CALLING ALL AZURE BLUE OWNERS.......I NEED YOUR HELP!!

[breay]

Hi guys,

Right where do i start!? for the last couple of weeks i've had a bodyshop attempt to fit a full kit to my car (UK 54reg Azure Blue) first attempt they had the paint mixed up by their supplier by using the paint code under the bonnet. Dropped it off to be fitted only to receive a phone call a few hours later from them saying that when the skirts were fitted to the car they were way too light, so off they came.

 

The guys said the only thing they could do was to send a part of the car off to the paint supplier to get an exact colour match so they removed a headlight washer. The paint turned up a couple of days later as a two part with the second part being a kind of pearl watery blue laquer that goes over the blue base coat and then the clear coat is applied over the top. My sprayer still had the headlight washer which he offered up to the kit and it matched perfect! but yet again when the kit was fitted in the sun it was too light!! but in the shade it looked perfect!!

 

Now i've used the bodyshop loads of times before on other cars and everything they have done has been perfect! They cant understand how the paint colour has come out wrong twice and they just wanted to hand the kit back with no charge to myself, but i want the kit on!

 

Now the only thing they can think to try would be to respray everything using 'water based paint' instead of the 'solvent' paint they have tried twice.

 

Help guys! i've had the most stressfull day ever, and before i go and hit my head against a brick wall i thought i'd ask all you azure owners out there who have had repairs or kit fitted to see if you know what paint your sprayers used or if you have encountered the same problems as me! [/b]

[martinmac]

You will have PM very shortly bud.

[IanS16]

Martin.. you haven't even got an Azure blue Zed have you?

 

...or did you accidentally ring someone else and end up with one?

[Andy]

Common problem mate as far as I know. I believe there have been reports of even Nissan struggling as well.

 

Here was my first bodyshops attempt when painting to Nissan paint code.

 

 

 

Not sure what to suggest really, could be down to technique as it is a pearl(ish) colour.

[breay]

Thanks Andy, i was hoping you were going to come online

To be honest mate if my kit looked like yours in the pic then although im a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to body work i would have been more than happy. Their first attempt looked much too light, but today the kit looked perfect until it was in the sun, my sprayer said that even the original bumpers and fuel cap etc are off compared to the rest of the car which i have noticed before. Any idea if the problem could be with the paint type they are using eg solvent or waterbased are best to use??

[Stew]

Yeah, my paint match isn't the same. I should be hung up on it but it could be very expensive getting it perfect. If I got a full respray then I'd expect perfection.

[Andy]

The Azure is a nightmare, as I believe the yellow is as well from people such as Chesterfield having had work done in the past. From the research I have done when I had problems with mine, I think it is down to the undercoat & primers used etc. Not sure what the remedy is in all honesty though. I think the change in materials throughout the car doesn't help either ie: plastic fuel filler cap, metal bodywork and fibreglass kit (in my case) I am hopefully soon to get away from the different colours as mine is getting a fresh coat of paint all over but then again that is a very costly way to resolve it!

[Andy]

Have you got any pictures of yours as it is??

[breay]

No mate (if you mean the sprayed up kit) i've heard that the colour match could be dependant on the spray nozzle used or the direction they spray the colour in as its quite a flippy blue??? I'm soooo confused!

[Andy]

It's a nightmare mate, I don't know enough about the ins and outs of the paint to be able to recommend anything though. The paint does have a certain amount of "flip" in it which potentially could cause a problem. I will have another word with my new sprayer to see if he can recommend anything.

[breay]

i'd really appreciate any help you can find out for me [/code]

[Andy]

Will get back to you if I find anything out. Have you had a look at the Yank forums for anything?

[marzman]

Yeh the colour match between the plastic panels and the metal panels on my blade is shocking. Not very helpful i know, but at least your not alone

[clarkie34]

I noticed my filler cap looks a different colour from certain angles.

 

Is it not the flake in the paint reflecting the light differently?

[Chesterfield]

combination od the material painted, and also the light reflecting differently on the panels, although the Z is quite curvy, its also got some angles. The standard skirts and bumpers will look different colours in varying lights.

