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I ran across this topic on Rennsport and I'm not sure if it has been posted before. It's a database called Rennbow and it shows all of the colors Porsche has used over the years including their newest Paint-to-Sample colors. If you are spacing a brand new Porsche they will paint it in any color you want, for an extra fee.

https://www.rennbow.org/porsche-colors

If you're not living life on the edge, you're taking up too much space!

 

 

 

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Ok, so I’m gonna bring up a tired topic - color choice.  Sorry.

I’ve seen the Rennbow site before, and have used it as a tool to help narrow my search for a silver metallic that I think I would like best.

The classic Silver Metallic (SM) is my default choice, although sometimes it appears just a bit too light in color, especially in strong light, like this:

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I think my ideal silver would be something a touch darker. I would also like to go with a darkish brown upholstery (baseball glove?) with med-dark Gray GSW carpet, and polished wheels as shown above.  I know silver and brown is not classic, I’m going with an outlaw vibe, inspired by an Emory.  The problem as I see it is that some silvers have a subtle color hue that may not go well with brown.

Seal Gray is popular now - looks fantastic - but I don’t want to go that dark.  So what is between Seal Gray metallic and the more classic Silver Metallic?

I know this is super subjective, and looking at web photos can be deceiving.  

I’ve circled several colors on the Rennbow site that might be of interest to me.  I’m wondering if anyone has gone through a similar comparison.  And if so, what choice did you make, and are you thrilled with the result?  And has anybody seen (or own) a silver brown combo that works (that didn’t sell for half a million)?

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GT Silver Metallic is one possibility, after all that is what Emory used.  I hear it costs more, and not by a trivial amount.  The Rennbow image of GTSM appears to be only a wee bit darker than SM.  Has anyone seen GTSM and SM in the flesh next to each other, and in your opinion, is there something about GTS that justifies a cost bump?  First photo @Aaron’s car, second photo is GTSM from Mr. Emory (that rocks a brown interior):

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Crystal Silver Metallic has my attention.  @Marty Grzynkowicz‘s old wide body is CSM and I’ve seen and driven that car earlier this year., and the paint still looks great. The Rennbow site also appears to render CSM the wee-est bit darker than SM but hard to be sure.  The word Crystal makes me wonder if it simply has more sparkle.  Anybody seen the two side by side?  

Marty’s when new...

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...and today (owned by Raffi @ford356outlaw):

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The other two that I might consider based on photos I’ve seen are Pewter Metallic and Sapphire Metallic.  These colors look fantastic and they seem to be about midway between Seal Gray Metallic and classic SM in darkness.   But PM and SaM also appear to have a slight tint, so I wonder if they would be a tough pairing with brown.   SaM perhaps a touch blue, and PM seems to me to have a slight Gray-Green (?) tint depending on the photo.  Could I get away with brown upholstery, or would that create a clash of hues?  Anybody see a car with either of these with brown interior?  And yes, I know something like Ox Blood would be killer, and I can’t say I’ve completely ruled it out.

Here is Pewter Metallic (photo from @bee4bee ). At least I assume this is metallic - bee4bee’s one and only post says ‘Kirk at VS called it Pewter’ and that it was intended to match 5603, ‘56 Graphite Metallic’.).  This car is gorgeous - loose the bumper and change upholstery to brown and park it in my garage please.

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Sapphire is shown below (this car once owned by the one and only @Theron who provided the first photo.  I forget who became the subsequent owner and provided the second photo).  Yeah, lighting makes a difference...the second photo makes the color appear much lighter (and is also gorgeous, it too needs to be in my garage).  But does the slight blue tint make it a bad match with brown?

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I know others have used paint codes from other than Porsche mixtures (Chrysler and Toyota among others have been represented on this site), but I don’t think I need to make this harder on myself.  If only I could see them all lined up in person.

