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Bubbles in Paint at Door Hinges

Bayrat

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Washed the jeep over the weekend and noticed small bubbles in the paint at one of the rear door hinges. I am over a year and have roughly 27k miles.They are hard underneath and the paint is not loose and pretty sure they were not there last time i washed the vehicle. It cant be rust under the paint since the doors are aluminum. All other hinges are fine. Has anyone seen this issue?

7BBAFBCE-A498-4C9D-A44E-5ACE0C7E028D.jpeg
Yes, mine look the same as most. It's corrosion underneath the paint blisters, sooner or later they will POP and look even worse.
 

Bayrat

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Here’s mine. I wonder how does the dealer preps the aluminium prior painting, to ensure that it doesn’t reoccur???

I wonder if installing Derlin hinge bushings would break the conductivity thus reducing the corrosion/ oxidation???

DCB9AA31-025F-4081-8027-78A5F87571BD.jpeg
I checked my 2019 and the hinges are aluminum but the bolts are steel. So the connection remains unless they use a different bolt or an insulator.
 

zoepup

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I drop mine on Monday at the dealer. they are repainting all doors and tailgate and replacing hinges.
wonder if there is a way to keep it off carfax.
 

gbr

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You are the exception. Was the corrosion extensive or very minor? Mine was very minor. Tiny in some spots. But definitely starting at the door bottom took until now to appear. A new door would have slowed that starting from fresh. Have expected the epoxy to help - but only can help where it is applied.

If any time were good - now would be the time for you to unload. If FCA approves to pay again to get mine done - will probably think about selling with no bubbles visible. Unfortunately this corrosion looks unstoppable. Is just a matter of time for it to surface.

Never had this experience in any vehicle owned over 45 years. Will be my first and last FCA product. Love the beast to get me to ski resorts no matter what. But this is BS. If not covered - will just prep and repaint myself and drive it into the ground. Gloss black is easy to match.
It was minor. Maybe it's a Canadian thing.
 

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gbr

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Unfortunately, unless they remedied the underlying issue the problem still exists, replacement doors or not.
The door came unpainted, so I at least have a primer coat between the hinge and door. I should have had them put in a gasket.
 

Whisky19

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Jeep scheduled for Sep 19th to fix all bubbles areas. Chrysler picking up entire tab but I’m still nervous about paint matching 😳
 

Jeepers 2020

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Jeep scheduled for Sep 19th to fix all bubbles areas. Chrysler picking up entire tab but I’m still nervous about paint matching 😳
did you complain to the dealership on why this was happening? And did the service advisor try to not care at all?
was wondering what the steps are?
 

Whisky19

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did you complain to the dealership on why this was happening? And did the service advisor try to not care at all?
was wondering what the steps are?
He actually measured the spots and took pics as if he’s done this for Jeep
owners a 1000x which seemed concerning. He actually suggested trading it in! These are spot repairs. Brought down to bare metal then treated with some pen application which supposedly has a chemical to prevent this from happening again ( he didn’t seem to convinced of this fix). He did say they will ensure the paint matches. At this point I have little confidence this whole process will solve anything long term.
 

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Great. Now my windshield frame has a bubble. Dealer took pics and will send in for FCA approval. Dealer didn't think the frame would be covered as its not mentioned in the warranty tsb literature and he didn't think it was aluminum.
What's the explanation for the windshield frame bubbling? Aren't the hinges, bolt and frame all made from steel? How would galvanic corrosion be the cause if this is the case?

Is any JL safe or are they all destined to become rust buckets within a decade? ☠
 

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Duke13

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Yes, mine look the same as most. It's corrosion underneath the paint blisters, sooner or later they will POP and look even worse.
Yes, mine look the same as most. It's corrosion underneath the paint blisters, sooner or later they will POP and look even worse.
 

Duke13

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I just noticed paint bubbles on mine

B4C399F7-D42D-427B-8E1B-B40EA5ED4816.jpeg
 

Bayrat

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What's the explanation for the windshield frame bubbling? Aren't the hinges, bolt and frame all made from steel? How would galvanic corrosion be the cause if this is the case?

Is any JL safe or are they all destined to become rust buckets within a decade? ☠
Unfortunately, even if the frame is steel, the hinges are most likely aluminum same as the others.
 

Bayrat

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Galvanized bolts would work once the steel and aluminum are isolated. Simply having a good coat of paint where they are mated would insulate as long as there are no scratches to form an electrical connection. I'm thinking I may remove the hinge bolts on mine and coat them with zinc. Hopefully they are at a minimum painting the hinge/door surfaces now.
 

ChuckQue

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Clubs
 
What I am seeing in the photos - and on our own 2018 Wrangler JL - looks like galvanic corrosion.

I believe the cause of this corrosion may be due to step(s) skipped in the manufacturing process.

When aluminum is machined (holes drilled for the door hinges, etc.) the steel cutting tools leave microscopic bits of iron on the surface of the aluminum. If not removed those bits of iron can create corrosion with the surrounding aluminum. Paint and primer will not stop this as it occurs UNDER the paint and primer (as we see in these photos). A gasket between the door and hinge may not stop this either as the problem is in the surface of the door panel itself.

Machined aluminum parts are typically cleaned with an acid bath called "pickling" which removes any iron particles from the surface. A "passivation" process is then typically applied to prevent corrosion before finally being primed and painted.

Since FCA previously made these door and hood panels out of steel they may have skipped the pickling and passivation steps (either to save cost or inadvertently) as those steps are typically not required with steel parts.

If this is the cause of the corrosion then FCA has a really big problem. Fixing it properly requires stripping the paint and primer down to bare metal; cleaning with acid, then washing, priming and repainting. That is a HUGE job that would have to be done on millions of Jeeps.

So, they will likely fight us on it while providing temporary paint repairs to get us outside the warranty period while never fixing the cause.

This appears to be a manufacturing flaw that could become a safety issue since it involves the door/hood hinge attach points. Suggest everyone having this issue report it to https://www.nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem#index

Since our beloved Jeeps appear to be rotting away prematurely due to flaws in the manufacturing process I suggest a class action be considered. One example https://thelemonfirm.com/2021/12/14/jeep-lawsuit-jeep-wrangler-corrosion-warranty-a-sham/
I wonder if removing the hinges, spraying with iron remover, cleaning the holes out and reinstalling the fasteners would work? However, this doesn’t solve the issue of the aluminum door, aluminum hinge and steel bolts….
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