Bubbling paint !

[XJFanatic]

COOL! Love it (honest, not mocking at all, I enjoy that stuff and respect it. It's an area I have great interest in but am no pro for sure)

I can't/won't argue the dates - other than my November 2020 showed signs of having the isolators - and the Wrangler people (where I stole the one pic from LOL) said "2016 model year" and showed a 2015 with no isolator.
Their discussion as I recall (too long ago -all I recall was the year number) was that when someone posted that owned a 2016 asked if they'd have the same issue that the guy with the 2014 had, the response was "no".
Have I directly taken apart a 2015 Wrangler of either type, or a 2017, to compare? Nope. I guess I could sneak into my brother's garage tonight and tear his apart but then I'd get a call asking me for help putting it back together again and wondering how it came apart to begin with.

All I can say is that the Wrangler people "said 2016" and had photograph examples (as opposed to pornographic examples)

And - the photos of my own JTs, all two of them, showing the isolators and the pieces the bolts went through on the hood hinges.

Timing? I have no forensic proof.

We've seen the door skins, and the backs of the early hinges - we know what, and we know where galvanic action occurs and what it takes.
I think it's akin to the engine issues - same or similar symptoms with different causes.
And the exact location of the damage is a clue - the pics I've seen were where the hinge bulges out to form the area for the pin - a good half inch away from any metal with a difference in nobility.

For people wondering a bit more - open your hood, look at where the outer body panels the fenders attach to bolts to the steel structure of the body. Note the gap, and note what's hold them apart - plastic. Also note the size of the holes - not just for alignment of the panels, but to allow further isolation of the two metals. Jeep is very aware of how things work. They'd be total idiots not to! This has been an issue for as long as man has been building things using aluminum and steel - campers, car haulers/flat beds, livestock trailers, and more.
And all they had to do was send a spy to Ford to watch and learn.

Wranglers may very well have gotten them in 2015-2016 for the JK, the JL generation was lacking over the first few years. Unfortunately they had the fix but I’m sure the penny pinchers said we don’t need those.

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[USMC_1Wire6337]

Science Magic!?

Fixed it for you...

 

[ALVagabond]

Fixed it for you...

Magic is ecologically unsound.

 

[USMC_1Wire6337]

Magic is ecologically unsound.

But magic is magic. How can it be something else...

 

[Saharacane]

I got it on the bottom left side of my 2020 got the dealer taking care of it meaning paint the whole hood

I just noticed paint bubbling on the hood edge of my 2020 as well. I just thought it was something I was gonna have to live with. I never thought that warranty would cover it but I'm gonna give it a shot. Thanks to you, OP, and all on this thread!?

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Science!

Galvanic action does happen without isolating different metal but sometimes it’s also something as simple as moisture during the painting process.

If it's something under the paint, it's not galvanic action.
Galvanic activity requires - key word, requires - two dissimilar metals to be in direct contact with each other, and the presence of water.
Key words - direct contact, water.

This is NOT galvanic activity - It's where there is no other metal contacting it, and it's the STEEL, which is less active than aluminum. In this pic below that is nothing to do with galvanic activity. It's one metal, it's not a point of contact, and it's not wet AT that point of contact with a dissimilar metal.

This MAY be - but it's most likely under the hinge -

It impacts the least noble - the most reactive metal.
Dissimilar means two metals where one is more active than the other. Aluminum is slightly more active than steel.

 

[J Sierra]

https://www.repairerdrivennews.com/.../corrosion-aluminum-types4-e1528139423758.jpg

 

[ShadowsPapa]

https://www.repairerdrivennews.com/.../corrosion-aluminum-types4-e1528139423758.jpg

As related to.............?

The pictures in that link - that aluminum has been attacked. Just a chip alone won't cause that sort of damage.

The part of the hinge that has bubbled paint in the later pics isn't aluminum. So that doesn't enter in here. That's a steel hinge or some ferrous alloy) and not aluminum.
As such it won't be impacted by galvanic actions. It's more noble than aluminum.

The spots where the hinge and aluminum meet are where there may be an interaction between the steel and aluminum.

