[RapmasterD]

I am now three weeks in to my recently purchased 2018 Bolt Premier. After a week of ownership, I noticed the driver side roof rail had several small bubbles in our SF Bay Area morning humidity. By Noon, with drier air, the bubbles had disappeared. Last week, during a trip to drier and hotter Sonoma County, I noticed that one of the bubbles burst. Now, I have a bona fide chip - disappointing for a newly purchased car that displayed no cosmetic blemishes (that I noticed). And additional bubbles have since surfaced.

The car is solidly out of warranty. I brought it to a dealer service technician today, who suggested I simply go to a body shop. Then I went to the Chevy parts shop down the street. The roof rail is a replaceable part that costs around $135 each. Then I went back to the service technician, who looked up the part and told me the cost to install the roof rails would be $600 labor,. And no, I'm not handy and am not equipped to deal with head liners, etc.

I can't imagine a paint shop would take in this kind of work, and if they did, it probably wouldn't be much cheaper.

Has anyone else heard of or experienced this issue? If so, what did you do about it, if anything? In the realm of potential issues with this car, this is not a biggie. But it's still annoying.

Thank you.

 

[XJ12]

Has anyone else heard of or experienced this issue?

Another one in southern California.

Premier Roof Rails - Bubbling Paint

It's been uncharacteristically rainy here in Southern California lately, raining almost every day over the past week. One thing I noticed last night was that the silver paint on my passenger side roof rail is bubbling on the inside. The drivers side rail seems unaffected. Obviously this is...

www.chevybolt.org

 

[RapmasterD]

Thanks. I had seen this. In my case, such BS. One of our best local body and paint shops agreed with the Chevy dealer that roof rail replacement was the only fix.

 

[msavides]

This looks more like clear coat not paint.

have you done a vehicle history check to see if there was ever any accidents that may have resulted in that area being repaired?

 

[RapmasterD]

This looks more like clear coat not paint.

have you done a vehicle history check to see if there was ever any accidents that may have resulted in that area being repaired?

Thank you for the response. CARFAX reports no accidents. The body shop guy suspects a pebble may have hit it under previous ownership. While odd, this is plausible.

 

[OneEV]

I wonder if an Upholsterer would pull back the headliner/and place back for you for $100 ... Once that's out of the way it looks like a 10 minute "job"


Under $200


Just go tell them you need to replace a roof rail..will take less than 15 minutes but you're scared to death to pull the liner back and COMPLIMENT them, I'd rather have a PROFESSIONAL do it so I don't screw it up... can you do that for like $100 or so ?

 

[RapmasterD]

View attachment 36774



I wonder if an Upholsterer would pull back the headliner/and place back for you for $100 ... Once that's out of the way it looks like a 10 minute "job"


Under $200


Just go tell them you need to replace a roof rail..will take less than 15 minutes but you're scared to death to pull the liner back and COMPLIMENT them, I'd rather have a PROFESSIONAL do it so I don't screw it up... can you do that for like $100 or so ?

This is a very good idea. Thank you!


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[AugMec]

My 2017 Bolt EV Premier with 42k on the odometer is having the same issue with paint on the passenger side roof rail where it is bubbling and then pealing off. It started with just the tip of the rail near the windshield and has been progressively getting worse over the last few months. I'm in Florida so the weather I assume is similar to yours in California (high heat and humidity). Based on what you stated the cost is, I think I will leave it alone, or attempt to cover it with plastidip.

 

[Pre-Bolt]

I installed factory roof rails on my wife’s Mazda CX30 and the Bolt appears to have a similar mounting setup. It looks if you remove the four hex bolts on the inside of the rail, they should come straight up and off. If so, should be easy to sand off the damaged clear coat and re-spray with some off the shelf clear.

 

[MDBolt]

I suspect that issues like these will be more commonplace with this interim "guidance" of parking outside due to the fires.

 

[AugMec]

I suspect that issues like these will be more commonplace with this interim "guidance" of parking outside due to the fires.

I believe so. Pre-recall, I always parked in the garage, now however I charge and park in the driveway. Luckily, when I installed the EVSE, I installed it just inside the garage - I figured this way if a friend is over and they need a charge I can just run the cord under the garage door. The cable extends out about 14ish feet and I park as far away as the cord will reach. I have since mounted a wall hanger for the charge cable and keep it permanently outside the garage. Unfortunately, my car is in the sun all day and not only hot when I get in it but now the paint is peeling from the roof rails. If I end up plasti-dipping it i will update this post.

 

[martinknutson]

My 2017 Bolt EV Premier with 42k on the odometer is having the same issue with paint on the passenger side roof rail where it is bubbling and then pealing off. It started with just the tip of the rail near the windshield and has been progressively getting worse over the last few months. I'm in Florida so the weather I assume is similar to yours in California (high heat and humidity). Based on what you stated the cost is, I think I will leave it alone, or attempt to cover it with plastidip.

In California we can have high heat, and high humidity, but usually not both, and not in the same place. The Pacific, at our latitudes, is much colder than the Atlantic, and the high humidity usually registers as a cooling fog/drizzle rather than the humidity Atlantic seaboard states get.

 

[RapmasterD]

I spend money on stupid things. It looks like I’m keeping this Bolt and have a $650 quote from a local body shop to replace the roof rails. I can’t stand looking at that bubbly sheeat every time I get into the car.

I also have put down $250 non-refundable, on a Tesla Model Y. I’m going to go ahead, cancel the order, and lose THIS money. Why? Because I drive less than 4000 miles per year. $900 (650 roof rails plus 250 MY) is stupid, but a lot less so than buying a $61,000 Tesla driveway ornament - or spending about $26,000 on a three year lease..


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[David Winters]

I spend money on stupid things. It looks like I’m keeping this Bolt and have a $650 quote from a local body shop to replace the roof rails. I can’t stand looking at that bubbly sheeat every time I get into the car.

I also have put down $250 non-refundable, on a Tesla Model Y. I’m going to go ahead, cancel the order, and lose THIS money. Why? Because I drive less than 4000 miles per year. $900 (650 roof rails plus 250 MY) is stupid, but a lot less so than buying a $61,000 Tesla driveway ornament - or spending about $26,000 on a three year lease..


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I took the plunge last October and bought a Model Y, keeping my 2019 shock colored Bolt. No regrets. We no longer own an ICE powered vehicle. My wife drives the Bolt and we use the Y for longer trips.