is not acceptable.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 8.

Zone
A
B
C
D
E

No
No
No
No
No

Overspray
Quantity per Panel
visible or felt overspray
visible or felt overspray
visible overspray allowed
overspray of a different color allowed
visible or felt overspray
Table 8, Overspray

Solvent Pops
Condition: Small holes in a paint film usually caused by trapped solvent. Solvent boils are small, clustered,
raised but unbroken bubbles in a paint film surface.
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation and comparison with appearance zone requirements.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 9.
Solvent Pop
Zone

Quantity per
Panel

Maximum Size

A

Unlimited

0.5 mm

Description
3 areas allowed per panel
No area larger than 6-inch (150-mm) diameter circle

Page 6

Freightliner Service Bulletin, 05/17/2017

98-15

Paint Finish Standards
FLA COE
FLB COE
> FLD Conventional
Business Class
FLC 112 Conventional

> Century Class Conventional
> Argosy COE
> Cargo
> Columbia
> 122SD and Coronado

Freightliner
Service Bulletin

> Business Class M2
> Cascadia
> 108SD/114SD
> New Cascadia

Solvent Pop
Zone

Quantity per
Panel

Maximum Size

B

Unlimited

0.5 mm

C
D

Unlimited
Unlimited

0.5 mm
0.5 mm

E

Unlimited

0.5 mm

Description
10 areas allowed per panel
No area larger than 6-inch (150-mm) diameter circle
N/A
N/A
3 areas allowed per panel
No area larger than 6-inch (150-mm) diameter circle
Table 9, Solvent Pop

Polishing Marks
Condition: Marks left by polishing are identified as visible swirl or hazy marks.
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation.
Requirements: See Table 10.

Zone
A
B
C
D
E

Polishing Marks
Quantity per Panel
None allowed
None allowed
N/A
N/A
None allowed

Table 10, Polishing Marks

Sags and Runs
Condition: Non-uniform downward flow of a wet paint film, typically found around rivets and along edges.
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation and comparison to examples shown in Table 11.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 11.

Zone
A
B
C
D
E

Sags and Runs
Quantity
Maximum Size
per Panel
3
4 mm vertical; no color change
10
4 mm vertical
Allowed
4 mm vertical
Outside frame rail: 2 inches (50 mm)
Allowed
Inside frame rail: 6 inches (150 mm)
3
4 mm vertical; no color change
Table 11, Sags and Runs

Freightliner Service Bulletin, 05/17/2017

Page 7

98-15

Paint Finish Standards

Freightliner
Service Bulletin

FLA COE
FLB COE
> FLD Conventional
Business Class
FLC 112 Conventional

> Century Class Conventional
> Argosy COE
> Cargo
> Columbia
> 122SD and Coronado

> Business Class M2
> Cascadia
> 108SD/114SD
> New Cascadia

Scratches and Mars
Condition: Scratched or marred paint surface.
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation and comparison with appearance zone requirements.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 12.

Zone

Allowed

A
B
C
D
E

Yes
Yes
Unlimited
Unlimited
Yes

Scratches
Maximum Size
(length)
25 mm
25 mm
No requirement
No requirement
25 mm

and Mars
Description
Visible but not felt; easily polished out
Visible and felt
No bare substrate primer exposed
No bare substrate primer exposed
Visible and felt

Table 12, Scratches and Mars

File/Grind Marks
Condition: Cuts in the surface metal caused by poor file technique or incorrect repair (visible after paint).
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation and comparison with appearance zone requirements.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 13.

Zone
A
B
C
D
E

File and Grind Marks
Quantity per Panel
None allowed
None allowed
N/A
N/A
None allowed

Table 13, File and Grind Marks

Pinholes
Condition: Small holes in a paint film, usually in the area of a silicon bronze joint, plastic parts, or polyester
body fill (i.e., porosity).
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation and comparison with appearance zone requirements.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 14.
Pinholes
Zone
A
B
C

Page 8

Quantity Per
Panel Per Zone
5 maximum
Unlimited
Unlimited

Maximum Size
(diameter)
2 mm
2 mm
3 mm

Description
2 allowed within a 6-inch (150-mm) diameter circle
10 allowed within a 6-inch (150-mm) diameter circle
No requirement

Freightliner Service Bulletin, 05/17/2017

98-15

Paint Finish Standards
FLA COE
FLB COE
> FLD Conventional
Business Class
FLC 112 Conventional

> Century Class Conventional
> Argosy COE
> Cargo
> Columbia
> 122SD and Coronado

Freightliner
Service Bulletin

> Business Class M2
> Cascadia
> 108SD/114SD
> New Cascadia

Pinholes
Zone
D
E

Quantity Per
Panel Per Zone
N/A
5 maximum

Maximum Size
(diameter)
N/A
2 mm

Description
N/A
2 allowed within a 6-inch (150-mm) diameter circle

Table 14, Pinholes

Paint Chips
Condition: The absence of a small portion of the paint film usually caused by scraping or impacting the painted
surface. Rock chips are a common example.
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation and comparison with appearance zone requirements.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 15.

