Re: Blistering Paintwork Front Roof Pannel
I’ve just had the panel above the windscreen repainted due to very slight corrosion along the upper edge, near where the front of the elevating roof closes. The work was done under warranty via SMG Cowfold, but carried out by a VW approved body shop at Tunbridge Wells called Motorcare.
I am grateful to Alex at SMG who filed the warranty claim and organised the work. I was loaned a T5 van by SMG for the week that my Cali was in for repair. The quality of the repair job is excellent.
My reason for posting this on the forum is that I spoke to Motorcare about this corrosion problem, which according to this forum is not uncommon. I asked if there was anything that they or I could do to prevent the corrosion from reoccurring. Their view was that the problem was caused by the rubber seal chaffing the paintwork and allowing moisture to get at the metal. The suggested solution, once the paint had hardened, was to fit a self-adhesive clear protection film along the length of the gutter that run across the vehicle. This is the gutter that the rubber seal closes into when the elevating roof shuts
The guy that I spoke to at Motorcare said that these clear paint protector films were often fitted to high-end cars to prevent chaffing on door shuts. Modern water based paints are to blame. I have an elderly Mercedes SL that is done in two-pack resin paint and you could take a Brillo pad to it!
I plan to fit one of these paint protector films to my Cali in the new year. Motorcare recommended a company in Essex called Armafend.
http://www.armourfend.co.uk/
Has anyone else had experience of this type of product to prevent the roof panel corrosion problem? Perhaps VW should fit the protector film to new Cali’s.