2017 Volkswagen Touch Up Paint (45 OEM Colors)

The 2017 Volkswagen Vibe

In 2017, the folks in Wolfsburg were having a bit of a chromatic mid-life crisis, and frankly, we loved it. Whether you were carving canyons in a Mk7 GTI, styling in a CC, or grabbing the last of the "classic" vibes in a Beetle or a Scirocco-esque Polo, the color menu was longer than a German beer list. With 45 colors in our database for this year alone, Volkswagen wasn't just selling cars; they were selling a spectrum. You had the bold, "look-at-me" crowd rocking Habanero Orange Effect and Sandstorm Yellow Effect, while the sophisticated set leaned into Atlantic Blue Metallic or the elusive White Silver Metallic-a color that looks like it can't decide if it's a cloud or a piece of cutlery. It was a high-water mark for variety before everything turned into a sea of lease-option grays.

Paint Health Check

Welcome to the Thin Paint Era. By 2017, factory robots had become so efficient they could stretch a thimble of paint across an entire Tiguan hood. We call this "Robot Efficiency," but you probably call it "Why does my Passat have 400 rock chips?" The clear coat on these cars is hard and glossy, but it's brittle and incredibly thin-often no thicker than a single human hair. Because the factory application is so lean, these finishes don't take kindly to highway debris. If you're seeing tiny white specks on your Deep Black Pearl or Tornado Red bumper, that's not dust; that's the clear coat surrendering to physics. The paint is high-tech and beautiful, but it's fragile.

Restoration Tip

When you're touching up a 2017 model, leave the "one-and-done" attitude at the garage door. Because the factory finish is so thin, if you try to fill a chip with one giant blob of paint, it's going to look like a colorful zit on your hood. You'll never get it level. Instead, build your layers slowly. Apply a tiny amount, let it shrink and dry, and then hit it again. You're aiming for a series of thin "skins" rather than a single puddle. This mimics the factory's multi-stage depth without the bulk, keeping your repair flush with that razor-thin factory clear. Patience is the only way to beat the robots.