I have a 2013 steel green Equinox. When I bought it there was a bubble under the paint. I pointed it out to the dealer but they said it would be worse if I had them repaint it because it wouldn't be factory paint. Well now the paint is flaking off all over it. The bottoms on the doors (only on passenger side) the top edge of all 4 wheel wells, the tailgate and a place or two on the back quarter panel. Has anyone else had this? It isn't like it just rusts. The pain literally flakes off. I suppose I'm going to have to pay to get it painted but I was wondering if anyone else had either an Equinox or a steel green vehicle they were having paint issues. I live in MN so I know the first thing they are going to say is salt. I have a 2003 Silverado sitting here with absolutely no rust. I'll agree the salt is hard on it but the salt doesn't make it just flake off and I'm very diligent about keeping it washed.

 

If you could post a pix , it would help some.
The area between the outer fender and the splash guard,inner fender, allows dust, dirt and salt to accumulate and remain there only to get activated by high humidity, road splash and just plain moisture. It works from the inside out. If this is what is taking place.One way to slow it down is to regularly wash away the accumulation.

 

I also have a 2013 Chevy Equinox that is having paint problems, not in the same locations as yours are but are on my roof instead. When I first saw them they were raised places in the paint where it looked like it was bubbling up from underneath, but the paint on top was completely intact with no damage no scratches no chips. I left it alone and just assumed it was a blemish in the paint from the factory. Later the bubbles/blisters popped causing the paint to chip off. You can see new bubbles/blisters forming near the rust spots and along the edges of the contours that have not popped yet.

I live in Florida so there's no problem with road salts, although we do have salty air but my roof gets rinsed well with the pressure washer and my paint has no other signs of wear and tear. My clear coat is not cloudy and my paint is not faded so it doesn't seem like it's where from the elements outside. It's just these places bubbling up from the inside. I saw another Equinox on the forum who had the same problem as me but with the hood of his car and it was speculated that it could be corrosion in the aluminum from the factory. I also read how defects in the paint could've started by incorrect paint conditions at the factory like it being too humid or them not waiting long enough in between coats of paint for it to dry fully and moisture got trapped. I've seen a bunch of other equinoxes around town with paint peeling off – either the same way as mine that started as bubbles or just directly peeling off.

Sidenote: the paint on the roof is insanely thin as I got to see after I chipped a piece of it off. The paint on the roof is definitely thinner than the paint on the hood of my Nox because I got a chip on the hood and I can see how that paint is a bit thicker. I can't believe how thin the paint on the roof is- it's actually thinner than my acrylic nail polish I'm currently wearing. C'mon on, Chevy!



You can see along the edges of many of the roof contours starting to bubble up as well, which is how these two areas started. You can also see 2 other small round bubbles starting just below the big rust spot which is how the two big ones started. (Ignore the dent – it was from my neighbors tree dropping nuts over my driveway and is unrelated &#128530

These spots started out as bubbles/blisters where the paint was completely intact but just bubbled up from underneath, then the bubbles/blisters popped, & the paint chipped

Newer 'Nox I spotted in the parking lot with the paint peeling off the rear panel. I've seen many 'Nox around town like this. I love my Equinox, but shame on Chevy for these paint jobs because I'm gutted 😔