Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register
  • We just completed a significant update, but we still have some fixes and adjustments to make, so please bear with us for the time being. Cheers!

Different color white on rear hatch vs rear panels?

DriveEV

Member
Jan 20, 2020
144
36
New York
E6BA4CC8-8D48-4C66-A99C-0C3A97C865E9.jpeg

Am I going nuts or is the white hatch different than the rear panel on the right? Seems more yellow to me? Anyone else seeing this on a white Y? I cleaned them both as I thought it was dirt.
 

SilverString

Member
Mar 29, 2020
256
142
Bee Cave, Texas
View attachment 543120

Am I going nuts or is the white hatch different than the rear panel on the right? Seems more yellow to me? Anyone else seeing this on a white Y? I cleaned them both as I thought it was dirt.
When I got my body work on my Pearl White MS they replaced both door shells when only one was damaged because of this very issue. The body shop rep (Tesla Certified) told me there are nine different possible shade variations with the Pearl White.
 

VT_EE

Active Member
Apr 22, 2017
2,019
2,408
Maryland
There is a very long Model 3 thread about this. I have a feeling the white formulation changes ever so slightly on occasion and it bites them when pulling these plastic, painted covers out of the parts bin. My Model 3 looked just like this Y. It didn’t get fixed until I got rear-ended and everything was repainted.
 

VT_EE

Active Member
Apr 22, 2017
2,019
2,408
Maryland
I should probably add that the Y in this picture isn’t that bad compared to some previous examples of the 3. Some of the discrepancy might also be the change in texture and how it reflects light.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TLLMRRJ

Taber

Model Y charged via the sun.
May 19, 2020
30
24
New Mexico
The paint on the doors of my blue Model Y performance is variable, but the rest of the car is solid. Clearly they have issues with the painting robots in the factory.
 

myMY808

Member
Feb 15, 2020
195
207
Hawaii
The same thing happened with my old Venza when the rear bumper had to be replaced after a collision. The bumper definitely looked like a different shade of grey than the rear fender. When I complained, they re-painted it and they were able to match it a lot closer. There were several reasons/complications they mentioned with plastic bumpers, which I think are true for all cars:

- Even in the factory, the plastic parts are generally painted separate from the rest of the body, so some variation can be introduced there

- The paint that they use on the bumpers has to have a flex additive (so it won’t crack if something bends the bumper), so you’re already dealing with slightly differently formulated paint

- Metallic or pearl paints are notoriously difficult to match

- More specific to bumper replacements, body shops generally do not blend bumpers. They’ll blend when they replace fenders or doors to make the paint appear to match, but not bumpers.

Granted, most of the above applies to replacing a bumper, not getting the car from the factory with an obvious mismatch like the one in the OP’s photo.
 

RoBoRaT

Zero Farts Given!
Nov 22, 2018
1,352
1,179
SoCalNorth
There is a very long Model 3 thread about this. I have a feeling the white formulation changes ever so slightly on occasion and it bites them when pulling these plastic, painted covers out of the parts bin. My Model 3 looked just like this Y. It didn’t get fixed until I got rear-ended and everything was repainted.

Our defunct late 2019 X had the Pearl White paint mismatch too.
It got fixed when it was totaled :eek:,
and got Midnight Silver Model Y instead.
20200519_171143.jpg
20200519_171722.jpg
 
  • Funny
Reactions: VT_EE

BMax_V.2

Member
Apr 14, 2020
282
235
Bay Area
To the original OP, different surface area from plastic to metal can have variation on how the same paint may look. To a certain degree, there is a fine line where it is tolerable or not...
 

DriveEV

Member
Jan 20, 2020
144
36
New York
To the original OP, different surface area from plastic to metal can have variation on how the same paint may look. To a certain degree, there is a fine line where it is tolerable or not...
Helpful, and I do appreciate that but it’s noticeable. Just trying to think about it but wouldn’t want them to make it even worse potentially...
 

Scooby24

Member
Mar 19, 2020
116
184
Olathe, KS

Here's an image of my door, and lack of paint for reference.View attachment 543288

Oh my god that looks awful (No offense guys, so sorry!)

Amazingly these look like the exact sort of pattern on the front door with thin and thick spots so it would appear it's a problem with how they are laying down the paint and it's probably a problem on every Y, with certain colors showing worse than others.

As for the white, plastic bumpers always take on a different shade as the paint lays on the surfaces different. Metallic and pearl colors seems to do worse than others as it appears the pearl/metallic additives cause the color shift to be different.

Here's one of my Foresters that's never been in an accident or repainted...factory paint and you can really see the difference with the bumpers and rear panels on the doors vs the metal. The flake makes it look a shade darker.

7c3jrrP.jpg
 
  • Informative
Reactions: KRG21

KRG21

Member
Mar 15, 2019
200
209
Miami
Yeah ^ My mom’s car is pearl white and the bumpers are 3 shades darker. New from factory.

I also had a misaligned tailgate on my Land Rover, and my friend’s new Volvo had to have the Window trim adjusted bc it was off. I also had two Porsches and they both had minor build quality issues when obsessively analyzed. Unrelated..but one of the Porsches and the Land Rover both had major engine trouble in the first year. All of these were brand new cars. I’m beginning to think Tesla’s quality is average and people here just haven’t bought a new car in a while or didn’t look that closely at their previous vehicles.

The blue pictured above is ridiculous though. Not sure I believe that? How would that go unnoticed.
 
Last edited:

BMax_V.2

Member
Apr 14, 2020
282
235
Bay Area
Mine is currently at Tesla to address this paint issue. It is only evident during certain lighting and can easily be missed. I didn't even noticed it until it was pointed out to be under the exact lighting condition as indicated on my picture posted..

I suggest you give Tesla service a ring as well..

Here's an image of my door, and lack of paint for reference.View attachment 543288
 

About Us

Formed in 2006, Tesla Motors Club (TMC) was the first independent online Tesla community. Today it remains the largest and most dynamic community of Tesla enthusiasts. Learn more.

Do you value your experience at TMC? Consider becoming a Supporting Member of Tesla Motors Club. As a thank you for your contribution, you'll get nearly no ads in the Community and Groups sections. Additional perks are available depending on the level of contribution. Please visit the Account Upgrades page for more details.


SUPPORT TMC
Top