and whoever said the guy asked if it had clear and it DOESNT, you have no idea what your talking about. IT DOES HAVE CLEAR only its in a single stage. the reason bright colors and reds fade is bc of low light fastness. SINGLE STAGED painted cars have the same UV protectoin that BC/CC painted cars have. And bingo you guessed it UV is what causes paint to fade. NO manufacture would ever release a car that was not protected from uv's, thats not how it is done. Single stage paints is the base coat (color) part and clear coat (glossy shiney) part all in one step, thats all it is. And with solid colors its just cheaper to do it that way, that is why mitsu, beemers, ford, chevy, dodge, and every other manufacture on the planet does it that.

 

You too are also among the 'tards. How can you throw a blanket statement like that out there, "just a basic thing now a days"?

And no, no one is going to sue because a 1 stage paint is perfectly fine.

Listen to what ziggy said a couple posts back and be quiet.

 

I've waxed my Evo twice in nearly a year and have had no indication of the paint rubbing off during wax removal.

Last but not least rubbing compound is probably the harshest thing to subject your paint to prior to calling it quit and re-painting it.

It's better to apply multiple coats of a less abrasive product like 3M Imperial Glaze or P21S Paintwork Cleanser (Polish) to remove scrathes /swirls; just my 2 cents.

Let's face it over time, all dark colored cars will fade. It depends on how much the car's paint is exposed to the elements.

 

I just sent my 3 week old Evo IX for Zaino detailing last week & the detailer told me the same thing....my car doesnt have a clear coat sprayed on top. But he did mentioned that it doesnt mean no clear coat...just that Mitsu mixed the red paint & clear coat....and sprayed it on the car in 1 go.

 

I am also I-CAR certified as well as ASE,BASF,DUPONT and GM certified! Single stage paints do not have the sun screen protection clear coats do end of story wether you say the clears in it or not its not doing anything to protect the color pigment because its part of it! all the solid color cars in 03 and 04 are single stage! the silver were the only clearcoated colors then! why i dont know... you will notice your mirrors and handles starting to turn light colors especially the reds! my advice is keep your cars waxed as this provides protection from the sun!

 

and btw their are no chevys that come with no clearcoat i paint them everyday! as well as ford and chrysler are probably just as smart to do that! they dont wanna deal with paint issues! mitsu is just trying to get out of it cheap! sucks they have to do that on a $30k though

 

Red = 1 stage, clear is mixed in. Lots of manufatcurers do this.

 

Sorry to throw ford and chevys and chryslers in there i was just making a point that many manufactures do this, i used to work at a BMW dealership in tulsa(crown auto world) before the manager of the body shop made his own shop (Hourglass in tulsa) and quite a few Beemers are single staged the solids anyhoo. And like Race17k said single stage is usually a cheap solution IMO.

 

owned

 

I use PPG. Their single stage urethane has in the mix what they call a "binder". It is clear in color, but is not the same number product that you use as a clearcoat.

 

i'm worried about the longevity of the paint.... i will avoid red (although i love it) and get something else... that just blows

 

Wow, this same arguement was had back in 03 I believe. I worked in a body shop for a bit, and its common knowledge the red on the Evo is indeed single stage. (Single stage, meaning a product that has the clear mixed with the base coat and is applied in one shot)

To those who think this "limited edition" car is in need of a better paint job; heres some food for thought. Honda, which many consider to be the leader amoung paint quality for the Japanese manufactorers (Toyota as well; Mitsu/Nissan are just terrible no matter the color) sold the Integra Type R in a color called Phoenix Yellow; a color that lacked a clear coat. (aka single stage)

 

Just have to make sure you protect the paint, wax it regularly (4-5 times a year) with good wax and keep it out of direct sunlight, keep it garaged or under a car cover. Dont settle on a color your not happy/excited about! RR just takes a little more elbow grease. I have zero fading on mine.

 

'06s definitely have a clear coat. I just purchased a factory touch-up paint pen - one end is RR and the other is clear coat.

 

I tought white was one of the colors as well with out the clear coat.