front cap fading and peelinag

Rich&Mar wrote:
I know this has been discussed before and that it is a common problem. My cap looks bad, peeling and fading. It is a 2011 cougar fiver with the smoke gray color. Looking for ideas from others who have done something and the appx cost. Are rv mfg painting the caps now? And how are they holding up?

The best, permanent fix is to strip it, paint it, clear coat it...

I don't think they are ALL offering painted caps yet on to many TT's, only a few are i believe.. That is a question that needs to be asked when buying a new RV..

I had that happen to my 1998 Holiday, when replacing it that was the first question i had when looking at RV shows...

Paint it.

Had mine repainted after I removed graphics. It cost me $800 for a 2 part epoxy paint job.
It was gorgeous and much tougher than the orig gelcoat junk.

They never were painted so there is nothing to strip except the decals. It is colored gelcoat and it fades. You can buff and polish all day and it will come back. A large truck/equipment refinishing shop will have a large enough paintbooth. I got quotes from $800. to $3500. to do mine.
B.O.

One of the things that RVs & boats have in common is gel coat. A rule that applies to boats applies to RVs also. Both can be any colour you like as long as it is a shade of white. Perhaps more so with RVs than boats. RV builders, in their efforts to cut costs & weight, seem to start with a much thinner gel coat layer than boat builders.

The only options an RV owner has with a colour is much more frequent maintenance or paint with a clearcoat.

I had a wrap placed on mine as after twenty years buffing and polish just wasn't cutting any more. The cost on mine, which is a TC was about seven hundred.

Mine faded out after 18 months and Jayco repainted and clearcoated it under factory warranty. I heard it was at a cost of about $1800. If mine ever does it again, I'm thinking about a "wrap" instead of painting. Way cheaper, looks good, and might last longer.

A wrap might be a solution, particularly if a quality material is used.

When the factory decals deteriorated after about 5-6 years we had this made by a sign shop from a picture we had taken. Why advertise a defunct RV builder? It is a little on the small side but the largest material the sign shop had at the time.

The important thing is that it has been there over 3 years with absolutely no fading.


Click For Full-Size Image.

We have something unique. You simply will not see another front cap like that anywhere. This for a couple hundred.

ScottG wrote:
Had mine repainted after I removed graphics. It cost me $800 for a 2 part epoxy paint job.
It was gorgeous and much tougher than the orig gelcoat junk.

I am ready to start getting estimates to paint one side and the front cap, hope you are online and that you are permitted to give a name of a business. What place painted your rv? I noticed you are in the Seattle area. Any others please reply.

I have often thought about this...my last fifthwheel had did this and use to wax the front cap 3-4 times a season just to help prevent it to get worst.