Confirm the color difference between the color card attached to the color sample book and the color surrounding the damaged area on the actual car.

If no color sample is available but color mixing specs are available, use a small amount of paint to mix some sample color. Test spray the sample to create a sample plate and compare against the actual color on the vehicle.

If the color sample and actual vehicle colors difference is too great, check availability of a different and/or new color mixing spec.

Compare the color code against the actual color on the vehicle and when there are no significant differences in hue, shade of color and direction, mix the colors according to the mixing color spec.

If the difference is too great, adjust the color using primary colors.

Test paint should be conducted under the same conditions as the actual paint repair. In particular, pay extra attention in handling pearl and metallic colors as painting conditions can greatly impact the results.

Compare fully dried test plates against the actual vehicle color for color difference, conditionally identical colors, direction, size of metallic or pearl grain and brightness, etc. under various light sources.

As a basic rule, use a small amount of the paint indicated in the color mixing spec to make an adjustment. However in some cases a new color can be added if necessary.

Repeat the test paint, colorimetry work and adjustment until the desired color is obtained.