I really like what I see in the photos for Crystal Silver Metallic, Pewter Metallic and Sapphire Metallic, and of course GT Silver Metallic.   The slightly darker hues look a bit better with polished wheels I think.

I know, this is tremendously subjective, and this post might be more about me thinking out loud, but if anyone has gone through a similar thought process or has seen samples of what I’m talking about, I’d love to hear your opinion if you think you can help.

Thanks,

Jon

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Hey Jon,

Thanks for calling me out and calling me for not participating enough! I owe some things to this group. Admittedly, I scoured the group every weekend for years to help formulate my plan and ghosted once I achieved the dream.

Alas, my car is from Vintage and is intended to match 5603, ‘56 Graphite Metallic. The colt is exactly as you describe as not anywhere near darkness of the more recent popular graphite and also not really “silver.”  It’s an awesome in between, often thanks to the light. It’s a medium deep silver. Pewter is a very good description and I’d say what Kirk hit was the original 5603 Porsche color. Honestly, I don’t know/think that’s accurate with what was available on the ‘57. What I do know is that it’s gorgeous. Though I’ve had some serious paint bubble issues since I’ve had it. However, no regrets. Love all the combos of the car. Every day is pure joy.

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I’ll reach out to the new owner of VS. When you look at images of classics in the pewter/graphite they look darker compared to my car. As suggested, VS was trying to represent 56(year)03. You can see here http://www.willhoitautorestora...com/paintsamples.php

but I confess don’t know if my car is truly accurate to that color. I should know but don’t.

i could use some touch up paint so I really want to figure this out too!

B4B I’ve been to Greg’s shop (the new owner of VMC) recently.   He had a mostly finished Graphite Metallic sitting out front (for a customer in Germany).  It looked a lot different than what I see in your photos.  Here is his pic from his Instagram feed.  He included #graphitemetallic , so I’m pretty sure that is the color of this car.

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Here was a photo I took of it...

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It was stunning in person, but it had quite a bit of color - kind of gold/bronze/green.  Depending on sun angle, it looked different.  It did have a brown interior (maybe cinnamon?) which looked great together in some views, and perhaps not so much in other views.  The photos of your car appear to be quite different than this car.  Maybe there was more than one graphite metallic?  Your color seems be be neutral, but the one photo of it being offloaded from the moving truck does give it a green cast maybe?  The more I look at your car, the more I like your color.  Drop dead.  You must find your paint code!  Here are two more of your snaps I’ve grabbed, the first one is the one that seems to give it a greenish or maybe blueish hue - is it true to the eye or is the photo a bit wonky?  The photo during the build represents what I’m looking for - a deep silver.

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Marty - I’ve seen your old car in person - on two separate occasions - and the paint looks great.  I would be interested to know how it differs from basic Silver Metallic.  You say it has a ton of metallic, which might be why it is called crystal?  I’m still curious if it is a tad darker than SM.

@Troy Sloan, while looking through old posts, I see you once owned and sold a car you dubbed Pewter Imposter.  None of the photos are available from those posts, and your text doesn’t mention interior colors.  I’m curious how you would describe the color in context with the above discussion, or if you remember what color upholstery it had.  Or if you could point me to any photos that may exist?  I know that was 10 years and countless speedsters ago, so maybe a tall ask.  Although unless you knew the paint code, it would all be academic.  

Jon

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@Robert M posted:

@Jon T Most of your photos aren't showing. Out of all the photos you posted only three are showing up. And Greg isn't the new owner of VMC, he's always owned it. He just bought the shop where Kirk used to build cars. And that greenish car is not Graphite Metallic

Well, he has always owned Vintage Spyders since 1996 or so. Then he changed the name to Vintage Motorcars Inc. to satisfy the Porsche legal department somewhere along the way, and added coupes. He then added Speedsters when he moved back to Hawaiian Gardens, where he started and shared the same building with Kirk and Mary Duncan's OG Vintage Speedsters.

Thanks for the correction about Greg. I certainly didn’t intend the slight him.

