By Porsche Repair Dubai. Last reviewed 30 October 2026
Your Porsche paint code is printed on the vehicle data label. On many cars that label sits in the front luggage compartment, and a copy is often glued into the maintenance booklet. The code tells a paint supplier which factory colour to start from. It does not guarantee that a freshly mixed paint will match the panels on your car today.
The highlighted field is the paint reference. The second value is interior trim, not paint.
Where to look
Location changes by model and year, so treat these as places to check rather than a fixed rule. Your own owner manual has the final word.
The Porsche 911 Carrera owner manual issued in May 2009 places a vehicle data label inside the maintenance booklet. It lists the VIN, type, engine and gearbox codes, paint number with interior, and optional equipment.
Source, Porsche owner manual
The Glasurit Porsche colour reference names the spare wheel well area and the booklet as the usual places. On mid engine cars and most 911s that area is under the front lid.
Source, Glasurit Porsche colour reference
Colour databases describe the code as part of the option sticker, which identifies the colour the car left the factory with.
Source, paint code database
Use the VIN with a Porsche Centre or a Porsche Classic Production Specification. That route identifies the factory colour, not any later repaint.
Source, Porsche vehicle documentation
Reading the label
A data label packs many short codes together. Read the field heading, not just the characters. On many labels the paint number and the interior code share one line, separated by a gap or a mark. Option codes for equipment sit on the lines below.
Some catalogues add a prefix or a suffix to the factory code. There is no reliable rule that a given letter means a classic colour or a batch tone. Let the supplier reconcile the printed code with its own catalogue.
Checked examples
Each code below appears with the same colour in at least two independent references. This is a learning table, not a full Porsche catalogue, and it does not tell you which colour your VIN was built in.
| Code | Colour name | Finish | Where we checked it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 84A | Guards Red, Indischrot in German | Solid | Sherwin Williams 2007 colour book, PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| M7Z | GT Silver Metallic, GT Silber | Metallic | Sherwin Williams 2007, PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| 92U | Arctic Silver Metallic | Metallic | Sherwin Williams 2007, CarWhere |
| C9Z | Basalt Black Metallic | Metallic | Sherwin Williams 2007, CarWhere |
| B9A | Carrara White | Listed as solid in one source and metallic in another | Sherwin Williams 2007, CarWhere |
| M5C | Miami Blue, Miamiblau | Solid | Glasurit 2022 Porsche reference, CarWhere |
| 1S1 | Racing Yellow, Racinggelb | Solid | PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| D5C | Shark Blue | Solid | PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| M5D | Gentian Blue Metallic, Enzian Blue | Metallic | PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| M6T | Aventurine Green Metallic | Metallic | PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| M7S | Agate Grey Metallic, Achatgrau | Metallic | PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| M7P | Dolomite Silver Metallic | Metallic | PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
| M3C | Carmine Red, Karminrot | Solid | PaintScratch 2023 911 list, CarWhere |
A code that two sources disagree on
One colour site lists M9A as Chalk, while a touch up paint list for the 2023 911 shows M9A as Crayon. Chalk and Crayon are different Porsche colours. This is exactly why a code alone should not be used to order paint. Ask the supplier to confirm the code against your VIN and the panel itself.
Three different things
What owners and adverts use, such as Guards Red or GT Silver Metallic. Names change between languages and markets, so a name alone is not a mixing instruction.
The short reference on the data label, such as 84A or M7Z. It points to one factory colour. A separate sales or exterior colour number can appear on order papers and does a different job.
The recipe inside one paint system, such as Glasurit or another refinish brand. One code can have several variants to suit how the colour looks on real cars. The variant is chosen by testing, not by reading a letter on the label.
Refinish brands such as Glasurit from BASF, PPG and Axalta each keep their own formula database. Never mix toners, clearcoats or additives from different systems because the colour code is the same.
Matching on the car
The new paint has to sit beside paint that has lived in the sun, been polished and possibly been repaired before. PPG describes a colour identification process that starts with the vehicle code, checks for previous refinishing, then compares formula variants against the area being repaired.
Finish type
Guards Red or Racing Yellow look the same from most angles. Matching is mostly about hue and how much the old paint has faded.
Silver and grey metallics change with viewing angle because aluminium flakes in the paint reflect light. This change is called flop. A repair can match face on and still look darker from the side.
Mica or pearl effects add colour shift. These usually need careful variant choice and blending into the next panel.
Low gloss finishes need the right clear and must not be polished like gloss paint. Tell the repairer before any work starts.
Almost every modern Porsche uses a basecoat and clearcoat system. The clear layer gives gloss and protection. Damage that breaks through the clear changes the repair from a polish to a refinish.
