Originally posted by BURNTU2:
My understanding is Ford, Chevy, and Dodge are all using the same paint, primarily DuPont. I don't know if thats who they were using back in 1998, but blame the paint manufacture, not ford.



There are 3 major paint companies, PPG, BASF and DuPont. I can't speak for Ford or GM, but the largest supplier to the Chrysler is PPG by far (9 of 13 plants in N. America).

As for who is to blame for film builds (paint thickness): it is a combination of the corporate materials, the paint company and the assembly plant. The paint company defines ranges of acceptable film builds based on certain criteria. The materials group dictates to the assembly plants what the film builds should be. Then the plant is responsible for applying that amount. Without knowing what the specifications are for the film builds, it is tough to place blame.

As for me, my car does not have any cracking but it does have a record number of paint chips in the hood. The next new car I buy better have a powder coat primer.

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