Mazda Soul Red touch up paint doesn't match well

Chibana

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2009 Mazda RX-8
It's probably because of the fancy triple-layer paint used to make Soul Red, but this touch up paint I bought from Mazda is the poorest matching OEM touch up paint I've ever used, and I've used quite a few over the years. It's significantly lighter in color than the factory paint, to the point where I think it might look worse than leaving the scratch or stone chip unpainted. That's probably an overstatement, but it's a pretty bad match. I made sure to shake up the tube well, too.
 
I had a similar experience with the white paint. Someone hit my bumper in a parking garage, leaving a nice black chip. Even after a few coats, the very thin white paint wasn't covering it at all. I ended up sanding all that back off and putting some general white paint on to cover the black, then a layer of the OEM stuff over that. Still looks kind of bad, but isn't as glaringly obvious.

Glad to at least hear it's not just a bad batch of paint, which I had considered as a possibility.
 
I don't know about yours, but the OE color of the rear deck spoiler does not match with the body very well from an angle.
I put on the longer spoiler and it matches much better.
I can imagine this Soul Red will be a pain to match color for body shops.
 
I had a similar experience with the white paint. Someone hit my bumper in a parking garage, leaving a nice black chip. Even after a few coats, the very thin white paint wasn't covering it at all. I ended up sanding all that back off and putting some general white paint on to cover the black, then a layer of the OEM stuff over that. Still looks kind of bad, but isn't as glaringly obvious.

Glad to at least hear it's not just a bad batch of paint, which I had considered as a possibility.

I noticed the coverage issue, too. I got a short but deep gouge in my front bumper. No idea how, other than maybe a snow shovel by one of the guys we hired to shovel during the winter when I got fed up with shoveling. It's right in front of, and parallel to, the driver's side headlight. I had to apply the touch up paint several times to get it to cover well, and that made a bit of a mess. I used ScratchX on it afterward, and it helped a bit.

I don't know about yours, but the OE color of the rear deck spoiler does not match with the body very well from an angle.
I put on the longer spoiler and it matches much better.
I can imagine this Soul Red will be a pain to match color for body shops.

I hadn't noticed that, at least not yet. I have noticed that from some angles, the front bumper seems a bit different than the passenger-side front fender, but I think it's just the difference in the light reflection angle at those positions.

I was thinking the same thing about body shops matching the color.
 
It's probably because of the fancy triple-layer paint used to make Soul Red, but this touch up paint I bought from Mazda is the poorest matching OEM touch up paint I've ever used, and I've used quite a few over the years. It's significantly lighter in color than the factory paint, to the point where I think it might look worse than leaving the scratch or stone chip unpainted. That's probably an overstatement, but it's a pretty bad match. I made sure to shake up the tube well, too.

I find that the touch ups I've done on my Velocity Red Mazda3 have darkened over time. Perhaps this is the reason?
 
The paint doesn't match because of the difference in surface (metal-plastic). It really doesn't match on most cars with painted plastic bumpers/trim.
 
The Blue reflex is the same as well. I've had to cover up a couple a nicks already and its quite annoying because its so obvious. Paint quality on this car is really not very good, makes me question what the hell kind of pain they used on them. Nicks and scratches easily, but then that could be the fact that I live in LA. Also there's now a streak on the driver's door where the paint is looking like the metallic-ness is gone/peeling off. Not really sure what's happening to the exterior now especially since its rarely outside and always parked in my garage.
 
The paint quality on my RX-8 (Sparkling Black Mica) seems better than what's on my Soul Red 3 and what was on my 2005 3 (Winning Blue). It's shinier and it seems to be holding up better given the difference in age and miles between the two. I think the shininess of the RX-8 may just be a perception resulting from the color, though.
 
I have a CX-5 in Soul Red. Have couple of small chips and was considering the touch up paint. After reading all these comments, I think it is better to leave it as it is. Those of you who used the touch up paint, has it gotten better over time? Are there any other after market touch up paints that does a better job on Soul Red than OEM?
 
The problem with touch up paint is they are combining 2-3 layers of paint into one. It will never be an exact match. It will never blend in as well as painting the whole area.
The benefit is if you have exposed metal you are covering it up from the elements. I always recommend doing that.
There are some better chip repair companies coming out with better methods but more $$.
 
The problem with touch up paint is they are combining 2-3 layers of paint into one. It will never be an exact match. It will never blend in as well as painting the whole area.
The benefit is if you have exposed metal you are covering it up from the elements. I always recommend doing that.
There are some better chip repair companies coming out with better methods but more $$.

Yes, I agree completely. One of the drawbacks of the fancy Soul Red paint. Not that I regret it. It's gorgeous, especially with my black O.Z. Racing wheels. People gawk at my car all the time.
 
I had the same issue when I had my Magnetic Red Corvette. It's paint had a yellow overcoat - something the touchup kits did not. However, the only reason I did not get a soul red Mazda 3 was because it is somewhat similar to that Magnetic Red color, so I went with the dark blue. It is somewhat unique in that its metal flakes appear to be multicolored, making the pait really stand out when the sun is hitting it at the right angle.
 
The problem with touch up paint is they are combining 2-3 layers of paint into one. It will never be an exact match. It will never blend in as well as painting the whole area.
The benefit is if you have exposed metal you are covering it up from the elements. I always recommend doing that.
There are some better chip repair companies coming out with better methods but more $$.

Do these other chip repair companies offer better color match for Soul Red even though they're costlier? Can you share the details?


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Does anyone know if I should mix the Soul Red paint (41V) with clear and then put it on, or whether I should let the paint dry and then apply the clear later? I'm asking because the instructions that came with the two little jars of paint said to put them on separately, but I've watched several YouTube videos which claim you should mix the clear with the paint and then apply it. I ordered my touch-up paint on EBay. It wasn't Mazda OEM. I also just ordered one of those little Mazda OEM paint pens (so I guess that definitely has the clear and paint mixed together) but I haven't received it yet. I really love the soul red color but I'm guessing it's going to be a bear trying to match it. My car is only two weeks old and I already got a tiny mark on the front bumper from I guess a stone. I hope the paint on the hood stands up to highway driving better than the bumper.
 
I've had touch up paints that required 2 separate applications - color and then clear. That is the intent when you buy this type which mimics factory-applied coats.
I just recently received the pen type and will try that this weekend. I may apply a clear coat from my MX5 touch up kit, since the clear coat provides the depth that comes from the factory.
 
Does anyone know if I should mix the Soul Red paint (41V) with clear and then put it on, or whether I should let the paint dry and then apply the clear later? I'm asking because the instructions that came with the two little jars of paint said to put them on separately, but I've watched several YouTube videos which claim you should mix the clear with the paint and then apply it. I ordered my touch-up paint on EBay. It wasn't Mazda OEM. I also just ordered one of those little Mazda OEM paint pens (so I guess that definitely has the clear and paint mixed together) but I haven't received it yet. I really love the soul red color but I'm guessing it's going to be a bear trying to match it. My car is only two weeks old and I already got a tiny mark on the front bumper from I guess a stone. I hope the paint on the hood stands up to highway driving better than the bumper.

I have a Soul Red CX-5. Love the color. Have heard only bad things about the OEM pen so far.

Please let me know how that or the other option works for you. Appreciate if you could list some pics.
 
I recently traded in a 2014 Mazda 3 in Jet Black Mica. I had numerous hood chips and the Mazda touch-up pen paint was gray in color. I would finish off repairs with a black magic marker. Kinda lame, but it looked better than just the touch-up paint.
 
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