Clear coat on my 2002 GEM is delaminating!

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Clear coat on my 2002 GEM is delaminating, just along the edge of the front clip near the windshield. Has anyone experienced this, and is there a fix short of replacing it? Is there a way to remove the clear coat from the rest of the surface?
Any help will be greatly appreciated.
Dennis

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1 Like
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Sad to say, but that’s kind of normal.

No quick fix that I have heard of.

I got fed up one day and removed a huge portion of the failed clear coat on my '02 by jamming a rubber air schnozzle under it and letting 100psi shop air do the heavy lifting. My hood looks like complete swirly dogshit right now, but hey, no peeling clear coat. I’ll probably go with an american amateur racing colors one of these days (rattle can primer and whatever color is on sale…)

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There’s a few threads on here where people have tried different ways to remove the clear coat but unfortunately non of them are very easy/quick. Also, just an FYI, NY doesn’t require you to inspect your GEM.

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I had a 2002 that I restored and the hood was delaminating just like yours. Taking off the clear-coat is a pain in the rear… If I were to do it again, I would just buy a primed new one from Nev Accessories and paint if whatever color you want.

https://www.nevaccessories.com/GEM-FRONT-HOOD-WITH-MUD-GUARDS/productinfo/GEM-COWLING/

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Thanks
I was afraid of that.

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Thanks guys. I may be able to source a used one, if I am lucky.

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My parts car source had a damaged hood, so no help there.

Has anyone tried the vinyl wraps that are available for cars? I am thinking of covering just the problem area with black or gray “ carbon fiber” so I don’t have to worry about color matching. Mine would just be a small are across the top of hood.