GDC

New to the forum so pardon me if this has been addressed in another thread. I have a new 2023 ES 350 F Sport Handling in Iridium silver paint.

After a bit of bad luck with a blown semi truck tire, I had to have the front and rear bumpers replaced and repainted. The color the dealer used does not match the original factory paint.

The front bumper was repainted several times and still does not match.

Has anyone encountered this issue?

You can see the bumper is darker.

Same with the rear.

mikemu30

I believe Iridium is a new color offering for the ES so you'll not likely find any owners that had body work already with that particular color. I saw a post in the RX forum where an ultra white RX repair was mismatched with a white pearl repair - completely different color. Perhaps that happened with yours. Silver is close but no cigar??

GDC

That’s what I was thinking as well. But it’s close enough and the touch up paint, which is also iridium, is darker so guess it’s back to the dealer to see what else they can do. Thanks for your reply.

lexo98

iTrader: (2)

There is usually some blending done on the fenders so the color difference doesn’t stand out.

LS500Fan

It is impossible to have a human painter perfectly match factory paint if just painting one piece, blending onto adjoining panels is the only answer to make it look acceptable.

ESh

It is very hard and complicated to paint the bumpers.

Mrbungle11

the problem is if they don’t blend the paint it would show much more

But tbh from the factory it’s not 100 percent
cause plastics bumpers and what ever the fenders are would also be a difference a perfect match would be a car wrap or if your bumpers were metal..
I have mett. Moonbeam beigh and it’s also alittle darker bumpers than the fenders and the car was brand new...

Go to a dealership or just looked at a parked car and your notice it in different at certain angles!!

GDC

Thanks all. Blending was what I suggested to the dealer as well and they stated it was not required on bumpers. Obviously not the answer.

mikemu30

Iridium is a great looking color especially with the FSport black wheels. Good luck getting this resolved.

TechNut

Iridium is a great color. It looks very much like the previous Atomic Silver on our car. These pearl type paints are a multi-stage paint and I understand they are very difficult to match. It takes a very talented paint shop and your dealer just may not be up to the task. While I would have the most confidence in the dealer’s paint shop being able to match these unique paints, you may need to locate another experienced shop. Make sure to get references.

F3Woody

Is it possible to order those pre painted from the factory?

GDC

They (dealer) told me no.

E46CT

Pre-painted works on small bits, mirror caps, etc. You wouldn't and couldn't do that on bumpers for a variety of reasons. you'd get a way worse match.

The match here looks fine. Of course it would need better photos in direct sun, but from what I see it's fine.

F3Woody

Not to say this is the case with our cars, but it's also worth noting that most cars on the road, even brand new, the bumpers are a slight mismatch to the body paint. You wouldn't normally notice it but once you start looking, it's pretty apparent.

RKF350

I notice a slight difference on most cars.

Is the paint used on the bumper material the same used on the body metal panels?