Wow Halogens make this bad!

G

Grimm

New member
I got my car back from the body shop after repainting the hood on my black Bonneville. My fear was realized of it not matching unfortunately. The car actually appears to be a very very dark brown from viewing it in full sun or bright lights. The repainted hood looks to be a true black though so it doesn't match. Well in daylight it looks OK. I had to look at it under full sun yesterday afternoon to even see the mismatch, and even then it was very slight. But when I initially looked it over with my halogen work light, holy crap does it look bad.



I did call the body shop and they are going to see what they can do blending with the fenders, so hopefully that will do the trick. They did do a good job on it though, although I made the mistake of calling late in the afternoon (they told me it would be ready by 5:30 and I called at 2:30) and it had already been washed by the swirlomatic. So I guess I'll get more polishing practice in the spring.



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Yes they did. See the problem is the factory paint on the car. There are areas, the fenders being the worst, that look like they were painted too light. Looking close I can see tiny light colored specs, which I suspect is the primer. I think those light areas make it look more brown than other spots. And it's just the metal. I've noticed before that the plastic trim is darker than the metal in bright sun or under the lights. The guy mentioned in our discussion that he has seen a few cars like mine, including a recent Silverado, where the black paint looks like a dark brown in bright light.
 
Even though the shop used the factory color code, they didn't tint it correctly. I'm a firm believer that black should not be panel painted and should be blended into an adjacent panel. Have them blending into the fenders and that should make things better.
 
David Fermani said:
I'm a firm believer that black should not be panel painted and should be blended into an adjacent panel. Have them blending into the fenders and that should make things better.
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That might be on a case to case basis, case in point. I had the hood and front end (minus the fenders) re-painted on my 2005 Black Audi a year after I got it due to chipping. Shop at the dealership matched the factory color perfectly and didn't blend the fenders.



I've taken the lower side rockers off and re-painted them (again due to chipping) and they match perfectly, even the end part that goes into the quarter panel.



I hate using halogens to paint with (not that you would find them in any paint booth) cause of the yellowish tint they throw making color matching very difficult. That among other things.



Painting by the code is one way, but the technician should've done a spray out to check and see if the paint from the code was going to match.



Otherwise there is the other way which is to use the color body camera to get a swatch of the paint as it is on the car and mix to that. When the paint has aged a little that's probaly the best way as the color code may not match up anymore.



MorBiD
 
MorBid said:
That might be on a case to case basis, case in point. I had the hood and front end (minus the fenders) re-painted on my 2005 Black Audi a year after I got it due to chipping. Shop at the dealership matched the factory color perfectly and didn't blend the fenders.



I've taken the lower side rockers off and re-painted them (again due to chipping) and they match perfectly, even the end part that goes into the quarter panel.
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Your right on a case by case basis. When you had the hood painted there was probably enough original color on the ends of the panel that may not have required blending and they blended within the panel. Is this possible? Now on the other hand if you replaced the hood, they might have needed to blend out. As far as the rocker moldings or trim like bumper covers, they don't match from the factory and usually don't ever get blended. When moldings and bumpers are black, it's very hard to notice the color varience. Other colors usually stick out like a sore thumb.
 
Dave:



I'm saying the age and condition of the existing paint (along with the talent and quality of the painter/shop) will determine how much if any blending will need to be done into adjacent panels to get a match.



It is possible to paint say a rear door and not have to blend into the front door or quarter panel. Again it will depend on what your working with.



Both of us who painted the panels on my car were able to do so without going into adjacent panels cause the whole car's paint was brand spanking new almost and it's not a Metallic or Pearl effect paint.



In fact I specifically got Brilliant Black without the Metallic or Pearl Coat options cause since I do some bodywork and painting I knew it would be easier to re-paint without worrying about blending.



Metallic and Pearl Coat's make effecting repairs more difficult as your not just matching color but also the pattern of the flakes.



Since you'll never be able to match the flakes on the existing paint with the paint your laying down, you'll have to extend (blend) your new Metallic paint out so it, well blends into the old.



Greg
 
OK, I hate to say it, but GM paint just ain't all that great. I think what you have is the rest of the car fading and the body shop applying the right paint (without allowing for fade). The shop I use to work at would sometimes spray 3-4 times before they could get the paint to blend in on a repair. It's harder on some cars and colors - older and black being double trouble. I'd see what they could do, last resort - I assume you want to either keep the car or get top dollar for it someday - have the whole car repainted.
 
Well maybe this shop (GM dealer) doesn't have the necessary capabilities to do what you guys talk about then. When I talked to the manager he said they used the correct color code. He mentioned that black is tough because black is black. He said with other colors that they get various shades from the manufacturer to use for matching, but they don't have that option with black. I've gotten several comments from other places too that they should have been able to match it like they can do with house paint, but I'm getting the impression they can't or just didn't bother to do that. I'll have to discuss that with him when I bring it back. Unfortunately it was an insurance claim so I'm not sure if I could take it somewhere else at this point. But it does have a lifetime guarrantee from the insurance company, so maybe...
 
MorBid said:
Dave:



I'm saying the age and condition of the existing paint (along with the talent and quality of the painter/shop) will determine how much if any blending will need to be done into adjacent panels to get a match.



It is possible to paint say a rear door and not have to blend into the front door or quarter panel. Again it will depend on what your working with.



Both of us who painted the panels on my car were able to do so without going into adjacent panels cause the whole car's paint was brand spanking new almost and it's not a Metallic or Pearl effect paint.



In fact I specifically got Brilliant Black without the Metallic or Pearl Coat options cause since I do some bodywork and painting I knew it would be easier to re-paint without worrying about blending.



Metallic and Pearl Coat's make effecting repairs more difficult as your not just matching color but also the pattern of the flakes.



Since you'll never be able to match the flakes on the existing paint with the paint your laying down, you'll have to extend (blend) your new Metallic paint out so it, well blends into the old.



Greg
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Greg - Recently I adjusted for an Black (non metallic) 06 F-150 and we were replacing the front door only. They shop (very reputable) could not get the match perfect. After calling their paint rep they insisted that a blend was needed. I authorized it and life went on. This truck has less than 2000 miles on it. I know every case is different and I don't right off the bat give out blends on black, but black isn't really the color that can always be panel painted. Yes, age and condition does complicate things too.
 
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