Perlecent paint

[cviclark]

Not sure Perlecent Paint was a good choice mine is Hypersonic Red and it has the Gen3 coating. The first stone chip was on the bonnet and was impossible  to touch up. I also had one in the centre of the roof which has proved equally difficult. The touch up is a three part kit and is obviously intended to be sprayed or SMART  applied but is no good for chips or scratches.  All of my Toyota's have been metallic three Silver and an Island Blue. All sufferd badly from chips but the touch up kit supplied did a reasonable job. The Gen 2 and 3 both had stone chips on the roof and the bit just above windscreen was particularly vulnerable, and difficult  to blend in. The Island Blue Auris TS was very vulnerable at the front of the bonnet.

The Gen 4 appears to chip and small scratches do not rub out with cutting polish. The two paint applications remain soft until the lacquer is applied. When soft it "washes out" after the lacquer it does not flatten with cutting polish. It could be the Gen3 makes the paint brittle or the paint is just not up to the job. I doubt the chips will rust as it metal appears to be Galvanised but it is unsightly on a new car.

The colour also looks different on the metal bits to that on the plastic sills in sunlight.

Anybody else having problems?

I coverd the bonnet chip with a Gel Badge that looks very good. The roof has now had four applications of AutoGlym resin polish and two of liquid hard wax and as it is in the centre does not catch the eye. All attempts to purchase the advertised Hood Guard have failed as did my attempts to get one for the Auris.  The only good news is the red is a good colour to  pimp up with black shrink wrap like the Plug In and Yaris. 

[barrycoll]

Glad I ordered no-extra-cost white, rather than £790 red.....although I still like the Vermillion red of the Gen 3

Just what have you black wrapped on your red car Ian??

The white bathroom fittings?

[QuantumFireball]

I didn't know there was a touch up kit for pearlescent paint. I have a 2012 Plug-in in white pearl and also have a few scratches and stone chips I'd like to sort out - looks like a previous owner tried to correct some but did a crap job, like they used plain white paint or something.

Not sure exactly what you're saying about this "Gen 3" stuff but any wax or sealant need to be completely removed before doing any touch-up work.

[cviclark]

I have found a guy who says he could do the white but he advised me to wait and see how it stood up to daily use. The shrinkwrap does is not that good inside, it's the same stuff used for decals on vans.  Although the white would not be my choice I don't notice it now as much as I thought I would. It keeps clean and does not show dust and fingerprints like piano black. At night it is quite good, but I keep a pair of black gloves in the phone tray.

I have been trying, unsuccessfully, to get the hood deflector shown on the Toyota website site. Distributors in four countries show it as available on line but none can actually get it. Regardless of colour the low bonnet is very vulnerable. Hood deflectors are common in North America so I may have to wait until I visit Canada in the summer. The part number is PU - 500 -4716E  but it does not really exist.

[Heidfirst]

Interesting as I thought that Toyota had moved to paint strips for stone chips/touch up rather than touch up pens etc.? Maybe they have now moved back?

[Harters]

I am a lover of the white trim, but I have the leather tray to cover the phone charger which I have no use for. I think it looks really good. 

[cviclark]

GEN 3 is also called glasscoat and is a hard coating that the dealers put on. I live by the coast and seagulls are a problem as their droppings eat into the normal lacquer coat. We also have a lot of quarries so stone chips are areal nuisance. The most popular touch up kits are from Chipex and are good but expensive, but online there are lots of kits that Guarantee a match. We also have a local firm that mix auto paint to the manufacturers code. Mine is so new they did not have the code.

Most metallic and perlecent are single part which dry hard. The techniquie is to smudge it in with your finger, leave a bit and flatten with thinners until level. Leave to harden and Polish.  This works OK on single part paints. This paint comes in three parts. A base coat first that is dark, a very thin light coat and a lacquer coat. I spent hours on the bonnet chip and never got a result that I was happy with.  Chips Away would not do a bonnet chip, now I know why.

Over the years I have added bits to my touch up kit. To feather the edge I use a tooth stain remover, like a bit of fine glass paper on a handle shaped to a point. To apply the paint I use a microbrush, you get a few of these with the Chipex kit but I got mine off Amazon. The ones from Auto shops are expensive but if you look in women's make up section you will find them 100 for £5. They are used for eyelashes.

Boat cutting polish or Farnacea centre be used sparingly on a little block of hard foam and IPA will clean off old polish. Even after years of practice this did not work on this colour.  The alternative is a wax crayon to fill in and a resin polish followed by liquid hard wax. Need warmer weather before I try that I have found a crayon the right colour.

  

[cviclark]

2 hours ago, Harters said:

I am a lover of the white trim, but I have the leather tray to cover the phone charger which I have no use for. I think it looks really good. 

I cut a bit of antislip to shape and use the charger bit as a tray. I have an induction phone but do not have the phone on in the car. I should have kept the black ashtray cup that came with the  Auris  but a pair of black gloves cover the rest.  I have  seen a chrome shifter surround that looks good, but I am getting used to the white, slowly.

[kithmo]

Black ashtray cups available at poundland, I have a couple in mine