2018 Buick Touch Up Paint (58 OEM Colors)

The 2018 Buick Vibe

By 2018, Buick was in the middle of its "That's a Buick?" identity makeover, trying to convince the neighbors you weren't driving your grandfather's LeSabre. They were pumping out everything from the quirky Cascada convertible to the surprisingly sleek Regal TourX wagon. To match the new energy, the color lab went into overdrive. We've got 58 colors in the books for this year alone, and the names tell the story of a brand having a mid-life crisis in the best way possible. Whether you're rocking "Black Meet Kettle Pearl," the self-aware "You Drive Me Grazy Pearl," or the high-velocity "Pull Me Over Red," Buick was determined to give you a finish that actually turned heads.

Paint Health Check

Welcome to the Thin Paint Era. By 2018, the robots in the factory had become a little too good at their jobs. They apply paint with surgical precision, but they're stingy with the material. On a 2018 Buick, you're looking at a factory clear coat that's often less than 100 microns thick-that's thinner than a sheet of high-quality printer paper. The result? Great gloss out of the gate, but high susceptibility to "road rash." We're seeing a lot of 2018 Enclaves and Regals with "shattered" clear coats right above the windshield and along the roof gutters. If a pebble looks at this paint funny, it's going to leave a mark.

Restoration Tip

Because this era of paint is so lean, you have to be careful not to "over-fix" a small chip. The most common mistake is the "Blob Method"-trying to fill a crater in one shot. On these modern thin finishes, a big dollop of paint will sit too high and look like a zit on the hood. Instead, build your layers slowly. Dab a tiny amount into the center of the chip, let it flash off, and repeat until it's level with the surrounding factory finish. This mimics the tight, flat application the robots used and keeps your repair from catching the light the wrong way.