I too have a 99 LX470 Smoky Topaz with the same problem. I took it to the dealer for servicing and they acted like it wasn't their problem and didn't know what was wrong with the paint. About a year ago while in for servicing, I asked for a paint shop referral and the customer service rep said he would get back to me when I picked up the car. Never got a reply from him. A few weeks ago while in for 95,000 servicing, I asked again (different cust. rep) and did get the name to their authorized Lexus paint & body shop. I went in today for an estimate and the guy was in disbelief! He said in all his years he never saw a car with this bad a problem. In his opinion it is defective paint from manufacturer. His ballpark estimate was for $6000-7000. He recommended I call the Lexus Corporate office. When I got home, I immediately did a Google search and found this site. I am going to call the corporate office Monday. Thank you for all the posts.
I have been driving around with this embarrassing problem and will probably continue to do so since I can't afford to pay $6000-7000 for a paint job. It just recently rained and now the clear-coat is peeling like a bad sunburn.
I would like to post pics but can't figure out how to do it. When I click on the Insert Image icon I get asked for a URL.
