The art of color matching

Aug. 14, 2015
Collision refinishing technicians now have an arsenal of options to address the issue of color match no matter what type of vehicle they are painting. 

Each and every day collision refinish technicians undertake the task of matching colors to complete repairs. They deal with a wide array of vehicles, various repair needs, different colors both in appearance and composition, and have the challenge of making their refinish repair work undetectable to car owners. After all, color is what the customers see when they come to collect their vehicle.

Cromax fan deck

The chemistry of automotive paint has changed significantly over the years. It has transitioned from basic lacquers and enamels to more vibrant base coat and clear coat chemistries including specialty pearls, three stage, tinted mid coats and tinted clears, all of which are available in solventborne and waterborne systems. Automotive manufacturing plants utilize different paint suppliers’ products and a variety of application equipment and techniques to apply modern coatings, which can result in color variances. Although there is a master styling standard for each color that paint suppliers have to match, these variances can lead to issues for the technicians when they are ready to apply the paint.

Fortunately, the science of color and color retrieval has also changed over the years. Collision refinishing technicians now have an arsenal of options to address the issue of color match no matter what type of vehicle they are painting. The game plan is simple – follow your manufacturer’s suggested system for color retrieval, select colors, use appropriate color application and make color adjustments, if necessary.

Let’s walk through a typical color-retrieval process. The simplest and fastest approach is to use a spectrophotometer – more commonly referred to as a “camera.” The camera-reading process requires cleaning the area around the repair that will be “read” by the camera. Once the readings are completed – it is simply a matter of downloading the data from the camera to the formula-retrieval software. The closest available formula will be located in the database, and (depending on the paint supplier) adjusted if necessary for the closest possible match.

If a camera is unavailable, there are a number of different process steps that can be used to find and adjust a formula. When more than one formula is available for a given color, formula-retrieval software often includes information associated with each variant. For example, a color description of a variant formula to the standard position, e.g., darker, coarser, redder.

The Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) can also be used to isolate the closest variant formulation with tools such as Axalta Coating Systems’ VINdicator™ color-retrieval software. Many shops use conventional color tools like fan decks. The process includes keying in the manufacturer and paint code information into the formula-retrieval software. If more than one formula (variant) of a given color is available, the painter will be directed to the fan deck if the color is represented there. Once located, the painter visually evaluates the quality of the match by holding the chip to the repair area and adjacent panels.

Acquire Plus EFX spectrophotometer

The painter must decide if the given color variant represented by the fan deck chip is close enough to be blended, or tinted to a blendable match. If the closest available formula needs to be further adjusted for a better color match, the painter will have to manually tint the color. Paint manufacturers provide tinting charts to assist in the color adjustment if no camera is available.

Tinting requires experience and training, and should only be done when absolutely necessary. In collision repair, the practice of blending color is an industry standard. Blending is often recognized and recommended as the most productive and efficient method to achieve a commercially acceptable color match. The decision to blend into an adjacent panel or within the panel lies with the paint technician. The decision process is dependent upon the type of repair and the technician’s evaluation of a number of critical factors for a decision to blend within a panel:

  • The painter's personal experience with specific colors, especially those considered the most difficult to match
  • The evaluation of the location and size of the repair
  • The color being applied: solid, metallic, pearl, three stage, etc.
  • Condition of the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) color at the time of the repair
  • Size of the finished body work
  • Type of damage, repair or replacement
  • Styling lines of the vehicle and the plane of the adjacent panel
  • Paint labor hours on the estimate
  • Productivity – blending vs. tinting

Blending into an adjacent panel is considered to be standard operating procedure to produce an acceptable color match. Tinting a color is not the primary recommendation when preparing to refinish a vehicle. Tinting involves a series of color adjustments and the spraying of test panels to determine color accuracy. Tinting is most often performed when either the adjacent panels are too large in relation to the repair area, for example, bumper cover to front clip, bumper cover to quarter panels or deck lid, or when the available color formulas or alternates are not representative of the car being repaired. Blending and tinting may be performed together, especially when the color variance is so great that tinting in combination with blending, in the judgment of the paint technician, is the most efficient and productive procedure for ensuring a quality color match and repair.

Once the technician has finalized his or her approach, the following general recommendations should be followed.

  • Clean the repair and blend areas with a wax and grease remover to remove contaminants.=
  • Finish sand body filler with P180/240 grit paper.
  • Finish sand the OEM area with P320/400 grit paper.
  • Clean the repair and blend areas with a final cleaner to remove sanding sludge.
  • Mask all appropriate areas.
  • Apply etch primer to all bare metal areas.
  • Apply primer filler to the repaired area.
  • Finish sand with the appropriate P600 grit paper.
  • Prepare the blend area with P1000 sandpaper or sanding paste and gold pad.
  •  Perform final clean.
  • Apply recommended wet bed or color blender to blend panel.
  • Apply color to full hiding and blend according to manufacturer’s recommendations for either solventborne or waterborne finishes.
  • Apply clear coat according to manufacturer’s recommendations.

The paint technician must always use good judgment when establishing a strategy for the repair/refinish. Under certain circumstances and conditions noted above, tinting in conjunction with blending is an accepted and recommended practice when, in the paint technician’s judgment, it is the most efficient and effective procedure to deliver a quality repair.

Color matching is as much art as it is science. Always follow the paint manufacturer’s recommendations, processes and procedures for color selection and color matching techniques. This will reduce variability and ultimately deliver a quality repair to the customer.

Daniel Benton, Axalta Color Marketing Director — North America also contributed to this article.

Sponsored Recommendations

Best Body Shop and the 360-Degree-Concept

Spanesi ‘360-Degree-Concept’ Enables Kansas Body Shop to Complete High-Quality Repairs

How Fender Bender Operator of the Year, Morrow Collision Center, Achieves Their Spot-On Measurements

Learn how Fender Bender Operator of the Year, Morrison Collision Center, equipped their new collision facility with “sleek and modern” equipment and tools from Spanesi Americas...

ADAS Applications: What They Are & What They Do

Learn how ADAS utilizes sensors such as radar, sonar, lidar and cameras to perceive the world around the vehicle, and either provide critical information to the driver or take...

Coach Works implements the Spanesi Touch system

Coach Works Uses Spanesi Equipment to Ensure a Safe and Proper Repair for Customers