aluminum and paint problems?

[MDbeachguy]

So i have been seeing every once in awhile that aluminum is not friendly with paint and sometimes "bubbles"

If i were to wrap my car with paint film , could these bubbles still occur and ruin the wrap job?

Is there anything that causes this issue? is it unavoidable?

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[MCG DAWG]

So i have been seeing every once in awhile that aluminum is not friendly with paint and sometimes "bubbles"

If i were to wrap my car with paint film , could these bubbles still occur and ruin the wrap job?

Is there anything that causes this issue? is it unavoidable?

I've had an aluminum F-250 for 4 years and haven't had any bubbling or other issues with the paint.

 

[604Bronco]

I can’t speak to the bubbling paint and aluminium, however if any bubbling occurs under a wrap, it’ll likely show. Even a tiny one will usually appear. That being said, depending on the wrap colour/design, you may not be able to easily see it. But since wraps are essentially heat shrunk onto the vehicle it’s very tight, so any imperfections will show.

 

[Beachin 74]

6 years with my aluminum F-150. No issues.
And I live on the coast.

 

[Tricky Dick]

Look at 20 year old Fords. They had a sprinkling of aluminum hoods and liftgates. There are usually a few bubbles. Maintenance is an unknown on these old vehicles, and paint formulas have likely improved since.

The question is, are you going to keep it long enough for this to become a problem? I'd imagine 3/4 of the people here will be on to the next vehicle within 5-10 years.

 

[mikey_photo]

So i have been seeing every once in awhile that aluminum is not friendly with paint and sometimes "bubbles"

If i were to wrap my car with paint film , could these bubbles still occur and ruin the wrap job?

Is there anything that causes this issue? is it unavoidable?

Ford seems to do pretty well with using aluminum and not running into too many issues.

The bubbling occurs due to “galvanic corrosion” when the aluminum contacts another (non aluminum) metallic surface.

It’s something that comes up with the JL at the hinge points. For some further information they have a long thread about this issue on the other forum.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/bubbles-in-paint-at-door-hinges.32756/

As to the wrap question… any imperfections will show.

 

[MDbeachguy]

Ford seems to do pretty well with using aluminum and not running into too many issues.

The bubbling occurs due to “galvanic corrosion” when the aluminum contacts another (non aluminum) metallic surface.

It’s something that comes up with the JL at the hinge points. For some further information they have a long thread about this issue on the other forum.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/bubbles-in-paint-at-door-hinges.32756/

As to the wrap question… any imperfections will show.

hmm this is good news so the only hinge to worry about is on the rear?

 

[mikey_photo]

hmm this is good news so the only hinge to worry about is on the rear?

No idea if it’ll be an issue on the Bronco tailgate hinges or not. I guess time will tell. In general though, they’ve been using a lot of aluminum on the f-150 for a bunch of years now (2015?) with millions of them in the world and it doesn’t appear to be a widespread issue with them.

 

[MDbeachguy]

No idea if it’ll be an issue on the Bronco tailgate hinges or not. I guess time will tell. In general though, they’ve been using a lot of aluminum on the f-150 for a bunch of years now (2015?) with millions of them in the world and it doesn’t appear to be a widespread issue with them.

but it seems like the issue is only when aluminum touches steel right? im guessing the weight bearing hingest on the rear of the car are NOT aluminum right?

 

[mikey_photo]

but it seems like the issue is only when aluminum touches steel right? im guessing the weight bearing hingest on the rear of the car are NOT aluminum right?

I am by no means an expert on corrosion or anything. It’s certainly possible, but who knows how ford prepped the surface between them? Maybe a gasket of some kind?

 

[dgorsett]

but it seems like the issue is only when aluminum touches steel right? im guessing the weight bearing hingest on the rear of the car are NOT aluminum right?

...or maybe the tailgate is steel, since it bears a lot of load?

 

[jay-rod427]

Ford seems to do pretty well with using aluminum and not running into too many issues.

The bubbling occurs due to “galvanic corrosion” when the aluminum contacts another (non aluminum) metallic surface.

It’s something that comes up with the JL at the hinge points. For some further information they have a long thread about this issue on the other forum.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/bubbles-in-paint-at-door-hinges.32756/

As to the wrap question… any imperfections will show.

This! It's not the paint that's a problem, it's the aluminum under the paint that causes the bubbling up.

Both of my 2016 Mustangs started this on the hood within a year..........

They need to seal or anodize the aluminum or something before bonding it to something else to keep them out of contact with each other.

 

[mikey_photo]

...or maybe the tailgate is steel, since it bears a lot of load?

This is an excellent point as well. If that’s the case, it’s a non issue.

 

[VelocityBrew]

I think you under estimate how common aluminum is on 20+ year old vehicles.

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