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Found out yesterday that factory paint thickness specs vary more than I thought

I was measuring a 2018 Honda Civic hood and got readings from 4.2 to 5.8 mils across different spots, which seemed off. Looked it up in the manufacturer data that my friend at a dealer sent over, and apparently Honda allows a 1.5 mil variance from the factory. Has anyone else run into panels that seem uneven right from the factory line?

2 comments

2 Comments

thompson.nathan21d ago

I watched a video from a guy who used to work at a Toyota plant in Kentucky, and he said they check paint thickness at like five different spots on every single hood. He mentioned Honda is known for being looser with their tolerances, especially on the Civics, so your 1.5 mil spread is probably normal for them. I guess it comes down to how they calibrate their spray robots and what kind of paint they use, lol. It's wild that a panel can look perfect but have that much difference underneath.

patricia_schmidt1421d ago

Oh man, that reminds me of a buddy who painted cars in high school and then went to work at a body shop. He said they had a customer with a brand new Chevy truck that had this weird orange peel look on just one fender. He measured it and the clear coat was like almost 2 mils thicker than the other fender right off the lot. The dealer basically said it was within spec and wouldn't do anything about it. People think new cars are perfect but they really aren't.