Tesla Paint is the most delicate automobile paint I've ever seen

Are you washing it yourself? If not, that is probably the source. I hand wash mine and have not noticed any problems with the paint. I did get Xpel on the front after 6 months. Took it on a long road trip over several days and several hundred miles with only 2 small chips. Scratches and swirls suggest poor care with washing.

jcaspar said:

Are you washing it yourself? If not, that is probably the source. I hand wash mine and have not noticed any problems with the paint. I did get Xpel on the front after 6 months. Took it on a long road trip over several days and several hundred miles with only 2 small chips. Scratches and swirls suggest poor care with washing.

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I agree, it's unlikely you're getting scratches and swirls from being parked or driving it. That stuff happens when it's washed improperly. Hand wash only with good technique (two bucket, microfiber towels, etc.). Plenty of posts here about that if you're not sure, or also search You Tube for demonstration videos.

There's no doubt the paint is different from other cars and more easily damaged. Something about California environmental rules. Lots of old posts about this if you're interested-- but careful washing usually minimizes what you described.

TexasEV said:

There's no doubt the paint is different from other cars and more easily damaged. Something about California environmental rules. Lots of old posts about this if you're interested-- but careful washing usually minimizes what you described.

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Pretty much. It's a little prone to swirling, but that can be mitigated if careful. You also have to factor in that you probably had your car a few weeks after it was painted. Those Porsches and BMWs had the benefit of all that additional transit time to to continue curing. My paint seemed to get substantially more durable after it was a month or two old.

I eventually got it Opticoated by Joe here in the Bay Area, but he essentially recommended trying not to wash it until I brought it in to help prevent damage before it had fully cured. Again, I don't know if that's still a best practice, but it sounds logical to me.

I agree. 6 weeks old and this is an example of the scratches on the hood after the first handwash.

Subarus are the same or worst, really thin and fragile. I wish I would have know before buying a dark blue car.

Unfortunately, it is the paint. Try putting tens of thousands of miles on it, and then cringe at the state of the hood. I'm trying to figure out now, if I get the hood repainted, should I have it wrapped or have Opticoat applied.

I gently hand-wash my car with microfiber cloths and it has scratches and swirls all over. Especially in mystery spots like just above the door handles! Tons of short vertical scratches above the door handles.

I agree, it's the paint. No getting around it. I wish Tesla sold the car with full XPEL included or something, from the factory.

You should see mine after 64,000 miles and 2 years Had a bird poop on it once, washed it off within 5 minutes. In that 5 minutes, permanent paint damage had already occurred. Spot is still their even after buffing and trying clay. Clay, is a really bad idea, as it scratched the living crap out of it even more. Yes I have done clay many many many times (Worked at Custom Body Shop). The paint JOB is AWESOME! The paint QUALITY is dismal at best.

There is a rumor floating around the Tesla will be using a new harder clear coat in the near future. Maybe part of the new modifications made to support changes when the X comes into the line but has nothing really to do with the X.

The Tesla silver colored paint holds up very well. 18 months and 25K miles and it looks great. I wash with microfiber towels and Meguiars detail spray, sometimes use a car cleaner spray.

It'd be cool if Tesla offered "body-in-white" (read: raw factory aluminum) as a "color" option. Fully coated to the max in XPEL or equivalent.

According to Telsa, a new, state of the art, paint shop is in the works. Huge investment for the company, but necessary as volume ramps up.

No way to tell if that will result in a more scratch and chip resistant finish, but most certainly hope so.

Do you guys seriously think Tesla uses an inferior paint.....give me a break!! If so, show me a hardness test to prove it.

Uncle Paul said:

According to Telsa, a new, state of the art, paint shop is in the works. Huge investment for the company, but necessary as volume ramps up.

No way to tell if that will result in a more scratch and chip resistant finish, but most certainly hope so.

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Sure, but it doesn't really help the owners of the ~80K? Model S's already out on the road.

I still think it is your place. Get it buffed out and try somewhere else or do it yourself.

Uncle Paul said:

According to Telsa, a new, state of the art, paint shop is in the works. Huge investment for the company, but necessary as volume ramps up.

No way to tell if that will result in a more scratch and chip resistant finish, but most certainly hope so.

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I thought they already had a state of the art paint process/booth/shop/factory, etc.?