Majority of vehicles on the road spot their original manufacturer’s paint. This is mostly a color from only a handful of paint selections out of hundreds of hues — most of which are boring.
Escape the sea of mundane and embark on a journey to redefine your ride! Most vehicles roam the streets clad in their manufacturer’s standard paint – a palette limited to a handful of uninspiring hues. But fear not, because the world of custom paint jobs awaits!
If the current color on your vehicle leaves you yawning or you’re yearning for an automotive identity that mirrors your style, a custom paint job is your ticket to transformation. Picture this: a kaleidoscope of possibilities drawn from the millions of hues the human eye can perceive, all brought to life through the magic of electronic color mixing.
Yet, it’s not just about any color scheme; it’s about finding the one that perfectly complements your vehicle’s vibe. In this article, we’ve curated a showcase of the best custom auto paint job ideas. Join us as we explore the realms of automotive artistry, and may you discover the perfect hues to elevate your ride to greatness!
Best Custom Paint Job Ideas
These ideas explore how you could use one or multiple colors on your car, what type of finish you could apply, and how the paint job would look on your car. They range from the elegant metallic paint job to the glossy pearlescent, from the classic two-tone to the stylish fade, and from the aggressive matte finish to the trendy vinyl wrapping.
In giving your car a fresh new look, whatever color/colors you settle on, you should also consider how well it blends with the undercoat you’ll apply.
The primer you use is just as important to the resulting appearance of your car as the auto paint you apply. Depending on the primer you use, your auto paint job will be left looking brighter or duller. If unsure of the right type of undercoat to apply, it is advised that you use a neutral color. It will make the auto paint appear a little less vibrant, but not by much.
Without further ado, let’s explore some of the best custom auto paint job ideas.
1. Metallic Auto Paint
A custom metallic paint job on your car is a statement maker … one of simplicity and elegance rolled into one.
The auto paint job doesn’t leave your car looking the most vibrant as is the case with solid auto paint jobs. It, however, contains flecks of powdered metals such as aluminum and copper, which give the car a slightly shiny look when viewed up-close.
A metallic auto paint accentuates your car’s design, making all the edges more noticeable. This auto paint would best complement your car if it has a rugged design.
Another aspect of this auto paint is that, unlike most other auto paints, a metallic auto paint conceals scratches on your car’s surface to some extent.
2. Matte Finish
If you want your car to spot a subtle yet stunning look, matte finish is the right paint to apply.
The clear coat used in a matte paint job allows it to mute the shiny reflection, creating a rough, flat finish.
This type of custom paint job fits well with a variety of car types, including compact and subcompact cars. It is also well suited for classic cars and pony cars alike, as evidenced by its popularity with drivers of these cars.
This auto paint is, however, demanding. To get the best out of your car, you are required to skip waxing, which is an important process in post-coat application. Instead, you should use a matte paint protectant sealant, which is designed to protect matte surfaces.
How you wash your matte-painted car is also another key aspect in preserving the auto paint. Matte is particularly sensitive, and the wrong type of washing liquid will ruin it. For this reason, there are car washes that are well-equipped to clean matte-painted cars. Ordinary soap and water is also fine to use in cleaning a matte surface.
3. Two-tone Paint Job
The two-tone auto paint is among the most versatile, blending seamlessly with most automobiles, giving each one a unique identity.
Whether you drive a compact, pony, coupe, crossover, or pick-up truck, a two-tone paint job will enhance its look. You can rarely go wrong with this type of finish. It is, in fact, considered a timeless, judging by its resurgence in popularity just as it was decades ago.
With the two-tone, two distinct dual are applied on the car’s surface, having varying ratios and brightness. Often one color is the more dominant, occupying two-thirds of the car’s surface, and may either be the brighter or the duller of the two.
4. Pearlescent Auto Paint
This auto paint is one of the trendiest in the automobile world today. The loud, shimmering auto paint imparts a bubbly shine on a vehicle, making it stand out from the pack.
It is a mixture of metallic and non-metallic auto paints, where reflective pearly crystals and refractive solid colors work together to create optical effects when the car is viewed from different angles and when illuminated using varying degrees of light.
This type of paint job is suited for a variety of premium-priced cars, including sports cars and coupes.
5. Fade Paint Job
The fade auto paint shares a similarity with the two-tone, in that they both feature dual paints, except the colors are not distinctively laid, but rather create a smooth transition between them.
For the best appearance for your car, you should use dual colors that are distinct but still complement each other. The two colors can be laid on the car’s surface from different angles, the most common being vertical and horizontal.
6. Vinyl Wrapping
Vinyl wrapping is a unique type of paint job and one that has been gaining popularity in recent years. It offers a number of welcome benefits to most car owners, particularly in versatility and ease of application.
With a vinyl wrapping paint job, you get to choose the type of color and finish you desire for your car, and with ease, you can change it up if you prefer a different color.
Aside from disguising any existing scratches on your car, vinyl wrapping also protects it against incurring dents.
Sam is Automole’s editor-in-chief and classic car enthusiast. Sam is studying mechanical engineering at Cockrell School of Engineering, Austin. He also writes for many top automotive publications and appears on the Collecting Cars Podcast.