 

The filler cap is just one example of this, and if you look at a single panel with angle changes (like the door), you can see different shades on a single panel in the right light too.

 

The bodyshop I used had to do over 25 different mixes and methods of application to get the yellow perfect, but the bodykit will still do exactly what the filler cap does in certain lights and be a slightly different shade.

[Burf]

I can't speak for the Azure but I used to own a bright yellow MG ZS, It needed a new body kit and so I had it sprayed off the paint code. When it was first fitted to the car, there was a massive difference in colour in the light. However, after a couple of months the colour mellowed down and then it matched perfectly.

[seanv1982]

i used a company called woodford coachworks to repray the front of my azure and they did a really good job. they din't charge the earth either. give them a call on 0208 504 1912, they might be able to help you

[GIXXERUK]

iirc its alsmost impossible to properly match plastics 100%

 

something to do with the plasticiser primer which allows the paint to expand and contract with the heat changes

 

early lotus and kit cars would spider and crack because this wasnt used then

[breay]

Thanks for all your input guys, it looks like i may be getting to the bottom of the problem. After talking to a couple of bodyshops and Mr Phil the most likely problem is that my bodyshop is using 'solvent' based paint instead of 'water based' paint that 99% of body shops use these days. So hopefully this is the problem??? Can any one confirm that this is probably the cause???

 

If anyone can shed any more light on the situation then please let me know.

 

Also a couple of people have indicated that spray nozzles used and the direction the paint is applied ie horizontal/ vertical could produce a different affect, but i'm assuming that would be like telling my body shop how to suck eggs???

[H5]

Firstly, the paint should be water based. Secondly, check that the paint doesn't have two variants of the same paint code. I know that Gunmetal definitely does as I currently have a multi-shaded Zed..... My paint guy just rang his supplier and they pointed him to the page in the swatch book and that showed clearly there are two variants of the same code. My Zed is the lighter one, and the bumper is the darker one.

 

Chris makes a good point about the differences in material too. My factory rear bumber is ever so slightly lighter than the metal. Although my filler cap is pretty good. Finally, lacquer finish can affect it too. A better finished lacquer will let more light through to the paint and can affect the perceived colour finish.

[breay]

Well as far as i know there is only one shade of the azure blue (B17) which is partly the reason why its confusing us. Although, in solvant, the paint swatch was way too dark but once sprayed on the car was way too light. Thinking about it its probably inpossible to match a colour spot on at the best of times let alone trying to get a match using 2 different paint systems.

 

My original bumpers, fuel cap and towing cover are all slightly different colours anyway! but to be honest if the kit ends up looking the same as the originals then i'd be happy as i know different materials will look slightly different once sprayed.

 

Like i said any other help/feedback would be appreciated as its doing my head in!

[H5]

Well as far as i know there is only one shade of the azure blue (B17) which is partly the reason why its confusing us. Although, in solvant, the paint swatch was way too dark but once sprayed on the car was way too light. Thinking about it its probably inpossible to match a colour spot on at the best of times let alone trying to get a match using 2 different paint systems.

 

My original bumpers, fuel cap and towing cover are all slightly different colours anyway! but to be honest if the kit ends up looking the same as the originals then i'd be happy as i know different materials will look slightly different once sprayed.

 

Like i said any other help/feedback would be appreciated as its doing my head in!

 

That is the paint code, not the variant buddy. GM only has one code, but there are two variants.

 

EDIT: I'll take a picture of the page from the supplier's book later and post it up to show what I mean

[breay]

Yeah sorry

well my sprayer used the ford diamond white as an example, he said that there is about 10 different variants of the same colour but the azure has only one according to his suppliers. Im hoping that the balls up is just down to the 2 different paint systems being used.

[Chesterfield]

To get my yellow right they had to use a combination of two different manufacturers paint, as neither one on its own was a close enough match apparently. I know they did over 25 different samples before getting a combination that they were happy with.

[breay]

Oh my god don't say that!!

My sprayer is already more than pi**ed off with it as its probably cost him more money than he's charging me in labour and materials to do it twice! hes only willing to give it one more go in water based and if it doesnt work its game over!