2013 Lexus Touch Up Paint (24 OEM Colors)

The 2013 Lexus Vibe

Welcome to 2013-the year Lexus decided to stop playing nice and gave us the "Spindle Grille." Whether you were carving corners in a GS350, prowling the suburbs in an RX350, or pretending to be a billionaire in the LS 460, Lexus was all about that "Pursuit of Perfection" energy. With 25 colors in our database for this year, they weren't exactly shy with the spray gun. We saw the debut of the high-tech Liquid Platinum and the shimmer of Starfire Pearl Tricoat. It was an era where Lexus mastered the art of making a car look like it was carved out of a single block of jewelry, though most owners just called it "the fancy silver one."

Paint Health Check

Here's the deal from the spray booth: we are firmly in the Thin Paint Era. By 2013, the robots in Japan were so efficient they could stretch a thimble of pigment across an entire LX570 hood. While the finish is world-class and smooth as a mirror, it's thin. This was also the peak of the "Self-Healing Clear Coat" hype. It's a clever, flexible urethane designed to flow back together under the sun to hide swirl marks, but don't let the name fool you-it won't "heal" a crater left by a piece of gravel on the interstate. Today, these cars usually suffer from "road rash" on the front bumper and leading edge of the hood because that factory-thin coat just doesn't have the meat to fight off debris.

Restoration Tip

When you're touching up a 2013, remember: build layers slowly; don't blob it. Because the factory paint is so lean, a big, thick drop of touch-up paint will stick out like a sore thumb against that tight, robotic finish. If you're working with one of the tricoats like White Nova GF Pearl or Matador Red, patience is your best friend. Apply your ground coat in thin whispers, let it dry, and then add your mid-coat shimmer. You want to build the level of the repair up to the surrounding surface, not over it. If you try to fill the whole chip in one shot, the solvent won't outgas properly, and you'll end up with a dull, soft spot that'll haunt you every time you wash the car.