Odd about the photos not coming through, they were all there when I posted.  Maybe some were too large?

When I was at VMC and saw the ‘green’ car, I asked Anna what color it was. She went inside, came back out and said Graphite Metallic.   Then a few weeks later on VMC’s instagram feed this same car was shown on its way out with a hashtag #graphitemetallic.  I certainly don’t personally know from looking at it, and I was surprised that color would get that name by VMC, but that appears to be what they call it.  

@Jon T posted:

Thanks for the correction about Greg. I certainly didn’t intend the slight him.

Odd about the photos not coming through, they were all there when I posted.  Maybe some were too large?

When I was at VMC and saw the ‘green’ car, I asked Anna what color it was. She went inside, came back out and said Graphite Metallic.   Then a few weeks later on VMC’s instagram feed this same car was shown on its way out with a hashtag #graphitemetallic.  I certainly don’t personally know from looking at it, and I was surprised that color would get that name by VMC, but that appears to be what they call it.  

Well I'll be gobsmacked then because there's no way in heck I'd have thought that was Graphite Metallic. I've been trying for the life of me to find what I thought that color was and the closest I found was Topaz Brown Metallic. But if Greg calls it Graphite Metallic I guess Graphite Metallic it is. Seems to have way too much olive green in it.

Colors I think that would go well with a baseball color interior in no specific order are: Chalk, Dolomite Grey Metallic, Gemini Grey Metallic, Umbra Metallic, Heron Grey, GT Silver, Titanium, Meridian Metallic, Pearl Grey, and Fashion Grey.

Elfer Classic Color Charts

There's another one, perhaps more complete. Now I'm going to say something that's gonna make me unpopular.  DON"T USE A COMPUTER TO PICK YOUR COLOR.

Computers and cameras are going to change the color you see from the color that was there due in part to their image processing.  Some times by  A LOT.  Plus they create our perception of color by a completely different process from how paint creates color perception. (Computers use an additive process, whereas paint is a subtractive/reflective process).

By all means use your computer to take a first cut, but once you've narrowed it down get the paint codes and have someone spray out some sample cards at least 18X24 inches in size (extra points if they have a slight curve to them or can bend a bit). Carry them around and look at them in different lights and angles at different times of day. (Also, compare them to those photos you were using to see how different they are!)  Yes this will cost a few bucks.  Some places (NAPA?) will make you a spray can of a particular paint code and you can spray them out yourself, but make sure you're doing it right (primer, color, clear coat if using a modern 2 part color/clear system) or it won't look right.

You're planning on spending how much on a paint job or complete build?  Spend a couple hundred here, you'll be glad you did, especially if you're picky about color (I am, can you tell?).

Cell phone camera software is all over the place when it comes to color processing, so even if you've invested a bunch in expensive color balancing software for your monitor, you still have no control over the camera that took the picture.

@Jon T posted:

Just a note about my photos.  On my iPad I see them all.  On my phone, several say ‘image not found’.  I posted from my iPad - is there a different way to attach photos to avoid this issue?

I had that problem with a PC a couple weeks ago. It must have been a server/upload issue. I had to delete the attachments and re-load. At this point, you'll have to add the photos in a reply, too much time has probably elapsed to edit your original post. I think you may be able to delete the blank ones, not sure if you can still upload them again.

When all else fails contact Theron, the admin.

Ok, that seems to have worked.  So the Rennbow site lists two color codes for Pewter Metallic; 655 and 956.

A Google search of ‘Porsche paint code 655’ results with lots of Platinum Metallic hits, and sure enough even the Rennbow site lists 655 as one of the listed paint codes for Platinum Metallic.  Trouble is, the sample images of cars shown on the site for Pewter Metallic and Platinum Metallic are quite different from each other, so why would each of these apparently different colors include a reference to paint code 655?

