Is there anything harder about painting a black car than another color?

Is older black paint harder to match? I have a car that really only needs repainted the hood/roof/ one front fender. Could a body shop match it to the older paint next to it? One place I talked to said it would be very hard to match and getting the whole car painted would be better. My thought was “well yeah, if it cost the same” cause I can’t afford a whole car paintjob. Of course I did not say this.

Wanted an opinion from you guys. Is he blowin smoke or can they not match factory color Fiero black paint, that has aged a bit -I am sure? Wouldn’t they add something to gray it out or something? Honest question. Thanks

Black shows every defect in the panels and in the paint job itself. Matching aged paint is difficult I think because new paint is designed to make it look new. Havent ever seen a clear coat with the "left in the sun luster".

Black is impossible to feather into old black in a repair....like if you have one side of a bumper cover that needs re-painting, you have to paint the whole thing because the edge of the new clear coat will show against the older black paint behind it. With light colors you can search all day for the transition, but with black you can see it 10 feet away.

My car has black panels painted at different times, and they are all pretty close to each other...the difference being the quality of the clear coat....as the paint guy said....'black is black'.

[This message has been edited by Gall757 (edited 04-28-2011).]

quote Originally posted by Gall757: Black is impossible to feather into old black in a repair....like if you have one side of a bumper cover that needs re-painting, you have to paint the whole thing because the edge of the new clear coat will show against the older black paint behind it. With light colors you can search all day for the transition, but with black you can see it 10 feet away. My car has black panels painted at different times, and they are all pretty close to each other...the difference being the quality of the clear coat....as the paint guy said....'black is black'.

Your paint guy is ignorant. Black is NOT black. There are different blacks, usually because they're from different manufacturers. Imron black, for example, has a noticeable green tint when held up against another black. Others look a little blue.
The answer for the OP is that if your original (it IS original, right?) paint will buff out, you should be able to match it just fine (just buy black basecoat for your car/code). If the clear is damaged or peeling you won't. Same goes for blending: if the original paint is in good condition you should be able to blend it.
If it's not original paint then you may need to paint the whole car - especially if you don't know what kind of paint it is. Do a test panel & see if it matches.
HTH,
~ Paul
aka "Tha Driver"

quote Originally posted by Tha Driver: Your paint guy is ignorant. Black is NOT black. There are different blacks, usually because they're from different manufacturers. Imron black, for example, has a noticeable green tint when held up against another black. Others look a little blue.

sorry, I guess I should clarify: I am talking about GM black for a Pontiac Fiero.....not Imron for a machine tool. He is not ignorant; maybe I am not a good communicator.

[This message has been edited by Gall757 (edited 04-28-2011).]

quote Originally posted by Gall757: sorry, I guess I should clarify: I am talking about GM black for a Pontiac Fiero.....not Imron for a machine tool. He is not ignorant; maybe I am not a good communicator.

In which case he should have said "GM (insert paint code here) black for the Fiero is GM (insert paint code here) black.".

Well, the kicker is some of the car was repainted factory black once in its life. But the fade on some areas of the hood and roof and top of one fender are faded in a way that looks "worn down". A non painter like me would swear the previous owner covered it with a loose cover and left it outside and the cover rubbed in the wind at the paint but I am just guessing. Because 4 inches over on the same panel the paint is good. But where it is bad it is thru the clear and the paint down to what look slike dark dark gray primer, maybe its the actual panel. (The hood and roof.)

Its just got old typical clearcoat delamintation. Only fix is a repaint. GM black is GM black. I buy a few quarts all the time to do repairs on any GM or Ford code UA. Like drivers says, all brands are a little different usually. Kia has a ton of dark blue in it, Dodge used to put gold fleks in theirs. Pontiac about 90 had a black with tiny fleks all different colors (I had a Transport with it ). I wouldnt worry a bit about a match even though you may have to buff out what you dont paint to have the same gloss. I always paint full panels to seams or break lines. Its also true that black is totally unforgiving. ANY defects show like their spotlighted. Black at most shops usually costs more for that reason. I do a lot of car lot cars and most are just spray and deliver. Black has to be buffed out to get out even the tiniest lint or dust out...even for the cheapie lots.

Heres what I'm starting with. All good except, hood, rooftop and top of drivers fender.

So a good shop should be able to match it and just do the panels that need it? So a decent blend couldn't be achieved at the rear roof corner where it turns down? I was also thinking just above the side moldings.

[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 04-28-2011).]

My black fiero has the same kind of problem! A local Fiero owner who is a bodyman said it looks like mine is mostly clear coat issues. He is going to try and save my paint job by sanding the clear, making it smooth again, and applying clear coat. though most likely it wont be until summer time. If you still are looking for a fix, I will let you know how mine comes out when I get it done!

quote Originally posted by 2.5: Heres what I'm starting with. All good except, hood, rooftop and top of drivers fender. So a good shop should be able to match it and just do the panels that need it? So a decent blend couldn't be achieved at the rear roof corner where it turns down? I was also thinking just above the side moldings.

Yes.
And a good shop should be able to blend it, but most will take the easy (& more costly) way out to blend the black & clear the whole panel.
~ Paul
aka "Tha Driver"

Just have a good shop respray the fenders, hood and roof and be done. You wont have any problem as long as ALL the clear is sanded off the WHOLE panel. If its bad on one corner, its just a matter of time before the rest goes even if you just fix a spot on it. Its a one day job for me to strip, prime and repaint those panels. Wet sand and buff it the next morning. Too bad your so far. Id do it for a few hundred bucks out the door.