What is cracking on car paint?
Also calledAlligatoring, Checking, Crocodiling, Crow's Feet, Paint Checking, Splitting
Wider cracks in a pattern, often called crow's feet or checking, go through the whole paint film. The causes are paint laid too thick, layers that did not dry properly, products that do not work together, or filler underneath that moved. That is why it often shows on one panel, and why that panel has often been painted before.
What kind of repair does it need?
Stripping that panel and painting it. Cracking that reaches the primer means removing all of it down to the metal. Paint over cracks shows them again.
Cracked or failed paint cannot be painted over. Every crack shows through the new paint again. So it is stripped back first, which is what makes this more than a normal panel job.
What to do next
Find out if the panel has been painted before. Look at the panel edges and door shuts for overspray, or a colour that is slightly off. If it was resprayed recently, this is a workmanship fault. Paid work must be done with care and skill. In Australia that right comes from the Australian Consumer Law, on top of any warranty the shop gives. If it is factory paint, the cost is yours.
Sources
- Sherwin-Williams Automotivepaint maker
Cracks or lines of various lengths and widths in the topcoat finish often resembling the cracking of…
- PPG GBpaint maker
often adjacent to filled seams or panel edges
- Axaltapaint maker
Use of coats incompatible with each other.
- Queensland Government (Office of Fair Trading)government
Express warranties, warranties against defects, and extended warranties can be offered to you in addition to your automatic legal rights under the Australian Consumer Law.
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