I have found three spots that are rusting and starting to bubble on the roof between the top of the windshield and the moonroof. I have 33,000 miles on my car now and am worried about warranty coverage. I have had quite a few problems with my Rogue now and this just adds to increasing disappointment with this car.

The paint finish is so fragile on my Rogue that I don't feel I can even drive it one day without it getting chips in it. The front of the hood is littered in chips that are showing primer underneath. There is also rust on the edge of the hood near the wipers. I see it every day I drive. When I got the car, I thought it was just some residue, but about a month ago I looked closely and saw it was rust and some scratching. The scratching was always there and I didn't think to say anything until rust started showing up. I initially thought it was wax residue or something else.

Will Nissan cover rust and bubbling under any sort of warranty? If so, does anyone know what might they do to correct the problems?

Thanks.

You can find warranty information here:

http://www.nissanusa.com/owning/warranty.html

Basically, Nissan will not cover paint chips, scratches and surface corrosion resulting from 'normal wear and tear'. Other manufacturers (ie GM, Toyota, Honda, etc) have similar disclaimers.

The paint chipping issue is not unique to the Rogue or even Nissan. I have seen paint chipping on other 'new' cars... BMW, Mercedes, Mazda, Toyota. All had fairly low miles and the chipping was quite bad.

All I can say is try to take it to the dealer and see. They will likely deny any warranty claim, but it's worth a shot.

As for preventing this from occurring, get a clear bra installed. It's a clear plastic film installed on top of the most vulnerable areas (front edge of the hood and above the windshield). When waxed with the rest of the vehicle, it almost disappears. Any competent window tinting shop should be able to supply and install it.

Good Luck!

Just checked the roof after reading this and I found one bubble near by windshield also. Going to ask dealer on monday.

I'll give it a try but I almost 100% sure it will be denied by a dealer. It seems like a stone hit a roof and then it started to rust in that little spot. The rust made the bubble in paint. Dealer will probably say this is normal tear & wear.

I will seriously have a problem with Nissan if they say this is normal wear and tear. I have never, ever had a new car rust before 3 years. This is sad and will only get much worse if nothing is done about it.

I am very, very disappointed with Nissan's primer/paint/clearcoat durability.

I have 4.5 more years to pay on my Rogue. At this rate, it's going to be a rust bucket by then

bill875 wrote:I am very, very disappointed with Nissan's primer/paint/clearcoat durability.

Unfortunately this is not just a 'Nissan' issue. I mentioned the BMW and Mercedes in an earlier post. Both of those were fairly new cars (2-4 years old) and the hood was marked like the surface of the moon from the stone chips. Imagine a $50,000+ car with the same stone chips and rust in less than 4 years!

I don't know if the newer water-borne paint finishes being used the past few years has anything to do with it. Some say they are softer than older and less environmentally friendly solvent based finishes. I do know Nissan converted the Kyushu, Japan plant to water based paint finishes just before the Rogue went into production there.

I heard some of infinity started to use new type of paint that "removes" small scratches. I know for sure they using this paint on EX35. Check out this link where people talking about "scratch shield". zerothread/334950

Quote »One of the unique features of the new EX35 is “Scratch Shield,” a special “self-healing” clearcoat paint, which is designed to maintain its gloss-level over time. The paint repairs fine scratches, such as fingernail scratches under door handles, restoring the EX35’s surface close to its original state. The process, which takes anywhere from one day to one week (depending on the surrounding temperature and the depth of the scratch), is accomplished through the use of a special highly elastic resin. This resin is combined with a conventional clearcoat to increase the paint’s flexibility and strength by raising the resin density.[/quote]Source: Nissan USA

http://www.nissannews.com/news...mid=4

More information from Nissan:http://www.nissan-global.com/E...ATCH/

AFAIK, the EX35 is the only model sold in North America with Scratch Shield paint.

philipa_240sx wrote:AFAIK, the EX35 is the only model sold in North America with Scratch Shield paint.

The Scratch Shield has also been expanded to other Infiniti models.e.g. 2009 G37's, FX ... you can see this in the specs' and news releases.

I stand corrected.

Still, scratch shield does nothing if you get a stone chip or scratch that extends through the clear coat.

Since it's considered "normal wear and tear" and thus not covered by the mfg warranty, I would think it shouldn't count against you when you return the vehicle at the end of the lease?

I hardly consider the condition mentioned as being "normal" at all. My wife's 2004 Passat with 50K on it has no chips on it or bubbles and the Explorer I traded in with close to 70K on it looked like brand new.

The other thing I noticed and might explain the rust that is just under the front edge of the hood and at the back edge right by the windshield is that there is NO Clearcoat on the under side the hood to protect the paint.

Can other Rogue owners check the underside of your hood to see if you have clearcoat? I can't remember ever having a vehicle that did NOT have clearcoat under the hood. To me, this is a big problem as the paint has nothing covering it to protect it from the elements and road debris.

The rust is really pissing me off and I am calling this afternoon to make an appointment for the Rust, CVT rattle and the bottom plastics of the shifter handle breaking for no reason. I also have a small list of other things for Nissan to look at too. I only have 2,000 miles left on my warranty, so it's now or never. This is so frustrating and my battle with Nissan hasn't even begun

My biggest fear is that they will outright deny me and say it's normal wear and tear, which IMO is a load of %#*!. Another fear is that they will only repaint the affected areas, but then in a month or two when my warranty is up, more rust will appear because they only fixed the problematic areas and not the entire vehicle.

I have had way too many problems with my first Nissan that I don't think I will ever buy another unless they bend over backwards to fix the problems I've had.