paint bubbles

[Blue Pilot]

Hello everyone, yet another newbie here. I am looking to buy a 97 to 99 GTS, but am in no hurry. I looked at a red 97 today, and saw a few things that I have concerns over. The vehicle has 21K miles and was in fair condition, but not up to my standards. Upon looking over the vehicle, and finding the standard (?) corosion on the fuel filler door and base, I also found several very small bubbles in the paint on both sides around the filler cap area. After a close inspection on the rest of the car, I did not find any of these bubbles anywhere else. There was also no evidence of overspray or apparent body work. Has this been a problem at all from the factory, or evidence of poor paint/bodywork? I know it is hard to tell without looking at it yourself, but any insight will be appreciated. One more question, under normal everyday driving conditions, how many miles can one expect to get out of a clutch?
20K miles seems like an pretty low number to me, as I got 68K out of my 91 corvette before I sold it.
Thanks again, this forum seems to be very informative.

 

[joe117]

I think that you will get about as many miles from your Viper clutch as you got from your Corvette clutch. It's mostly how you drive it. You should keep in mind that the Viper isn't a really expensive car to repair as far as mechanical things go. A clutch replacement wouldn't be much more than it would be in a Corvette. I wouldn't buy one with any problems if I were you, certainly not one that has been wrecked but fixing things that wear out or break isn't that big a deal. This is the time to buy one. There are great deals out there. Look on ebay and the VCA classified to get an idea of some of the prices. Some of the ebay prices and cars are not for real but you can get an idea. I wouldn't pay a very high premium for a low miles late model Viper right now. Get one that's in great shape, pay a fair price and you shouldn't have much to worry about.

 

[BLEBYU]

I have had a 97 rt/10 that had this same condition. Apparently the original owner kept the car inside all the time. It never set out in the sun. The 2nd owner did not have a garage so the car had to set out side a lot. The bubbles showed up on the sport cap/bar only. PPG and the factory where consulted. We where told to strip the car and repaint. We did and the bubbles came back in a week! They had clear fluid in them. PPG and factory where contacted a second time, and the factory said the resin in the sport cap had never dried, or cured, and the fluid was the solvent coming out when the car set in the sun!? They told us to strip the car and let it set under heat lamps, or direct sun light for three days, and then repaint it. That fixed the problem for now.Its been about 6 months ago. I was told that another dealer had the same problem in Atlanta, and it was also a 97 rt/10 sport cap. Hope this helps.

 

[ZX1100]

I had the same bubbles with my 99 RT/10's sport bar. Dealer gave me no problems replacing it rather than just repainting it

 

[Jerry Dobson]

Yep, I have the same bubbles around the gas filler.

 

[Blue Pilot]

Thanks for all the info guys, my main concern was that the car had some previous damage that was repaired, but it sounds like a problem from the factory.