A Google search of 956  brings up Zinnmetallic which translates to Tin (zinc) Metallic, and Pewter Metallic.  The more looking I do the more I see these names appear to be somewhat interchangeable. Rennbow describes this way: “Tin is a slightly smokey shade of silver with a hint of platinum in it. And oh, does it look nice with a red interior. As an aside, in English, the color is sometimes referred to as Zinc, however, the German name for the color, "zinn" translates to "tin" in English.”  

The Ellferclassic site also lists 956 as Zinn/Tin metallic (pewter not mentioned).

@bee4bee have you tried paint code 956 for possible touch ups?  I would be curious if this is close to what you have, although screen images of photos of cars portraying Zinn/Tin Metallic appear a bit lighter in tone than your images.

@Jon T posted:

Ok, that seems to have worked.  So the Rennbow site lists two color codes for Pewter Metallic; 655 and 956.

A Google search of ‘Porsche paint code 655’ results with lots of Platinum Metallic hits, and sure enough even the Rennbow site lists 655 as one of the listed paint codes for Platinum Metallic.  Trouble is, the sample images of cars shown on the site for Pewter Metallic and Platinum Metallic are quite different from each other, so why would each of these apparently different colors include a reference to paint code 655?

A Google search of 956  brings up Zinnmetallic which translates to Tin (zinc) Metallic, and Pewter Metallic.  The more looking I do the more I see these names appear to be somewhat interchangeable. Rennbow describes this way: “Tin is a slightly smokey shade of silver with a hint of platinum in it. And oh, does it look nice with a red interior. As an aside, in English, the color is sometimes referred to as Zinc, however, the German name for the color, "zinn" translates to "tin" in English.”  

The Ellferclassic site also lists 956 as Zinn/Tin metallic (pewter not mentioned).

@bee4bee have you tried paint code 956 for possible touch ups?  I would be curious if this is close to what you have, although screen images of photos of cars portraying Zinn/Tin Metallic appear a bit lighter in tone than your images.

Hey Jon, I haven't used any touch up paint yet. Maybe I should get a few and see what's what. That 956 color seems a little off from the pics I see. More warm grey than cool grey.

The pics you see of my car are quite accurate but that one where it's being loaded on the carrier is a late afternoon, overcast sky. It doesn't cast green like that. One thing I love about the car is that it changes in the light. Sometimes it looks really bright silver, others it deepens. That series of 3 you just posted are my favorite. That's noon sun in July in Chicago.

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...DON"T USE A COMPUTER TO PICK YOUR COLOR.

Computers and cameras are going to change the color you see from the color that was there due in part to their image processing.  Some times by  A LOT.

^^ This. A thousand times, this^^

Not to mention that the light in which a photo is taken makes a huge difference in how the photo itself looks.

There's a rather infamous story here in Sacramento of how they came to repaint our most famous local monument a few years back - the Tower Bridge. The bridge brings the old main highway from San Francisco across the Sacramento River and directly to the State Capitol, a few blocks away. It's the town's front door.

Anywhere else, this structure would be lost amid countless other nondescript steel truss bridges, but this is a town that prides itself on being nondescript**. Anyway, what the bridge was most known for was its distinctive golden paint job.

When it needed a repaint, this being California, it was decided that only the citizenry should decide on just which tint to use. And this being the Age of the Internet, what could be a more democratizing process than to post the color candidates on a web page and let the citizens vote?

So, vote they did. The winning candidate won by a landslide - a majority concluding which gold was the goldest gold of all.

Except, well, you have probably figured out the rest. The paint was bought, the bridge was painted at enormous expense, and everyone showed up to marvel at what turned out to be probably the sickliest shade of greenish-yellow ever to grace a public edifice.

Again, please don't use a computer to pick your color.





**From Wikipedia: "The American Institute of Steel Construction gave the Tower Bridge an honorable mention for its Class B prize bridge award in 1935."

We got an honorable mention in Class B! Does it get any better than that?



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Last edited by Sacto Mitch
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