Wondering if anyone has had this issue - i bought a touch-up paint bottle for my anthracite gray 03 from an acura dealer, but when i use it, it comes out much darker than my original paint. Is there more than one anthracite color?

 

there is only one color.....paint is usually darker until it dries.....did it stay dark after drying???

 

Yes it did. I was wondering if maybe the 3rd gen TL has a darker shade of Anthracite.

 

Problem with touch up paints with metalics is they get really concentrated and will usually be darker. You could pour a little out and thin it with some thinner and apply it slowly so that you dont get heavy dark build up

 

can it ever look like origonal? My car has a few chips that the previous owner tried to touch up and you can see it from 20 feet. at least i can.

 

Thats not really true...not to be picky. When you use a 2-Stage (Basecoat/Clearcoat) system the lack of gloss in the basecoat when it dries can be seen as the paint "lightening" but its really not. And in a single stage system if you see a "lightening" of the paint you likely have a temperature or moisture problem and your paint is blushing because of it.

Now, back to the original problem which is being seen in the metallic color purchased from the dealership:

First of all, dealerships, even ones with bodyshops, frequently do not know what they are talking about when it comes to automotive paint. They provide you with a little touch-up bottle of paint but as you can see they have led you astray. If they had been knowledgeable about automotive paint and refinishing they would have never given you a bottle with a brush for your color in the first place. The "darkening" effect you are seeing is called Mottling. Mottling is defined as "A film defect appearing as blotches or surface imperfections, normally due to metallic or pearl not being properly oriented in the paint film". In other words, because you are not spraying the paint in a super thin and flat fim, the metallic is all over the place and uneven. If the dealership had known anything about automotive paint application they would have never handed you that bottle.

The Right Way to The Rescue:

For any scratch or chip, the best way to fix it is to actually repair and refinish the area. This is done by sanding smooth, priming (if damage reaches to the bare metal or plastic. Etching primer for metal, Flexible primer for plastic), painting, and clearing. All of these materials including the custom matched paint are availible in spray cans for these kind of DIY projects (www.paintworldinc.com). I would also recommend the DuPont Clearcoat Blender if you are refinishing only a small part of a panel. The blender will make your repair invisable and will make it look professional. For all these products you will spend about $50 - $60 which gets you enough to paint an entire fender. Thats a hell of a lot better than $300+ at a bodyshop.

I read a lot of posts like this so I just hope that I've been able to help or educate anyone who reads it.

-Mike

 

 

Dont forget when you use the blender to add wetsand and buff. Especially in large flat surfaces. (which is sorta a big )