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Touch up paint?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by kgall, Aug 31, 2010.

  1. kgall

    kgall Active Member

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    So I've got a few door dings and paint chips from rocks after nine months on my Silver 2010 Prius II.
    Anyone have an opinion on the best touch up paint to get? Is it based on actual use of this color?
    Thanks.
     
  2. mechanic

    mechanic New Member

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  3. stream

    stream Senior Member

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    Get a bottle from the dealer, ~$5.

    Using a toothpick, apply a very small amount to each chip, let dry a few hours (and it will shrink a bit), and repeat, 2 or 3 times until it looks even. The key is several very light coats, as opposed to one thick one.
     
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  4. lenjack

    lenjack Active Member

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    I always get a bottle from my dealer as part of the deal.
     
  5. tumbleweed

    tumbleweed Senior Member

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    My car is silver also. I got a bottle from the dealer (free), it matches perfectly.
     
  6. vinnie97

    vinnie97 Whatever Works

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    Free?! Lucky fellow.
     
  7. tumbleweed

    tumbleweed Senior Member

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    It's the only thing they ever gave me! except a pair of license plate frames I threw away. I went in expecting to pay for it and the guy at the parts department realized I bought the car there and said they should have given me the touch up paint with the car.
     
  8. vinnie97

    vinnie97 Whatever Works

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    I should've tried at the dealership I purchased mine. :eek:
     
  9. Colonel Ronson

    Colonel Ronson New Member

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    always buy the paint from toyota. those touchup bottles at autozone or walmart or wherever never match. OEM might not even match either, but its your best bet. Otherwise, any auto body shop can probably match the color for you if you pay $$$ to whip out a lot of paint. I had some body work done on an old car and they gave me the leftover paint in a touchup bottle. It matched better than what i got from the parts dept.
     
  10. Joe166

    Joe166 New Member

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    Where do you think the dealer gets the touch up paint they sell you? It looks suspiciously like the jars you get at the auto parts store. If it doesn't match (and that is usually because you haven't mixed the bottle enough), they usually will take it back and return it to the manufacturer. But I haven't had any trouble with Dupli-Color and the one other national brand. The problem is that some of the Toyota colors are not carried, but I think all the Prius colors from this year are there.
     
  11. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

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    With the special blue on the 2010 even the dealer touch up paint doesn't really match well
     
  12. stream

    stream Senior Member

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    Matching metallic paint with touch up paint is difficult. Your best bet is to shake the bottle well, then immediately apply the paint (before the metallic flakes have a chance to settle). Even then, it's difficult, since getting the flakes to lay the same as the original paint is a crap shoot.
     
  13. bagwell

    bagwell Active Member

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    +1, good advice


    and I also use the toothpick method for more precise application.