2012 Yamaha Touch Up Paint (2 OEM Colors)

The 2012 Yamaha Vibe

2012 was the year Yamaha decided that if a bike wasn't dark, it wasn't doing it right. Whether you were redlining a YZF-R1 at the track or taking the long way home on a V-Star, the aesthetic was all about deep, menacing gloss. We've focused our database on the true survivors of this era-the colors that actually defined the street. We're talking about the obsidian depth of Raven (DBC 906478) and the moody, sophisticated Black Cherry. It was a time when "cool" meant looking like your machine was carved out of a single piece of dark glass.

Paint Health Check

Welcome to the Thin Paint Era. By 2012, factory robots had become surgeons of efficiency, which is a polite way of saying your clear coat is likely thinner than a shop rag. While the finish looks like a mirror when it's fresh, it's notoriously brittle. Because the layers were applied with "robot precision" to save on materials, these bikes are prone to "road rash" and micro-chipping, especially on the leading edges of the fairings. If you're rocking a Raven finish, you've probably noticed that even a stiff breeze seems to leave a swirl mark. The clear coat doesn't have much "meat" on it, so it doesn't take much for a stone chip to reach the primer.

Restoration Tip

When you're patching up a 2012 Yamaha, you have to respect the robot's work. Don't go in there like a house painter and try to fill a chip with one giant, lazy blob. Because the factory coat is so thin and tight, a heavy application will stand out like a sore thumb. Instead, build your layers slowly. Use thin, patient passes and let the paint find its level naturally. You want to "sneak up" on the repair rather than drowning it. This mimics that lean factory profile and ensures your fix actually disappears into the fairing instead of sitting on top of it like a crater.