RX-8 Withdrawl
 

Ok, So my RX-8 went in last Monday to repaint the spot around the tail light where the paint started flaking off. Turns out that they are having a hard time getting all the components to the Velocity Red Mica formula. The red is a base coat, and the metal flake is mixed in with the clear coat. Evidently this paint isnt readily available. Has anyone heard of that? So my 3 days without my car has turned into 7 days... and I got to see my car all torn apart...it about killed me =P All sanded down, and waiting to be painted... They did install my side flares for free though =) That was kinda cool...

So today was bright and sunny...and I didnt get to go toolin around in my 8 like I always do on sunny days... So I just kept the stupid Mistubishi Galant that they gave me to drive hidden in the garage... *sigh*

I feel your pain...

I havent driven mine since early December.

How is it going now flyboy?

I think it is good that they take the time to do the painting... good that they make sure they get it right! :cool:

Good luck mate... did you find out what happened in the first place?

Hang in there. February is the best month to be without your car if you have to live in Indiana. Spring is coming!

Im more worried about them matching the paint right... In the meantime...im driving the shit out of this Mistu =)

I miss my car whenever I can't drive it, whether it's for 10 minutes or 10 days. Unfortunatley the cruddy roads keep me out of it for days at a time... I had never really appreciated how wonderful a sunny crisp day and clear roads are until I got this car... :D

Was the paint flaking due to factory or contact with object? Also I feel your pain.

factory defect
 

sucks huh?

eeek.. looks like piss poor paint application... the red didn't bond very well with the primer. I wouln't be surprised if you start getting paint flaking elsewhere.

yikes, I'm going outside tomorrow morning to check on my own car..

I remember at least two others reporting this problem in the same exact area of the car. Not all were red.

They went to the dealer and was set to get it fixed.......I wonder how it came out?

Matching that color is extremely difficult. The mica layer was also on the 3rd gen RX-7's. You should see what it looks like with no mica. It would just be red. No depth, no sparkle, just red. The mica layer itself needs to be put on very smooth and very even. You can overdo it in areas and it shows. If you've got a good paint guy doing it (hopefully Mazda does!) then you will probably never notice it. When we repainted my friend's red 3rd gen RX-7, there were issues with this coming out good. Luckily the entire car needed a paint job so it was consistent and looked great when done. I don't know how it would have come out if we had painted only part of the car. I still looked very good though and probably would have mathced. Your car hasn't had time for its paint to fade in the sun either so it will probably be just fine.

Sh*t! I haven't driven mine since Sept 27th! Talk about withdrawl! But, I'll be drivin my girl in 2 days time!

Dayum...that sux!

new car and paint is already flaking off....

Hell, Flyboy, tell them to take talk to wherever painted my after market spoiler, it matches so closely I can't tell the difference. They told me when I enquired about it being different when I bought it that it was factory installed and they fooled me for a while until I was suspicious enough that I asked the service department if they knew anything about who put it on and they confirmed it was an after market product. It looks identical to the original paint. They did it in either Decatur or Springfield as far as the paint match up goes. Here's a pic.

Oh yeah I can feel your pain flyboy, sorry to hear they are taking so long. And for Jeff_pap31s this is an early welcome back to the tropical part of the world, hope you can stand the heat.

Re: RX-8 Withdrawl
 

Yep. Happened to me too back in September ... see this thread.

It is the mica component that has to be special-ordered. I will reassure you that the bodyshop I went to did an excellent job of colormatching, right down to the consistency and "lay" of the mica flakes. Now, the quality of their workmanship left something to be desired, but the color was dead-on.

I'm sure you'll be happy with the results!

Well, its going on Thursday, week 2 and my car is still sitting in the body shop, all torn apart, but no paint yet. I am going crazy... They said they "think" they will have a formula by tomorrow....but Im not holding my breath... Mazda NA is going to call the dealership tomorrow and find out whats going on... I wont hold my breath.... I wonder if they make an RX-8 patch like they have for Nicorette for smokers??? =P

If it's any help, the bodyshop I used was AutoBody USA in Lake Forest, CA.
(949) 472-1046, (949) 472-2236 Fax Hours: M-F: 7:30 - 5:00, Sat: 9:00 - 1:00, Pacific Time.
Have your shop call and ask for "Brent", and ask for the paint formula for Velocity Red. Maybe he can fax it or email it to them.

Good luck!

Paint? Heck...a couple of gallons of exterior latex works great. I did my car like this in a couple of hours with my friends last week.

Remember, you want to use at least a 4" camel-hair brush for the hood and trunk-lid otherwise to get the smoothest finish.