Spent 3 hours on a Mazda bumper blend and forgot to check the R-value

Last Tuesday I had a 2018 Mazda CX-5 come in for a rear bumper respray. I mixed up the color, laid down the sealer, and sprayed the basecoat. Looked perfect under the shop lights. Then I walked it outside into the sun and it was way off - too dark and flat. I had totally skipped verifying the R-value against the actual car because I was in a hurry. Had to sand it back down, remix with a different variant, and respray the whole thing. Wasted almost a full quart of paint and a good chunk of the afternoon. Anyone else gotten burned by not double checking the paint code variations on these newer Mazdas?

2 comments

2 Comments

john4301mo agoTop Commenter

@faithg26 I see it differently since those later Mazda variants shift a ton depending on the lighting.

faithg261mo ago

Nah, I kinda disagree here. If you're moving fast and skipping steps that's on you not the car. Those Mazda reds and blues are tricky but the R-value is right there on the door jamb for a reason.