colour matching DB180 silver grey

[Ash]

I am restoring a 1969 280SL in DB180 and wondered which paint supplier offered the most accurate colour match?

Also the engine bay was just painted in a metallic finish with no clearcoat. What would be the best solution to replicate this with modern paints?

Regards Ash

[Anfinn]

Hi Ash
I'm no expert, but here is what I think, after having resprayed my car.

I assume you are respraying the whole car, in which case I think you need not worry about a match.
The paint suppliers usually have the recipe for the color on their computer, and mix it using accurate measuring.
On my resprayed car the DB180 looks original, I certainly cannot tell any difference neither from pictures nor in the flesh when comparing it with others.

What I can see, however, is where I still have the original  color, this has over time become darker. So if you are talking about partially respraying the car, you would need to see a resprayer that has an optical analyser for colour, and can analyse it and provide a match with the surrounding area.

Mine is not to be a show car, so in the engine bay, I hate to admit, I have just treated rusty areas, and brushed the top coat on. No clear coat.

[Nate]

My first choice would be Glasurit, second choice is PPG.

[waqas]

The body data plate should have a letter right after the color code ... e.g. 180 H or 180 G. This letter tells you whether the original paint used was Herberts or Glasurit.
You can find our technical manual page about paint codes here: http://www.sl113.org/wiki/DataCard/PaintCodes

[bpossel]

Hi Ash,

I used "Standox", a good German paint!  A bit pricey, but Mercedes-Benz approved.
Bob

[hkollan]

It seems that certain colors where supplied exclusively by one of the two suppliers MB used for paint in the sixties.
180 G silver from Glasurit was AFAIK never supplied by Herberts, at least I've never seen a production plate with 180 H on it.
Same with 834 G Moss green never 834 H. Then again a color like beige metallic 462 H seems to have been provided by Herberts, never seen 462 G. Since Herberts no longer exists as an independent company, I think they are part of Spies Hecker now.
I assume this only goes for metallic colors, as I think I've seen some of the other colors form both suppliers.