Looking for Collector Series paint code FACTS

[intragration]

Let me start by saying that tracking down information on the paint code for my white Collector Series Eldorado is completely annoying and frustrating. I need some touch up bottles, and so I started with the paint code on the RPO broadcast sticker on the spare cover. It looked strange, there was a BC/CC symbol, followed by the number 155. ?? What's 155? I tracked that down to be some kind of interior trim option. The only other indicator in the broadcast sticker is 45U, which corresponds to cream white. This is WRONG. Cream white equates to Duplicolor DSGM244, and the color is several orders of magnitude darker than it should be.

I've seen White Diamond, but this is obviously not it because it's a pearlescent color. I've seen Alpine White mentioned, and this is the most likely choice, it was the marketing description of the car's color, but I don't seem to be able to find a touch-up equivalent to it anywhere. I've also seen talk of Arctic White...I don't even remember why that didn't work out, but it didn't.

So I called Cadillac, they asked for the VIN, and based on that, they told me that it corresponded with Cream White, the first color I mentioned, which, again, is way wrong. It almost looks like a beige compared with the much starker white on my Collector Series. Maybe all the CS cars were slated to be painted Cream White, but instead got the Alpine White job?

Does anyone have any experience with this, or any ideas or suggestions? I'm going to end up at a body shop I'm sure, paying for them to mix me up a quart of paint. I sure hope they'll be able to find out something about the code, so they don't have to do it by trying to approximate it.

This shouldn't be such a problem, this is an RPO color, it's not a common car, but 1,064 cars were painted this color in 2002, so it's not insanely rare. Yet I'm getting the runaround and can't get the right damn paint. Help!?

[submariner409]

You're sort of in the same ballpark as me and my Crimson Pearl '02. I tried 7 ways from Sunday to find a touch up stick.....dealer only, with no bulk paint in stock. Dupli-Color and others don't make the color.

You'll have to Google for special automotive paint mixers. I found a couple of places a year or so back.......Never did order any, minimum is 1 or 2 pints, and it sure isn't cheap. Sikkens, PPG, DuPont.

BTW, next to the BaseCoat/ClearCoat designator, there should be another code like "379U" (My crimson pearl)

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Thanks for the reply. Next to the BC/CC designator it's blank, except for 155, which is way on the other side of the tag. Then in the RPO section, there is 45U, which corresponds with cream white. No other paint codes listed. When I give the dealership the VIN, they look it up and tell me it's 45U (i.e. WA509F) and continue by telling me it's discontinued and not available... I found WA509F at the store, under the incarnation of Duplicolor DSGM244, but this is a much much darker white than my car.

If I have it custom mixed, I at least need to give them the code, and I can't track it down for the life of me. Every time I think I find the answer, it turns out to be the wrong color. Any other Collector Series owners out there experience this problem with this color? I'm about to take my DSGM244, mix it with some bright white and call it a day.

[cadillac_al]

I hate trying to match white paint. My local NAPA advertises that they can mix paint and put it in some kind of aerosol container. That may be another option and I assume all NAPA's do it.

Whenever I try to match paint, I try it over different color primers until I get the shade I need. There are light and dark grey primers as well as beige and white primers; probably other colors I haven't tried yet.

If you use a body shop, I hope you know a good one. I have seen some terrible paint matching by some body shops and they wouldn't stand behind it either (insurance job).

If your DSGM244 is too dark then maybe you could try it over white primer. godd luck

[Ranger]

If it is not White Diamond, then it is probably Cotillion White, color code 11 (I think). Got this off of a GM touch up bottle and I think it was for '70 - '86. Not sure if that has changed or not as I think they still use Cotillion White.