Painted aluminum itself won't rot like your link shows unless it's attacked by something like a salt or something caustic. Something else got in there and worked, maybe it was trapped, whatever. But a scratch or chip won't cause aluminum to rot without something else acting on it.

I can only leave aluminum parts in my plating prep bath for SECONDS and then it must be rinsed and rinsed and rinsed. (the bath I used for cleaning metal parts starts out with a pH of about 11 for the concentrate). Car wash soaps can be nasty to aluminum.

Aluminum has a strong attraction or affinity for oxygen - it forms a protective oxide coating almost instantly when exposed to the air. That oxide coating is highly resistant and renews itself if damaged keeping the metal relatively safe from corrosion. It's sort of "self healing" in a way.
The problem comes from what's in the air in your area. Are you by an ocean or salty body of water? Industrial areas? Do you use a commercial car wash (that stuff is nasty, high pH), so what may last forever here may rot in parts of FL or CA.
You can get pitting from chlorides in the air or water - like the calcium chloride used on roads, sodium chloride as in common salt, etc.

If there's a gap where salts or other contaminates can get trapped, then that protective layer of oxide can't heal fast enough and you get rotting.

The bumpers on my 82 are aluminum.
The only issues I have ever seen with the aluminum bumpers are where the steel brackets are connected.
I have an 83 in my shop that I'm doing body and floor repairs on and the aluminum bumpers have only a bit of galvanic corrosion on the backs where the steel brackets are. The outer parts are perfect. That's 4 decades old!

 

[J Sierra]

Filiform corrosion , what I think it is.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Filiform corrosion , what I think it is.

Generically corrosion under a film, such as paint.
I wonder if those hinges were phosphated............

And that's a result of surface imperfections in the material that's been painted - in the case of the steel hinge, it would be corrosion under the paint caused by surface contamination, and that pushes the paint away causing the blistering.

It's been talked about in a finishing forum I've hit now and then. It's almost a living process.

 

[Summitsearcher]

If it's something under the paint, it's not galvanic action.
Galvanic activity requires - key word, requires - two dissimilar metals to be in direct contact with each other, and the presence of water.
Key words - direct contact, water.

This is NOT galvanic activity - It's where there is no other metal contacting it, and it's the STEEL, which is less active than aluminum. In this pic below that is nothing to do with galvanic activity. It's one metal, it's not a point of contact, and it's not wet AT that point of contact with a dissimilar metal.

This MAY be - but it's most likely under the hinge -

It impacts the least noble - the most reactive metal.
Dissimilar means two metals where one is more active than the other. Aluminum is slightly more active than steel.

I’m not as eloquent in my explaining the problem, but yes you are correct in how it happens. I meant basically the same thing, hinge yes, hood/fender paint could be moisture. I stand corrected and needed to be more specific. My brother is an automotive painter with Fanuc robotics. I didn’t translate his explanation well. Thanks!

 

[545moose]

So no knowing that there's an actual TSB after the dealer I've been fiddle-f*cking with explicitly said they've never heard of anything, truly douses the fire with more gas.

Open a case with Chrysler/JeepCares here and best of luck. The science of things is cool to a point sure, but after a while I don't really care why it happened at all, just want it fixed and don't want to waste more of my life pleading for things other manufacturers would have already dealt with in a much more professional manner.

 

[JTBurns]

After about a 4 hour detail session over a couple fo days this week and catching up on this thread I inspected the hinges. I'm a victim to the bubbling paint as well.

2020; Gator. Decided to go to the dealership and get an oil change/tire rotation and see what they'd say. Fortunately, my dealer hasn't blinked an eye when asking about warranty work. The tech actually informed me that corrosion falls under a 5 year warranty. They also have a collision place associated with the dealer which is where I was ultimately referred to for this work, so if this is the situation with you're dealer, you may want to start with the body shop and save a trip.

On the bright side, the rest of my paint still looks showroom after a good wash.

 

[chadinsc]

i believe the bubbles are there to reduce drag to increase mpg for the epa. same reason golf balls have dents

 

[Snake Eyes]

Why do I feel like I am back in college sitting through my chemistry class…..

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