Anyone ever tried color-matching a faded red panel? I’ve heard it’s a nightmare, especially if you’re doing it yourself.
Oh, you’re not kidding—it’s no picnic. I tried to color-match a sun-faded fender on my ancient Corolla last summer. Let’s just say it ended up looking like I’d patched it with a tomato and called it a day. The original “Super Red” had gone full pink on the roof, but the lower panels were still mostly red, so finding any kind of match was basically like trying to pair socks in the dark.
From what I’ve read (and painfully experienced), both the pigment and the clear coat are guilty here. The reds, especially the ones without much UV protection in the clear, tend to oxidize and shift toward salmon or even orange over time. Some carmakers use single-stage paint, others do basecoat/clearcoat—either way, red seems to be the first to throw in the towel under our lovely UV rays.
I went down the DIY route with some touch-up paint from an auto parts store—matched by VIN, supposedly—and it was...not great. Even after compounding and polishing, you could see exactly where old met new. If you want a real match, you’d probably need to have a pro mix up a custom batch using a spectrophotometer. But then again, if you’re like me and would rather save that cash for something more fun (or necessary), sometimes you just have to embrace the “artisanal” look.
All that said, don’t let it scare you off if you want to give it a shot. Worst case, you’ll just have a uniquely two-tone car—kind of like those fancy high-end paint jobs where they charge extra for “color shift.” Just tell people it’s intentional and hope they buy it...
I get where you’re coming from about just embracing the mismatch, but I’ve actually had decent luck blending faded reds—not perfect, but not tomato-patch levels either. The trick for me was spending way more time prepping than painting. I wet-sanded the whole panel and buffed out as much oxidation as I could before even thinking about color. Sometimes, just cleaning up the old paint brings it closer to what’s in the can.
Also, layering thin coats and feathering the edges helped a lot. I used rattle cans, nothing fancy, but did a bunch of light passes instead of one thick one. Yeah, in certain light you can still spot the difference, but it’s not screamingly obvious unless you’re looking for it.
I guess what I’m saying is: it’s a pain, but not always a lost cause if you’re patient. And honestly, half the time my roof patches stand out more than my car panels—at least until the next hailstorm...
Blending reds is a nightmare, isn’t it? I’ve noticed even with careful prep, the sun just loves to mess with red pigment over time—especially if the car’s lived outside. I’ve tried your wet-sanding trick on a buddy’s Civic, and it did help, but the difference still popped in certain angles. Maybe it’s just my eye for detail, or maybe I’m cursed by fluorescent garage lights. Either way, I totally agree—sometimes the “close enough” look is a win. At least patch jobs on metal roofs don’t have to match the neighbors’ shingles... unless you’re really unlucky.
Red paint is the diva of the automotive world—always fading, always showing off every little mismatch. I swear, even if you nail the blend under normal light, step outside and suddenly it’s two different cars. You’re not alone with those garage lights either... they’re like lie detectors for paint jobs. Honestly, sometimes “good enough” is the only sane option. At least with roofs, nobody’s judging from three feet away unless they’re flying a drone over your house.
Red’s like that friend who insists on standing under the only spotlight in the room—can’t hide a thing. I’ve seen more faded hoods after a hailstorm than you’d believe, and every single brand’s “unique” red just makes matching panels a nightmare. At least with roofs, sun-fade means you just call it “rustic.” Car paint? Not so forgiving.
