I'm getting ready to order paint for my new RS tail... and of course have some questions.

First, how do shops match the paint? Just by the paint code?

If they just use the paint code, then I may have a problem. On the sticker under the hood the paint code is L84S (exterior color - Arena Red Metallic) and TT (interior color- Classic Grey).

However if I check the dealer window sticker that was on the car when it was sitting on the lot, it says H8H8 TT. So the interior color is the same, but the exterior color listed is different.

My car is an 11/95 build, if that makes any difference. So, what's the difference between H8H8 paint code and L84S?

I've been on the paintscratch.com website and they show two Arena Red codes... 84R/H8 and 84S. So now I'm even more confused. Any other place to check?

Lastly, where's the best place to purchase the paint? I've used paintscratch.com but only for a couple of cans of aerosol spray... I ordered the 84S bottle last time and it looked a bit different. I used those cans to paint my RS front splitters last year... they're so out of the way that the small color mismatch is unnoticeable. I'm tempted to try the 84R/H8 paint to see if it matches better, but I don't want to buy a half-gallon only to find it's not the right one either. Plus, the tail will be a lot more visible, so it's doubly important to get it right.

How can I know which is the the right paint to get? Thanks in advance for the help!

 

Hi Jeff,

I had to make my BMW front repainted. It's a dark blue. At the paint shop, the guy used the ref number to get the right blue, but then around that colour, he had 6 variations on the same colour! To see which one was matching the best, he humidified the coloured cards and the car with petrol and chosed the correct one. I must confess that with my untrained eyes I didn't see any difference on 4 cards out of 6!

 

I would buy both arena red colors and mix them 50/50.

Just kidding. You may have to repaint the entire car. Ok, I am going to be no help this morning...

Good luck from another Jeff !

 

I had some paint work done on mine when I replaced the bumper covers. The guy at the shop showed me how the exact same paint code from 3 different paint suppliers were all slightly different than the paint on the car. To overcome this they "feathered" the new color onto the old so it's a smooth transition and not an abrupt line of two slightly different colors. Takes more time and talent, but looks better.

 

H8H8 and TT are internal codes. TT refers to Classic Grey/partial leather; Classic Grey full leather will be a different letter combination. Your paint code is the one to use with paintscratch.com and other sources like that; H8H8 is what will come up on a Cardex, it'll be the same as L84S-two different codes for the same paint.

 

Ah, Jeff... good luck. I'm presently trying to get my Polar silver splitters matched. I first tried Paintscratch.com paint in a can idea from you and the paint was WAYYYY off.

I then took my splitters to a local painter. He looked up the paint code in his book and no matter what he tried, it wouldn't match. He then went to a place that had one of those color analyzing guns and the closest he could come to was one of the different formulations that he had already investigated.

So, he finally sprayed five test cards and picked the closest he could come up with using one of my stock splitters and car as a guide. Picked up the RS splitters yesterday and although close, it's not perfect. Just shows how difficult it is to match PS. Hope your Arena red is a bit easier.

Now as he gets ready to prep and paint my RS spoiler I dropped off yesterday, he said he would need my car there when he does the spraying so he can get an exact match.

Moral of the story, you can't just go by the paint codes to get an exact match. You need a painter with an experienced eye to account for the variations in the paints from the manufacturer. Hope it works out for you with Paintscratch.com's paint.

One other note. The paint used in the Paintscratch cans is Acrylic Lacquer, which is why you need to buff the top coat to get the gloss. Lacquer is not compatable with the paints used today (urethane) and will react with it if the urethane is sprayed over a layer of lacquer. Ask me how I know. I was warned by the painter this might happen and sure enough... it did.

You might want to ask what kind of paint their paint in a can is.