clearly a re-spray by a body shop that did not perform adequate prep. It's going to need to be re-done.

[svander]

$1400 to repaint the car? All you need is the bumper resprayed... Correctly this time.

[bluetori]

I would say the first thing you need to do is remove that retarded plate.

[mnitup]

Was the car ever involved in a front end collision? It may not show up on a Carfax, but a trained eye could tell. I'm sure you've been asked this many times already by Audi and your dealers.

Anything's possible, but no accidents have been disclosed to me. The one body shop I've had quote the repair thus far could not confirm, at a glance, if it had been wrecked/repaired in the past. I plan to follow up with them to see what it might take (and cost) to complete a full inspection to gain a better understanding and to ensure the CPO inspection is accurate.

It is difficult for anyone to make judgement without seeing this in person however, I am going to concur that there is a good chance this failing paint was resprayed. For all we know, this is not even an original OEM front bumper cover. How do you know if the entire front bumper cover was previously swapped out due to a mild fender bender or the original stripped and redone?? An improper preparation and painting could be the culprit. I feel your frustration and this paint situation is on top of your already major oil consumption issue. In all fairness to Audi, if they end up correcting your oil consumption issue and you have the front bumper properly resprayed, I believe if your were willing to give this car another chance, you could end up being extremely happy with this car. I have read most Owners with Stage 2 new motors are very satisfied. So if you do end upo selling it, chances are pretty good, someone's going to end up with a very good car!

By the way, what was the body shop's opinion as to why the paint on your front bumper was failing? Also, $1400+ to respray the front bumper sounds exorbitant to me. My guess is $700-$800 should more than cover it. I don't blame AoA for denying you warranty coverage on the paint failure, especially if there is no proof that it was their negligence. That said, I would try to find out what the CPO warranty covers and see if it does in fact cover repair of possible damage done by the original Owner.

You might also approach the dealer you purchased the car from. Sounds like they are throwing you under the bus. However, if they were the ones that sent it out for repair, maybe their body shop will end up standing behind their work.

Sorry about your troubles and best of luck.

Good points and part of my frustration is that my claim has been denied by Audi without viewing the car. And I have no idea if the car has had any such work performed, but of course, I hope not. While I otherwise do like the car, and even researched the oil consumption issue prior to purchase and there's no surprise there, I am most disappointed in the response from Audi on the topic. The statements they've made would apply to a new car as well as a CPO and this certainly does not bode well for me.

The body shop I received this first quote from would not speculate as to the cause (as I was hoping), but they are the only authorized Audi repair center in the imediate area, so it's possible they did not want to risk any Audi recourse, or enter my drama . . . haha

I do intend to follow up again with the dealer I purchased the car from to see if they'll help correct this matter for me, but I don't have high hopes since they're over 800 miles away and may not view me as a repeat customer as my local dealer should.

mnitup- sorry to hear about your issue. A high end detailer in your area might have a paint thickness gauge capable of reading on a plastic body part like where you have the issue. This reading in comparison to the rest of the car will help you decide if it has been resprayed or not.

Thanks for the tip and I think that's a great idea. I'd like to find a good detailer in my area anyway.

$1400 to repaint the car? All you need is the bumper resprayed... Correctly this time.

Agreed, and I plan to gain a few additional quotes and sample their work before moving forward with the repair. I sought this particular shop out since they are the only Audi authorized dealer in the area and want their quote to present to Audi.

I would say the first thing you need to do is remove that retarded plate.

Yeah, maybe it is a bit over the top, and certainly not my normal taste, but that's kind of my point. I want to raise awareness of how Audi is treating me as a customer. I originally was going to leave the plate on when I take the car in for the stage II Oil Consumption Repair (within weeks now), but now I do see the flaw in that angry logic.

Thanks to you all for your input and empathy, and I'll update this thread as things progress.

[W7407AC]

What area are you in?

[mnitup]

What area are you in?

Raleigh, NC

[W7407AC]

Raleigh, NC

Try these guys...fellow Opti Coat Pro installers so not a bad place to start.

http://www.b4andafterdetail.com/

[mnitup]

Try these guys...fellow Opti Coat Pro installers so not a bad place to start.

http://www.b4andafterdetail.com/

Thank you, and will do.

[B G 8er]

mnitup- sorry to hear about your issue. A high end detailer in your area might have a paint thickness gauge capable of reading on a plastic body part like where you have the issue. This reading in comparison to the rest of the car will help you decide if it has been resprayed or not.

Pretty sure a paint depth gauge won't work on the plastic bumper cover. It needs metal below the finish to measure the micron thickness.

Any competent body shop should be able to determine if the cover has been resprayed and what the source of peeling is.

[W7407AC]

Pretty sure a paint depth gauge won't work on the plastic bumper cover. It needs metal below the finish to measure the micron thickness.

Any competent body shop should be able to determine if the cover has been resprayed and what the source of peeling is.

This one does: http://www.defelsko.com/p200/positector200.htm