superrobin

Anyone else losing paint at the intersection of the rear door frame (the curved area that forms the wheel arch) and the (below door) body molding?

noteably it is below the lower edge 3M protection.

I have it on both sides

IS350AWD F-Sport, Neb. grey - 30,000 kms

dstopsie

Nope. Have never had that happen on all the IS's i have owned.

dbs600

I don't have this, but have your dealer have corporate cover this under warranty.

The protective films above the areas you describe are there for a reason.

WRX customers were experiencing same and got their cars repainted under warranty.

Suburu added the protective films our IS' have thereafter, as did many in the industry.

If you're experiencing this, seems the films on the IS should cover to the edge...

moose66

I've never seen that. When I saw the thread, I didn't know what to expect. Certainly not that. Is this happening on a 2014 vehicle with a little less than 20,000 miles? Yikes!

superrobin

Dstopsie - agreed, never saw that on my 2 previous IS either

Dbs600 - I checked and all 2014s I saw haven the film in the same place, that is with a gap between its lower edge and the moulding

My dealer did a paint touch up - no charge, but I wonder if they will be doing that every time the car is serviced?

Moose66 - "Yikes!" Is my thoughts exactly

beaudoif

I had the same problem on both side of the car. Went to the dealership to mention the problem. Normally, for a paint problem, it takes about 2 weeks before getting an answer back from the head office, but this time, I got a call after 2 days. The dealership fixed the paint and applied the 3M protector lower to cover the problematic area.

I'm sure most car living in cold climates where abrasives are put on the roads will have this problem.

SeanMHAS

Yup have the same thing at 3500 kms. I'll be having a chat with he dealer on this too.

computerwi

Exact same area, exact same problem after first month of ownership. In Edmonton, the fine gravel is applied to the roads for traction aid in the winter. I was planning on just touching it up and living with it since I doubted the dealer would do anything about paint. After your guys' positive experiences, I'll check with my dealership too.

For those that had it addressed, did they dealership touch it up or re-paint? If they re-painted, is there any orange peel or over spray effect?

SeanMHAS

Having the same issue here . Dealership is going to touch up the paint and re-apply the 3M lower.

superrobin

My dealer touched up the paint chips and 20,000 km later they are back.

After discussion with a few other owners locally, seems this is more prone to happen if you do a lot of highway driving.

So I thought I'd have a go at changing the air flow around the affected area - Lego blocks were donated free from my local Lego store (yellow was the only color in stock)

We'll see what happens.

computerwi

The dealer did a mediocre touch up of the 2 small chips (see previous post above) but didn't re-apply the 3M.

Five months later, I find a large flake of paint that detached from this area deeper in the door frame. This area is not visible with the door closed and would be shielded from debris that would have caused this. I suspect there must be water collecting here somehow due to the design. The airflow definitely brings a lot of debris here because there is a ton of iron contamination in the rear door sill area. There is also visible sand in the crevice between the lower rocker panel and the door frame, but it's stuck and I can't get it clean.

This has to be the stupidest design ever. I am very concerned this peeling effect will continue...

3ISRC

You have a point, this is not caused by rock chips. Yikes! I better check mine. My 3M has yellowed and edges of the film turned black, will the dealer cover this and replace with new?

steveim86

what is causing the paint chip? i just got my car couple weeks ago so i have yet to experience this.

HanaleiISF

I wouldn't say the edges of the material turned black exactly, but the edges do accumulate grime. I'm sure the dealer would replace the yellowing material though. Let us know what they say!

computerwi

The chips that have been noticeably touched up were probably regular paint chips caused by rocks. If you feel the side of the car in the area, this corner protrudes probably a good 1/4" above the surrounding panels, making it a good target. This is exacerbated by the lack of mud flaps on the IS.

The chip that that is further inside would not be due to a direct impact with debris because the door is shielding this area. My two cents is that salt from the winter sits in this corner softening the paint. Before it flaked off, I remember this area being very rough and pitted. It could also be an aerodynamic effect that causes smaller sand particles to accumulate here.

I'll be bringing this to the dealer's attention soon, but I'm guessing it's going to be another "touch up and live with it type" response. For those that have haven't experienced this yet and live in winter climates, I would highly recommend covering this region with paint protection film.