Electro-deposition-coated steel is top coated with a flexible coating formed of a polyester having --OH functionality, a polyacrylate having --OH functionality and melamine-formaldehyde resin to provide substantially a stoichiometric amount of reactive sites relative to the total amount of --OH functionality of the polyester and the polyacrylate. The flexible coatings exhibit superior chip and scratch resistance relative to rigid coatings of the type conventionally used in the automotive industry.