UVThe UAE often reaches extreme UV levels in summer, which slowly fades pigments and dulls clear.
HeatDark cars parked outdoors get very hot on the surface, which ages the clear faster on the bonnet and roof.
SandWind blown sand and harsh washing wear the clear, which changes how the colour reflects light.
ResultA ten year old car can differ from its factory formula, so the panel decides the variant, not the label.
Code formats
Owners often find two or three different numbers for the same colour and assume one of them is wrong. Usually each number belongs to a different system.
The short code on the data label, often three characters such as 84A or M7Z. This is the number to give a supplier first.
Paint books add their own reference. The Sherwin Williams 2007 book, for example, files GT Silver Metallic under its own five digit number, 71350, next to the Porsche code.
Order papers and the Production Specification can show an exterior colour code that is not identical to the label code. Porsche says so in its documentation FAQ.
Inside one paint system a code can have a standard formula plus darker, lighter or coarser variants. The repairer picks one after a test spray.
Which repair needs what
The paint code is needed for every one of these jobs, but how much matching work follows depends on the job.
The code gives the base colour for a touch up product. On metallic paint a touch up rarely disappears completely, because flakes in a brushed repair do not lie flat like sprayed paint. The aim is to seal the metal and make the chip less visible.
The code starts the process, then the variant is chosen against the panels on each side. Metallic and pearl colours often need a blend into the next panel so the eye does not see a hard edge.
Plastic parts are painted off the car and can look slightly different under the same formula because the primer and flex additive differ. A spray out card held beside the body helps.
When every outer panel is painted together, matching to old paint matters less. Door shuts, the engine lid frame and hidden areas still need a decision, so agree the scope in writing first.
At our workshop
We read the code from your own label, check the panel history with a paint depth reading, and agree which panels need colour and which need clear only. The paint supplier provides the formula and variants, and the chosen variant is approved on a test card beside your car in daylight before the repair starts.
We are an independent workshop, not a Porsche Centre. For a missing label we can help you request the factory colour through official channels using your VIN.
No label
Labels fade, peel or disappear when a booklet is lost. You still have options, and none of them need guessing.
A Porsche Centre or an equipped workshop can use the VIN to find the factory colour. The VIN is a lookup key, not a hidden paint formula.
Porsche Classic issues a Production Specification that records how the car was built, including the exterior colour. Porsche notes that the exterior colour code on that document can differ from the paint code on the car.
Earlier paint invoices may name the formula and variant used. Keep them with the car for future repairs.
If panels were repainted, decide whether you want the present colour or the original factory colour before any paint is mixed.
Special colours
An extended list of predefined Porsche colours, many from historic models, ordered through Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur.
A colour developed for one customer through a separate feasibility process. Public charts rarely help here.
Bring the order papers, the label photo and any previous paint records. The workshop and supplier then confirm the right refinish route for that exact finish.
The label shows the colour the car was built in. If the car in front of you is a different colour, it has been resprayed or wrapped, and you should ask why and when. If the colour looks right but one panel looks slightly darker or lighter, that panel has probably been refinished.
A paint depth gauge gives a quick reading of how thick the paint is on each panel. Much thicker readings on one door or wing often point to a repair. That is not always bad news, but it should be explained by invoices. Special colours and Paint to Sample cars carry more value when the original finish is intact, so records matter even more.
Our pre purchase inspection includes a look at panel finish and paint consistency, and we compare what we see with the code on the label.
Cost direction
Finding the code costs nothing. The repair price depends on damage, panels and finish type. These are planning ranges from our Porsche painting page, including 5 percent VAT, not fixed offers.
See the full breakdown on our Porsche painting page.
Check the vehicle data label in the maintenance booklet first, then the front luggage compartment. Your owner manual confirms the exact place for your year.
Start with the maintenance booklet and the luggage area label. Do not rely on a generic door pillar rule, because positions vary by model and year.
No. Send the full code and model year as well. Names are translated and shortened, and two colours can have similar names.
No. The interior code often sits on the same line, but it describes trim, not exterior paint.
No. One code can have several formula variants in each paint system. The variant is chosen by testing against the car.
No. It shows the factory colour. Paint depth readings and records show whether panels were refinished later.
Treat the code as unconfirmed and check it against your VIN with a Porsche Centre or the paint supplier before ordering.
It has its own reference, but you should keep the order papers, because public charts may not list special colours correctly.
Not for the film itself, but keep the code on record. When the film is removed, any repair underneath must match the original paint.
Usually not fully. It protects the metal and reduces how visible the chip is. A refinish is needed for an invisible result.
Porsche Repair Dubai is an independent workshop in Al Quoz. We are not affiliated with or authorised by Porsche AG.
