2003 Isuzu Touch Up Paint (19 OEM Colors)

The 2003 Isuzu Vibe

Welcome to 2003, the year Isuzu was trying to reinvent itself with the bold Axiom and the GM-engineered Ascender. If you were driving a Rodeo Sport back then, you were likely blasting a custom-burned CD while the factory clear coat was still fresh and full of promise. While the rest of the world was obsessed with "High-Tech Silver," we've focused on the true survivors of the era-the staples like Onyx Black and that distinctive 2-tone Dark Bronzemist Metallic often found gracing the bumpers. These weren't just utility rigs; they were the last gasp of Isuzu's passenger SUV dominance in the States.

Paint Health Check

Here's the cold, hard truth: 2003 sits right in the heart of The Peeling Era. By this time, manufacturers had moved fully to basecoat/clearcoat systems, but they hadn't quite mastered the chemistry of keeping them stuck together for two decades. On an Isuzu from this vintage-especially the Ascender-you're likely dealing with delamination. That's the "Salty Painter" term for when the clear coat decides it's had enough of the base coat and starts lifting off in sheets like a bad sunburn. If your roof or hood looks like it's shedding skin, you're witnessing clear coat failure in real-time.

Restoration Tip

If you've still got some clear coat left, you need to be a hawk about maintenance. The moment you see a rock chip, you've got to seal it immediately. In this era, moisture loves to crawl under the edge of a chip and start prying the clear away from the color. Don't let it get a foothold. When you're touching up that Onyx Black, make sure you're cleaning the area with a proper solvent first to ensure that new layer bites hard. Once the clear lifts, there's no "buffing it out"-you're either sealing the line or repainting the panel.