Had a paint mismatch nightmare on a 2021 Honda Accord last Tuesday

I was doing a blend on a rear quarter panel (silver metallic, you know the drill). Mixed up the color code, did my sprayout card, looked perfect under the booth lights. Pushed the car outside in the sun and it was like two different cars. The metallic flake was laying totally flat and dull compared to the factory. Ended up having to strip it back down and start over with a different reducer and clear. Cost me an extra 3 hours and I still don't feel great about the match. Anyone else fight with Honda silvers or is it just me?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_jennifer1mo ago

Oh man, silver metallic is just the worst for that! I read somewhere that Honda uses a really specific aluminum flake size in their factory clear that's almost impossible to duplicate with aftermarket stuff. A guy I know swears you have to use a slower reducer and add a few drops of a fine aluminum additive to get the flake to sit right, but even then it's hit or miss. I bet your sprayout looked fine under the booth lights, those are so deceiving with metallics. The sun always reveals the truth.

jessica1301mo agoProlific Poster

Yeah I read something similar on one of the body shop forums. @the_jennifer is right about the booth lights, they make everything look perfect until you roll it outside. I heard that Honda actually sources their silver from a specific supplier in Japan and the flake size varies by paint lot number. Some guys swear by mixing a tiny bit of a different brand's silver base into the blend to match the flake pattern better.

william_harris1mo ago

Yeah, you're totally right about the booth lights being deceiving. I actually read an article from a paint manufacturer that said metallic flake orientation can shift up to 15 degrees depending on the light angle, which is crazy. That specific Honda flake size thing is no joke either - I heard a story about a guy who had to repaint a whole Accord fender three times before he found a mix that didn't look like glitter glued on by a toddler. The slower reducer trick makes sense though, gives the flakes time to lie flat instead of standing up like little mirrors.