FishinPawleys

I have a 2015 Pioneer 222, and I have been having an ongoing dilemma with the factory with regards to a major manufacturing defect on the powder coated t-top and leaning post. From day one, I noticed chipping on the bottoms of the rod holders on the t-top, which has mostly stayed the same. The real issue resides on the rest of the top, mainly where it attaches to the console and the floor. Every single mounting pad on the t-top has bubbled and/or chipped the coating away, and aggressive corrosion is beginning on the bare metal. Also, where the Yeti cooler sits between the posts, and the seating pad rubs when the lid opens, has chipped and began peeling away. There are several other spots where bubbling and/or chipping is occurring. Now, this is not a commercial boat, it is a meticulously maintained boat that has 80 hours, and is covered within one day after each use. Also, the new spots became obvious as of June 2015, and the boat was bought on April 30th 2015.

Now comes my question, is it unreasonable for me to expect total replacement of the aluminum on my boat, that is less than one year old. Mind you, this is a Pioneer, a relatively new company, that supposedly stands behind their product with a 1 year total warranty, and lifetime hull warranty. The solution proposed to me by the factory is to allow them to attempt to repair the coating first, and if it's really that bad, to replace. This involves sending it back to the factory at their cost for 2 weeks or so.

I refuse to accept that as an answer. A $70,000 + boat should not succumb to the elements this fast, especially when maintained as well as I maintain my boat. Not to mention the fact that it is impossible to repair powder coating, despite their claims to have a system they use to touch up the spots using a color matched paint and prep of the area.

I have spoken to multiple powder coating shops, and they have all told me that the coating was likely not prepped correctly, causing it to fail so early on. Also they say that the coating on mine is too thin, as you can see the aluminum through the coating in several spots, and the spots that have failed are very thin as well (less than1 mil thick).

I have also spoken to my good friend who is a lawyer, and they recommended me to get as many opinions on this as possible, before sending the boat to the factory. I would appreciate any legal advice as well, as contract law and warranties are not my friends area of expertise.

In summary, I am wondering why I didn't buy a Sea Hunt or a Sea Fox if this is the quality of product that Pioneer produces and expects the customer to be happy with. 1 month of a new looking powder coat is absolutely not acceptable, nor is 10 months of jerking me around when I made the factory aware of this issue.

A few images of the issues are below:

Badbagger

Factory should correct that. Prep most likely your culprit, read lack there of. Powder coating cannot be patched and I personally do not use it in marine applications, bad news.

captain28570

Yea noway I would let them fix it. New top all the way. If it was in one maybe 2 small places it might be ok. But that many places it was not prepped right. You have pics? Post them.

I see they are located in S.C. There is a bunch of boats made in that area. I wonder if they get their tops from the same place as Sportsman,SH and TW?

captain28570

Yea that's bad prepping or bad finished product. It will start peeling more. Get much worse.

FishinPawleys

a few more pictures:

This one is from the antenna rubbing on the top, one day that I didn't put it up when taking it out through the inlet only.




This looks like it just flakes right off, like it would be scraped off by a fingernail or something.




This is the original damage, which I noticed at the time of delivery, and was told they would touch it up when I brought it in for 20 hour service (of course they couldn't ever get the paint) Notice the thickness is considerably more there, and the chip hasn't gotten any larger here either.

OldPete

For the record, your sea hunt comment was douche bag...

If that shit happen on a sea hunt those boys would handle it.

jayyy

Unfortunately any coating applied to aluminum is subject to crevice corrosion. Hard anodizing is the way to go for long lasting durability, especially in saltwater environment. Good luck getting this cosmetic issue resolved.

FishinPawleys

hahahaha I'm sure they would. and really Sea Hunt is a pretty nice quality boat, I was just trying to think of boats that were cheaper than the Pioneer, and for some reason they came to mind, even though I really just meant sea fox.

mattsmall1972

Ask them for an anodized ttop instead.

wmflyfisher

I have a 2014 Islander and mine is doing the same thing but not as bad. Definitely the same around the bolts and mounting points though. Happened about a year after ownership.

Did research and pretty much discovered that I was SOL. Many people said to buy the anodized aluminum and I should have listened. Will never buy a powder coated top again however, I do think it looks best.

Some of the issue lies where the SS bolts contact the aluminum with the dissimilar metals.

Good luck with a fix and please let us know what happens.

captain28570

First thing I did with mine was put Tef-gel on all the bolts going threw the powder coating. Its the only thing made that will work. The military uses it. Millions of dollars worth of it. The guy in Florida that makes it. Will keep two different metals from rusting. Also good on any SS on the boat. Its called Tef-Gel.

classic162

Why call his comment DB?. He said he should have bought a SeaHunt

OldPete

Somebody is having a hard time with reading comprehension today. ^^ (Hint)... LOL.
No worries.

Pioneer1

I have a 2013/14 Pioneer Islander that started doing the same about a year ago. Bubbled on one of the leaning post tubes almost the entire length along the bottom and on both rear bench seat hinges. Pioneers response was to send me a can of spray paint and some new screws. I understand this stuff wont last forever but a year and a half and I am nów looking at having all three pieces removed , properly prepped, and recoated on my dime. I purchased the Pioneer based on its reputation for going the extra miłe in quality and customer service. I expected more from them on my issue but was surely disappointed.

Badbagger

I would push them for a new top sans powder coating, it is cosmetic but you had problems 4 weeks in. If that fails, I would urge you to consider a trip to Sarasota Linex and have it Linexed. Problem solved albeit at your expense. Option 2, live with it and I personally could not after spending that much coin. There is NO touching up powder coat.

davepjr71

I think they are along with KW and whomever else is in that area. I know my TW dealer said that the top maker they use makes them for a few of the others. They are all part of the consortium to help reduce pricing.

Paul Barnard

Have you read all the threads about people having issues with their raw aluminum T-tops? Neither have I.

Wolakrab

As many have said, you cannot touch up powdercoated metals. Every place you see bubbled up will flake off soon.
This is bad prep...I would bet Pioneer out-sources their powdercoated accessories, and this is on the company that did the work.
Pioneer should step up, though. No way this should be happening this soon after purchase.
Let us know how it plays out.

mattsmall1972

Just wondering: can a powdercoated ttop be sandblasted and anodized afterward? If so, what would the price be for such a procedure?

Airbus A320

Powder coating will be a fad that dies out in my opinion.. Plus almost all these factory builders are using the same product from 1 or 2 top builders.. Take a look at the top on a sea hunt, sportsman, or pioneer they are nearly identical..

There are also different grades of powdercoating.. Everglades for example uses a real thick long bake coating,,, the coating on builder grade boats are marginally better than a can of spray paint.

I will never own a powdercoated top again