2020 Prius prime paint issues.

I use Dr. Colorchip. I have blizzard pearl white and it works well. Watch youtube videos to get an idea of how to use it.

Dr. ColorChip Automotive Paint Chip Repair Kit - Dr. ColorChip: Automotive Paint Chip Repair Systems

 

I always (half-jokingly) recommend smacking a new car with a hammer right away and then you can quit fussing about it. Stuff happens. Cars get scratched and dented unless you rope them off in a museum. It's called normal wear and tear.

I have never bought a new car, so they all come pre-blemished. And then I drive the car and rocks, birds, and tires bounce off of it as I drive. I don't abuse it and I like to keep it clean and waxed, but unless the damage is really gross, it's like 'Mater said when the two British spies wanted to fix his dents. They were his memories.

 

Sorry for your frustration, but I really don't think there is anything different about paint job on my Prius Prime (both 2017 and 2020) compared to any other cars I have owned. Chips, scratches, and dents happens. I had very minor blemish from probably a car scraping in a parking lot on my brand new PRIME only a few weeks after the delivery. Too minor to make insurance claim. I bought a touch-up paint but decided to leave it go, so I would not be too paranoid about keeping the car intact.

That being said, the front grille acrylic panel and front windshield on Prius Prime are prone to chips and cracks more than usual, IMHO.

 

The problem is with just a picture of that tiny door chip I cannot tell what caused it. I am assuming that something struck it when you were not around as I have never seen a tiny bit of paint just fall off a car by itself. When I think of bad paint jobs, I think of the newer Teslas where they miss spots, or some older GM and Chrysler products where whole foot square patches of paint fall off. The big paint problem on some Primes is where the tail gate handle rusts and is almost impossible to get to. And of course the older Toyota Tacomas in snow belt areas had a serious problem where the frame would just rust away. Not to diminish your concern, but those are paint problems.

 

Don't forget the Toyota Siennas and others with white paint of that day. The paint just fell off in sheets and yet Toyota seemed OK with drivers leaving the Toyota badges on them to advertised the LOUSY paint job that came from the factories. You'd think they'd have offered to repaint them for free out of sheer embarrassment.

So, I did a quick search and whadayaknow? They finally are embarrassed enough to offer an extended warranty on certain white and blizzard pearl models. But Prius owners with peeling paint are still SOL.
Toyota White Paint Recall (CSP) ZKG Coverage for Peeling of Factory-Applied Paint Remedy | TOYO Headquarters

 

Thanks, Jerry. This is the first that I have heard of this problem. Interesting that Blizzard Pearl, the paint that cost me $395. extra is the one failing, along with white. Notice that none of the Prius models are affected by the recall. I am wondering if the problem is associated with where the cars were made: i.e. those from Japan might be different from those from South Carolina.

 

Yeah, I think there is a difference in paint quality depending on where they were made. Still, it seems like the whites and reds fail the most. When I traded in my red 2005 Prius, there was a lot fo clearcoat peeled off. When we traded in my wife's mica green 2007 a few weeks ago, the roof looked like it hat been attacked by a horde of peacocks. Todd over at Tampa Hybrids told me that it's just the Florida sun on the paint.

We only have a one car garage and there is NO shade ever on our driveway. Since my Prime is red and my wife's Prius is white, and since I get to park in the shade at work, we take turns in the garage. I use it on my 3-day weekend and she uses it on my 4-day work weeks. Hopefully, that will stretch the time before the paint starts to fail.

 

I've seen plenty of new Toyota's on car lots with worse chips and body damage. I'm sure the paint on today's new cars is thinner than it used to be and easily damaged. But neither one of those two chips is cause for concern. I have a 2015 with lots of highway miles - it looks like somebody peppered the front-end with a BB machine gun - hundreds of chips from road rocks. But not a single rust spot. My 2015 is definitely the most chipped up car I've ever owned (and also the best car I've ever owned). It could also be due to the slope of the front end, but I'd have to concede that Prius' tend to chip easily - at least compared to other cars I've owned. But even if it was covered in Bondo, the Prius would still be a gem.