2019 Mitsubishi Touch Up Paint (19 OEM Colors)

The 2019 Mitsubishi Vibe

By 2019, Mitsubishi was leaning hard into its "rebirth" era, trying to prove that the Eclipse Cross, Mirage, and the ever-faithful Outlander could still turn heads. Looking at our database of 19 colors, they weren't exactly shy about it. While half the world was painting cars the color of a rainy Tuesday, Mitsubishi was out here spraying Red Diamond Tricoat and Sunrise Orange Metallic. It's a solid variety for 2019-enough to make an old-timer like me appreciate that they still remembered what a color wheel looked like before everything turned "Executive Gray."

Paint Health Check

Welcome to the "Thin Paint Era." Back in the lacquer days, you could practically sand a car with a brick and still have paint left, but by 2019, the factory robots had mastered the art of "Efficiency"-which is just a fancy way of saying they used as little paint as humanly possible. The clear coat on these Mitsubishis is hard and glossy, but it's brittle. If a stray pebble even looks at your hood the wrong way, you're looking at a chip that goes straight to the primer. Because these layers are so thin, the clear coat is prone to "road rash" and micro-cracking if you haven't been religious about sealing it.

Restoration Tip

Since you're dealing with a factory finish that's thinner than a diner napkin, build your layers slowly. Do not-I repeat, do not-just blob a big drop of paint into a chip and expect it to look like the factory did it. Use a fine-tipped applicator or even a toothpick to apply thin, surgical layers. Let each layer set before adding the next until you're just shy of the surface height. This is the only way to get a repair to sit flush against that tight, robot-applied finish without it looking like a raised scab on your fender.