OEM fairings and paint match

Well, I managed to drop my VFR in an incredible embarrassing way...it involves failure to deploy the kickstand.

Long story short, I am in for ~$800 of new fairings. The lower cowl was scratched and the "dumbo" turn signals punched through the upper fairing making a mess of that.

So, I order new OEM fairings for a 98 VFR and installed them yesterday. When I was done the upper cowl and lower cowl have a noticeable difference in paint color. The upper cowl is a little darker red and the paint finish is not quite as good as the rest of the VFR panels. the paint appears a little "soft" with a less than a mirror smooth finish. The new lower cowl is a little less red with a hint of orange and a nice mirror smooth reflection. Both panels are genuine Honda OEM parts.

Since these are both brand new items I don't think it is a paint fading problem.

I can call the supplier where I bought the fairing panels but I am not hopeful.
I think a causal observer would not notice the difference but now that I have I see it every time I look at the VFR and it drives me crazy.

Is there more than one red paint code for 98-01 VFRs?
Has anyone experience this with new panels?

 

Return your new fairing and try to fix your original :biggrin:

 

There are dozens of reasons why your red fairing panels do not "match" . This would be the case even if a panel were to be repaired and repainted. Red is the big culprit

Try Google and "red paint fade" For more see "fugitive"

colors, pigments ect. Red by nature is transparent as well. The primer or undercoat should be uniform for all parts to be painted. Best color for a prime coat is a 17% reflectance gray. This is a standard photo or colorimeter gray.

Red paint is also pricy..

Given enough time and sun, red Hondas will fade to a nice titty pink in spots.