# Car Dealer Paints Car Wrong Color **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 28, 2010, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801 "2010-06-28T16:37:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/41 "2010-06-30T08:41:25Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Do they really use water based paints for cars? > There’s a body shop next to my work and you can always tell when they’re painting. Sure smells solvent-y to me. No, no water-based painting for cars. The people afraid of the water-based paints were for houses and for crafts. The most absurd one was when my sister in law had an incident where one of the other mothers was aghast that the school would use fingerpainting. The teacher, who is used to dealing with 3-5 year olds after all, used small words to explain that if chewing the ends of Plastidecors and Alpinos didn’t kill us, fingerpainting is not likely to kill our children. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/42 "2010-06-30T10:35:38Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > Swapping out the entire car? Drastic. And checking the VIN? What about simply opening the glovebox and seeing if that half-eaten roll of Lifesavers is still there, or checking under the seat for two seconds to find that long-lost pen? > > I’ve worked at a bodyshop (lower end, production line), but we did most of the small repair work for area dealers. Keep in mind when I was doing this formulas were stored on microfiche. > > Paint goes wrong for all sorts of reasons. Environmental factors can affect the way things look after drying. Environmental factors can affect the way things look before the car even arrives in the shop. Despite the formula, things could be off in the mix (e.g., inaccurate measurements). The conditions painted in the factory are different from what someone is working on in the shop–you can’t bake a car that has all its seals and accoutrement attached. Even dyes differ between manufacturers. Of course, there’s human error, such as writing down the wrong formula. > > Not that we didn’t get it right for 99 percent of our customers, but it wasn’t unusual to have done everything right yet still be slightly off. There were times when it made sense to just go ahead and shoot the entire car rather than futz with getting that damned corner panel right. Win-win for us: the customer gets a whole new shiny car; we get a boost to our reputation (because we did the customer a ‘favor’). One other thing that nobody seems to have considered yet, maybe the correct colour was simply out of stock (or the means to mix it were unavailable). Perhaps rather than make the customer wait a week or 10 days or whatever, it was a better option to just repaint the whole car? ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/43 "2010-06-30T11:11:43Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > One other thing that nobody seems to have considered yet, maybe the correct colour was simply out of stock (or the means to mix it were unavailable). > > Perhaps rather than make the customer wait a week or 10 days or whatever, it was a better option to just repaint the whole car? They could ask, but to just go ahead and do it is never a better option. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/44 "2010-06-30T15:59:15Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > One other thing that nobody seems to have considered yet, maybe the correct colour was simply out of stock (or the means to mix it were unavailable). It’s all mixed from colors that should be in stock. Slate would probably require black, white (yes, surprisingly, many dark colors require white), silver and maybe a couple others. I’m not sure how a dealership would work but we had a paint rep who would bring us more within minutes if we ran out of something. Running out isn’t really an option. ---
**Author:** ![RedSwinglineOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a9adbd/32.png) [@RedSwinglineOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedSwinglineOne)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/45 "2010-06-30T16:07:46Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > No, no water-based painting for cars. [DuPont Water-Based Paints Help California Auto Body Shops Meet New Air Emissions Regulations](http://vocuspr.vocus.com/VocusPR30/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=DupontNew&Entity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=103358&XSL=PressRelease&Cache=False) It appears there have been since at least 2006. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/46 "2010-06-30T16:14:15Z")
> [@whiterabbit](#): > > I’m so glad I’m not the only person who thinks a Cobalt in any other color than blue is just weird. My dad has a yellow Cobalt. My brain stutters over the thought every time I think about it. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/47 "2010-06-30T16:40:05Z")
Toyota Siennas don’t appear to come in any brown shades darker than beige either. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2010, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/48 "2010-06-30T21:59:38Z")
> [@RedSwinglineOne](#): > > [DuPont Water-Based Paints Help California Auto Body Shops Meet New Air Emissions Regulations](http://vocuspr.vocus.com/VocusPR30/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=DupontNew&Entity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=103358&XSL=PressRelease&Cache=False) > > It appears there have been since at least 2006. I don’t really know much about it but there is a big push by the EPA to get shops to switch to use water-based paints. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2010, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/49 "2010-07-01T06:22:23Z")
Ah, must be one of those little differences then. I stand corrected, thank you! ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2010, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/50 "2010-07-01T11:07:14Z")
**The Man in Black** don’t leave us hanging. What happened when they went back to the body shop? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_In_Black)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/51 "2010-07-09T00:01:10Z")
I just got word from my sister. The cars been at the dealer since saturday. She spoke the the claims adjuster. **He refuses to fix the problems**. He is saying the color looks fine and that they only painted parts of the car, not all of it. But when she first brought it in she was told they had to blend all of it, the guy says he never talked to her about that, but my sister remembers it. Plus the fact the car is the wrong damn color! The scratches, he says they didn’t do it. But they were not there before the car was hit, so either it was caused by the crash, or the dealer scratched it. The guy was being a total jack ass my sister said. He was talking to her as though she was a small child, telling her nothing was wrong with it. I told her to speak to the general manager of the dealership. We are all really pissed off. She has a car less than a year old, and the dealer is not interested in fixing it to “like new”, or at least the right damn color. My sister said she will take them to court if they don’t fix it. ---