Zone
A
B
C
D
E

Paint Chips
Quantity per Panel
None allowed
None allowed
No bare substrate or primer exposed
No bare substrate or primer exposed
None allowed
Table 15, Paint Chips

Stripes and Paint Break Edges
Condition: The chipping or loss of adhesion of small portions of the paint film from the edge of the stripe or
paint break.
Definition: A stripe is any color less than 8 inches (203 mm) wide. A paint break is wider than 8 inches (203
mm).
Method of Inspection: Visual evaluation and comparison with appearance zone requirements.
Appearance Zone Requirements: See Table 16.

Zone
A

Allowed
Yes

B

Yes

Stripes and Paint Breaks
Description
Very slight loss of edge (less than 2 mm)
5 mm horizontal: 1 mm vertical:
Must be at least 11-3/4 inches (300 mm) away from next occurrence
5 mm horizontal: 1 mm vertical:

C
D
E

Yes
N/A
Yes

Must be at least 11-3/4 inches (300 mm) away from next occurrence
N/A
Very slight loss of edge (less than 2 mm)
Table 16, Stripes and Paint Breaks

Freightliner Service Bulletin, 05/17/2017

Page 9

98-15
Freightliner
Service Bulletin

Paint Finish Standards
FLA COE
FLB COE
> FLD Conventional
Business Class
FLC 112 Conventional

> Century Class Conventional
> Argosy COE
> Cargo
> Columbia
> 122SD and Coronado

> Business Class M2
> Cascadia
> 108SD/114SD
> New Cascadia

Chassis Paint Requirements
The chassis is inspected for runs and sags, overspray, grind marks, inadequate paint coverage, and loss of
adhesion (primer and/or topcoat) at the time of manufacture.

NOTE: Chassis includes frame rails, crossmembers, axles, drivelines, battery boxes, fuel tanks, and
wheels.

Chassis Marks
Cosmetic surface marks and scratches are usually present on the frame rails. These surface marks are
acceptable, as long as they are properly covered with paint.

Sags and Runs
Outside: Sags or runs on the outside of the rail or in visible areas of brackets, axle, hubs, or wheels shall be
allowed, if no longer than 2 inches (50 mm) in length and have only a single crest. All other runs are
unacceptable.
Inside: Sags or runs inside the rail and in less visible areas are allowed, if no longer than 6 inches (150 mm) in
length. All other runs are unacceptable, including runs on drivelines, crossmembers, etc.

Overspray
Overspray on visible areas of bumpers, steps, battery and tool boxes, brackets, axles, hubs, wheels, drivelines,
or frame rails is unacceptable. Overspray inside the frame rail is allowed, if it is not an unacceptable color.

Inadequate Paint Coverage
Inadequate or incomplete primer/substrate paint coverage, visible or hidden, is unacceptable and requires
touch-up.

IMPORTANT: Several vehicle components, such as aluminum wheel hubs, are not meant to be
painted.

Loss of Adhesion
Loss of adhesion to primer and/or topcoat on any visible or hidden areas of the chassis is unacceptable.

Tape Test
In instances where it is difficult to determine an adhesion problem, a tape test should be performed using the
following steps.
1. Photograph an area that does not already have paint damage.
2. Take a piece of regular masking tape and press it firmly to the area.
3. Pull (jerk) the tape off quickly.
4. Photograph any paint attached to the tape.
5. Photograph any paint missing from where the tape was applied.
6. Large parts will need to have multiple areas tested.

Page 10

Freightliner Service Bulletin, 05/17/2017

98-15

Paint Finish Standards
FLA COE
FLB COE
> FLD Conventional
Business Class
FLC 112 Conventional

> Century Class Conventional
> Argosy COE
> Cargo
> Columbia
> 122SD and Coronado

> Business Class M2
> Cascadia
> 108SD/114SD
> New Cascadia

Freightliner
Service Bulletin

IMPORTANT: A second option is the cross-hatch method where a small "X" is scribed with a razor
blade through the paint and primer prior to performing the tape test. However, if no adhesion problem
is found, fixing the scribe "X" damage will be the responsibility of the person performing the tape
test.

Topcoat Requirement
The chassis topcoat thickness (plus primer) requirement is to be 2.4±0.5 mils using Axalta’s (formerly DuPont’s)
Imron 5000 or the Standard Black Urethane.
The chassis topcoat thickness (plus primer) requirement is to be 2.5±0.5 mils using PPG Delfleet Evolution®.
The chassis topcoat dry film thickness (plus primer) requirement is to be 2.6±0.5 mils using Sherwin-Williams®
Genesis® Single Stage System.

NOTE: Chassis paint finish gloss cannot be measured with a meter, because of the uneven metal
surface condition.

Warranty
This is an informational bulletin only; warranty does not apply.

Freightliner Service Bulletin, 05/17/2017

Page 11