Paint, fit and finish.....an issue?

[Lflouie]

The TLXs in stock at my dealer were all dark colors...black or gray so it was hard to detect a color difference. The gray had what appeared to be less metallic content on the bumpers, which made them look slightly different....but the underlying color was close.

The TLX front fenders have a different leading edge....more of a finger than a "butt" joint to the upper front grill/bumper. On the TLX that finger doesn't set flush with adjoining sheet metal and bumper. Salesman said that was a common condition (defect) on the TLX and one which customers complain about. H also said that some cars are good others are very noticeable.

He said if you want a car without these types of defects I'd need to order a TLX Type S PCM. He went on to say that they are built by skilled assembly workers which focus on panel fit, paint condition and body alignment...called "precision crafted manufacturing" for an additional 8k. Note, also offers special paint colors and body colored painted inner panels.

My take away was this......US customers are far less demanding than their Japanese customers and Maryville builds for the US market, hence their quality is not equal to the quality in Japan. The only way Acura in Marysville can provide the same quality as Acura Japan is to dedicate a special line to achieve the same standard of quality. For this we must pay a 15% premium over a standard msrp. Sad!!!!!

 

[Integra23]

Other than some with panel gap issues I haven't heard any complaints with paint color matching.
I wonder on these prototype cars if the body parts are painted separately causing these issues.

 

[Lflouie]

Other than some with panel gap issues I haven't heard any complaints with paint color matching.
I wonder on these prototype cars if the body parts are painted separately causing these issues. I'm hoping that bc the front and rear bumpers and rear fender flairs are unique to the Type S they may not have gone through the "normal" paint process as the std or A Spec Integra.

The paint color issue I believe is limited to the plastic parts only which are mated to the all ready assembled chassis, doors, hood and trunk near the end of the assembly process.

It is not uncommon for slight variations in appearance bc of the different textures/surface conditions on plastic vs metal. Another factor is the orientation of the part when spraying metallic paints. For example, if the doors are sprayed while hanging in their normal upright position, as the paint dries the metallic particals orient themselves due to gravity.....aligning in a particular orientation. If the bumpers are sprayed flat (face upward) and the spray is downward instead of horizontal, the metallic particals orient and reflect light differently. This simple example could explain the visual differences..

I know that Germany car companies take great care in matching the plastic and metal paint processes to ensure minimal differences.

I have already placed a deposit for a Type S and will be very interested to see the demo's (white pearl) overall fit and finish. My Audi and Afla with metallic/ pearl effect paints match body and bumper color perfectly.

My Acura dealer also has 2 TLX Type S PCM cars, one in a lighter blue and the other in matte gray.....those both look great for fit, finish and paint March.

 

[Lflouie]

https://www.autolist.com/listings/1...android&utm_medium=app&utm_campaign=vdp-share

Check out the front bumper paint color on this car ad for a 2023 Integra. You can see the front bumper color does not match the rest of the car. Darker colors seem to be better.

 

[lumper]

https://www.autolist.com/listings/1...android&utm_medium=app&utm_campaign=vdp-share

Check out the front bumper paint color on this car ad for a 2023 Integra. You can see the front bumper color does not match the rest of the car. Darker colors seem to be better.

This is very disappointing.
The old saying is if you want a good car that will last for a long time, buy a Japanese vehicle, made by Japanese workers in Japan.
Otherwise, meh....
the Rav4 is a good example of this, a Canadian built Rav4 vs Japanese built are wildly different with fit and finish.
I'm just surprised Honda/Acura didn't import workers from Japanese factories to train and set up the Maryville plant so they could retain some sense of continuity.

 

[Lflouie]

This is very disappointing.
The old saying is if you want a good car that will last for a long time, buy a Japanese vehicle, made by Japanese workers in Japan.
Otherwise, meh....
the Rav4 is a good example of this, a Canadian built Rav4 vs Japanese built are wildly different with fit and finish.
I'm just surprised Honda/Acura didn't import workers from Japanese factories to train and set up the Maryville plant so they could retain some sense of continuity.

