2018 Cadillac Touch Up Paint (63 OEM Colors)

The 2018 Cadillac Vibe

2018 was a year of identity for Cadillac. They were busy trying to out-maneuver the Europeans with the ATS and CTS, while the Escalade remained the undisputed king of the valet stand. In the paint booth, the variety was staggering-we've got 63 distinct colors in our database for this year alone. They weren't just "white" or "black" anymore; they were artistic statements with names that sounds like they were chosen by a poet on a caffeine bender. Whether you're looking for Abalone White Tricoat, Blue Me Away Pearl, or the legendarily cheeky You Drive Me Grazy Pearl, Cadillac was leaning hard into high-tech pigments to make those sharp, "Art and Science" body lines pop.

Paint Health Check

Welcome to the "Thin Paint Era." By 2018, the robots at the factory were so precise they could spray a coat of Black Meet Kettle Pearl thin enough to make a accountant smile. While this "Robot Efficiency" means the finish is incredibly uniform, it also means there isn't much "meat on the bone." These finishes are notorious for catching stone chips if you so much as look at a gravel road. If you're driving an XTS or an Escalade from this run, keep an eye on the bumper edges and the rear window surrounds-this era is starting to see the occasional clear coat "lift" where the factory bond wasn't quite as tough as the marketing.

Restoration Tip

When you're touching up a chip on a 2018 finish, remember: precision beats power. Because the factory clear is so thin, a giant "blob" of touch-up paint will stick out like a sore thumb. Build your layers slowly; don't blob it. Apply a thin layer of color, let it dry, and repeat until you're just below the level of the surrounding paint. If you're working with a Tricoat like Caught Red Handed, patience is your only friend-rushing the process will just leave you with a dark spot that ruins the pearl effect.