How to Test Car Paint
A car driven daily will never remain in mint condition. Once driven off the lot, your car becomes vulnerable to paint damage. A scratch or a chip in your car’s finish can cause distress and worry regarding the look and value of your vehicle. With tender loving care, applying car paint can help cover minor damage.
Things You Will Need
- Touch-up paint
- Paint applicator
Instructions on How to Test Car Paint
- Determine the touch-up color your car requires by locating one of several identification stickers in your vehicle. Common places your car’s manufacturer places such stickers include the trunk, driver’s side door panel and underneath the hood.
- Locate “Exterior Paint Colors” on the identification sticker. Pertinent to painting your car, the given code represents the proper exterior color that you need to purchase. Note: The age of the vehicle, past car maintenance and sun exposure can affect the current exterior paint color. Thus, touch-up paint color based on the identification sticker may not match exactly.
- Select and buy the touch-up paint based on the color code. Body shops and online vendors specializing in exterior car paint often carry a variety of colors suitable for virtually every car owner needing paint.
- Wash your car with proper soap recommended for automobiles. Allow the car to dry prior to proceeding.
- Select an inconspicuous area on your car to test the paint.
- Apply the paint, sparingly, with a proper applicator, following the application instructions. Let the paint dry.
- View the area and determine if the color matches the vehicle’s current paint color and sheen, or lack thereof. Do not paint if the colors do not match. At times, professional body shops can blend car paint to match the current paint color.
- Paint any visible imperfections, given the touch-up paint matches to your liking, in appropriate shade from a tree or overhang.