I had a similar experience with my Focus RS. The RS, made in Germany, had great panel gaps, consistant color and an all around well assembled car. A family member bought a 2 yr newer Focus SE hatchback from Detroit and it was horrible. It became clear once again that foreign brands that mfg here simply don't produce the same quality cars as consumers expect in other countries.

 

[Integra23]

Now I wish they had extended the hood to meet the grill and removed that plastic filer piece.

 

[submitaweasel]

When my PWP is dirty and it's dusk outside I can see a difference between the rear bumper and quarter panel match. When it's clean and shiny I don't see it.

 

[OEMjoe]

Wow. I need to look at mine now. What door is that?

Driver rear - dealer just took a photo and sent to acura, we will see. I had a different dealer look at it while i was in So Cal and they wanted to send it to a body shop.

 

[optronix]

Fit and finish for German cars can be questionable too... just see this thread for a good (bad) example.

My last 718 had pretty bad panel gap for the hood but you had to look very hard to notice because it was black. This one I have now is perfect.

I think the problem here though is the prevalence of the issues. The car in the video and the one in the ad were both despicable, so it doesn't seem hard to find examples of poor build quality...

Guys who are preordering your cars- beware. Personally this would drive me up the wall and ruin the ownership experience. I wouldn't buy one sight unseen.

 

[Integra23]

Fit and finish for German cars can be questionable too... just see this thread for a good (bad) example.

My last 718 had pretty bad panel gap for the hood but you had to look very hard to notice because it was black. This one I have now is perfect.

I think the problem here though is the prevalence of the issues. The car in the video and the one in the ad were both despicable, so it doesn't seem hard to find examples of poor build quality...

Guys who are preordering your cars- beware. Personally this would drive me up the wall and ruin the ownership experience. I wouldn't buy one sight unseen.

Very true. When I picked up my Aspect they has it pulled in their garage with really good lighting. I picked up on some odd black spots on the hood and elsewhere, looked like black ink on my LCM. May sales guy was worried because they did have a new car that recently had paint issues. They took mine back and were able to buff it out. I also inspected panel gaps at that time but everything was uniform.

 

[Grelco]

The white car with the drastically different bumper/body paint doesn't make sense. Are we sure that isn't a replacement bumper? I've never seen white mismatched like that on others Acuras.

As for the tiger eye, that's a preproduction car so not really indicative of anything. I guess we'll see!

 

[Lflouie]

Take a look on one of the used car sites and see the paint variations on the Acura TLX and Integras advertised. You'll see that it is much more common than you'd think.....in fact Acura vehicles made in Ohia are by far the most consistently poorly matched bumper to body color.

I'm not trying to trash the car, in fact I have a deposit for an ITS, but the point is knowing what you're getting and be mindful when picking colors and inspecting fit and finish before you sign.

 

[ijm5012]

Are there large issues with mismatched paint on the current integra and tlx?

I don't have any paint issues with my 21 TLX, but its in Performance Red Pearl.

 

[Lflouie]

I walked the local Acura dealer lot and inspected 4 Integras, Aspec - blue, and gray, Tech pkg - white, regular - silver. Also inspected 2 TLX - gray and red.

All of the Integras had mismatched paint on front and rear bumpers vs painted fenders and hood. In addition on the upper left and right sides where the upper part of the bumper attaches just below the hood ( about 12" in from each corner) shows a distortion in the plastic where it appears to be mounted.

The TLX's paint match was better and a less obvious difference. The front bumper design is much different and hides the difference and does not have the same mounting defect as the Integra.

Quite candidly a $45k Audi A4 has a much much better fit, finish and overall build quality. Yes they are different cars but when fully loaded about the same msrp ($53k) ....the Integra pales in comparison. Note: the CTR does not have these same defects, and a much better build quality.