**Author:** ![Lionne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Lionne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lionne)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/52 "2010-07-09T00:05:47Z")
Does she have any photos of the car with the original colour? See what the service guy says when she brings those in! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_In_Black)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/53 "2010-07-09T01:00:04Z")
> [@Lionne](#): > > Does she have any photos of the car with the original colour? See what the service guy says when she brings those in! That I do not know. But you can see the old paint in the trunk, but he seems to be saying they painted the inside of the trunk a different color :rolleyes:. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/54 "2010-07-09T01:04:29Z")
If the car is only a year old, it may be possible to find a slate Cobalt on the dealer lot. If so, park your sister’s car next to it, and ask them, “Do these match?” Also, I recommend escalating this issue within the insurance company, and perhaps with the state insurance commissioner. (BTW, which insurance company is this? I want to know so I never do business with them.) ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/55 "2010-07-09T01:14:31Z")
> [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](#): > > The guy was being a total jack ass my sister said. He was talking to her as though she was a small child, telling her nothing was wrong with it. I told her to speak to the general manager of the dealership. Before talking to the GM or even thinking about suing them, talk to the insurance company. Tell them you got your car back from the body shop and they repainted the entire car to a different color. It used to be slate (verified by the paint code on the door and now it’s blue). Your sister will be better off elevating her problem within the insurance company and letting them talk to the dealership. They have much more clout then she does. Also, if she sues them, she probably won’t win and even if she does it’ll end up costing her more in the end. Also, if she has the car now, I wouldn’t take it back to them (even if they ask) unless the insurance company tells her to do it. If they tell her to bring it in or even say that the insurance company wants her to bring it back, I’d verify it with them first. Hate to see her wind up with a bill for a new paint job. Also, WRT to the scratches, if they painted the entire car and you found scratches before you pulled off the lot, that would point to them, but if she didn’t mention it to someone before she left, she may have to let that go. OTOH, if she gets a new paint job out of it, it won’t matter. Just re-read your post about having problems with the adjuster as well. Do you have a local office somewhere? It might help a lot if you can just bring the car there and say “look” and then show them the trunk and say “this is what it should look like.” Beyond that, I think you’ll need to call the insurance company and keep trying, a few “Can I speak to your supervisor”'s might help. As someone else said, the commissioner of insurance for your state might be able to help also. Remember, make sure she is totally calm and polite on the phone. The second she get’s worked up, the person on the other end will get defensive, then no one wins. It’s going to be a hard fight. She’s got a brand new paint job and it’s going to be hard to get another one. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/56 "2010-07-09T01:18:29Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > One other thing that nobody seems to have considered yet, maybe the correct colour was simply out of stock (or the means to mix it were unavailable). > > Perhaps rather than make the customer wait a week or 10 days or whatever, it was a better option to just repaint the whole car? One thing that I was thinking about, I personally am partially color blind. I can tell the cardinal colors like yellow, red, blue etc. But when it comes to shades of colors, there is a point where colors that are discernable to others, look the exact same to me. While it was done at a dealership, I’m guessing it was done by an apprentice. If the apprentice did not have the above mentioned color blindness, then Id probably go with the dealer needed the car done and out, for them to make money and the resulting color scheme was judged good enough. Declan ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/57 "2010-07-09T01:40:27Z")
> [@Declan](#): > > One thing that I was thinking about, I personally am partially color blind. I can tell the cardinal colors like yellow, red, blue etc. But when it comes to shades of colors, there is a point where colors that are discernable to others, look the exact same to me. > > While it was done at a dealership, I’m guessing it was done by an apprentice. If the apprentice did not have the above mentioned color blindness, then Id probably go with the dealer needed the car done and out, for them to make money and the resulting color scheme was judged good enough. > > Declan Someone color blind really shouldn’t be responsible for mixing paint and trying to match an existing color. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/58 "2010-07-09T02:14:14Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Someone color blind really shouldn’t be responsible for mixing paint and trying to match an existing color. just to clarify, i did not realize that i was partially color blind, as it only occurs with color shades, and not prime colors. It was something i threw out to possibly explain what may have happened. declan ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/59 "2010-07-09T02:34:54Z")
> [@The Man In Black](#): > > He is saying the color looks fine and that they only painted parts of the car, not all of it. But when she first brought it in she was told they had to blend all of it, the guy says he never talked to her about that, but my sister remembers it. Plus the fact the car is the wrong damn color! You’ve never said whether they painted the entire outside of the car or only part of it, but this sounds to me like they only painted part of the car, and that color matches the color on the part they didn’t paint (other than inside the trunk). If they only painted part of the outside of the car, and the new paint color matches the old paint color, what more can you really expect or ask for? ---
**Author:** ![bonitahi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7993a0/32.png) [@bonitahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonitahi)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2010, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-dealer-paints-car-wrong-color/544801/60 "2010-07-09T03:09:07Z")
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