JimG

I have decided on a new 997 (vs a cayman S) and am trying to settle on the color. Here in AZ we have lots of debris on the roads from rock haulers and as a result get a lot of paint damage. The clear film on my Boxster did not protect me from a few of the bad hits. What is the best color for ease of repair and not noticing the chips in the first place. Guards Red is my favorite color but I am afraid even the smallest chip would be very noticeable. I am leaning towards a silver or gray metallic color. Thanks

gota911

I would say Cararra White. Deep chips on darker paint show white beneath the paint color, so chips in white paint would probably not show up as much as other colors.

RonCT

Color to match: Hot Dipped Galvanized Steel. Otherwise, stock colors closest to the color under the paint - maybe silver?

Blackness

Speaking from experience, my almost black 996 shows road rash very well. The previous owner must have driven on roads under construction and I'm still trying to mitigate the rash. Currently trying Dr. Colorchip, but the color is not an exact match. But, that's a thread on its own.

As Tim says above, the chips will show white making it very high contrast against a dark car.

axhoaxho

I have had a few Artic Silver color Porsche's. Artic Silver is very good on hiding chips, especially when the car is dusty.

If the roads are that bad even Clear Bra couldn't protect the paint, may be try the old-fashion leather bra? It is a pain to put on and off, but really good on protecting the bigger rocks.

With best regards,

cviles

I heard someone says that the Carrara White paint has a darker primer coat than other colors and chips show up as black specs? Plus the white paint often doesn't match between metal panels and molded panels because they fade at different rates.

My money would be on Atlas Gray or Arctic Silver to show chips the least.

Or get a full clearbra up front and pick the color you like the best.

Edgy01

Never assume that the primers are of one color. They come in different colors,--have no idea why they don't better match the color coat other than to aid the painter to know if they're cutting into it when color sanding. I would think for purely hiding it go with a metallic grey of some sort.

Deanski

CLEAR PAINT FILM=no rock chips.

Deanski

Coochas

I would think the silvers/grays would do best since the primer coat is closer to these colors.

While I realize you have a valid concern,....you should really get the color that you will enjoy being part of.

THPorsche

Get the Guard Red that you preferred and repaint the bumper when you have to.

jcnesq

I've had a couple of Arctic Silver cars and I would say they would do best with rock chips. I would definitely get a good clear bra no matter what color you get. Or just get Guards Red, put on a clear bra, and drive the hell out of it - that's what they are for!!

Crazy Canuck

only problem with red is that it is the hardest to match afterwards

JimG

Custom match for a Delorean maybe? I had the clear film on the Boxster bumper, front of hood, mirrors, and front fenders. There were 2 or 3 rocks that went thru the film and still got the paint, leaving a hole in the clear film. The edges of the film really show on the Speed Yellow car although I have seen some colors where you have to look twice to see the edge. I may just cover the bumper only this time.

Edgy01

The problem with reds is they are high on the sun-fading list. Matching is a bear but better than it used to be.

No matter what color you get you will see a higher incidence of rock chips on the modern cars,--it's just the Zeitgeist.

I elected not to get the clear bra but do own the Colgan bra for those situations where I just know I'm going to take unavoidable hits (e.g., Route 1 on a summer weekend).

Premier

This really is a tough one. In the past, white is the best color to hide chips, but in the past few years we have noticed Porsche using a different color primer on white and in some cases it's dark grey or black. We have seen vehicles with extensive film damage, but they're the ones heading out to track events with many hundreds or thousands of track miles. For daily driven vehicles, it's rare to get nicks in the film. One, either your road conditions are horrible or 2nd, try staying a little further from the cars ahead. Hope this helps.