I have had a mk 6 Golf for almost three years, and driven 17,000 miles, a relatively small proportion of this on motorways. There are numerous stone chips on the bonnet and roof, plus several on the windscreen.

In 30 years of motoring I have not had such extensive problems with stone chips. My last two cars before the Golf were Honda Civics, and the paintwork on these - particularly the 1998 Civic - was far superior.

The depth of paintwork on the Golf seems very thin. Are the stone chip problems just bad luck? Is the paint finish problem particular to the Golf, or is it typical of cars today? Although I do not intend to change my car for a while, the paintwork - and the windcreen chips - is rather putting me off buying another Golf.