I hope this is the correct forum for this trivial question. I own two 1969 Camaros both of which are dusk blue from the factory. Niether has ever had the underside of the trunk lid nor front door jams repainted and the trunk lids are original to the cars. The Norwood car is darker blue than the Van nuys car (both cars are alot darker than lemans blue however). My question, did the two plants use the same color of dusk blue? I have read that Van Nuys cars, when ordered with dusk blue, were a special order/check availability option? Thanks.

There is nothing special about Dusk Blue, it could be ordered from either assembly plant and was the same paint code from either one, hence the same exact color. It wouldn't make sense to have two different shades with the same code.

Scott,
I didn't intend to say that Van Nuys dusk blue was a special color. My question was not asked very clear. Sorry. I just wanted to know why the colors are not the same and that they just happen to be from different plants. Hope this is clearer. Thanks.

Scott,
I didn't intend to say that Van Nuys dusk blue was a special color. My question was not asked very clear. Sorry. I just wanted to know why the colors are not the same and that they just happen to be from different plants. Hope this is clearer. Thanks.

They should not be different colors, the code 51 references a blend of colors that make up Dark Metallic Blue (Dusk Blue). That blend of colors will always create the exact same shade of blue. The fact that your cars do not match exactly indicates that one of them was painted a different color. I don't think it is possible that one of them left the factory with a non-standard shade of the 51 paint code. The paint codes are what body shops use to mix paint for repair work, if they were different shades at different assembly plants then the body shops would not be able to do this. I would bet money that one of your cars was repainted in the early '70's.

Greg,
I would think that with the number of variables given in this situation that it would be rare to find two cars with the same paint code from different plants that MATCHED! How far off are they from each other? Can you only tell a difference when they're parked next to one another? Given the human elements (different mixers/painters) and the environmental ones (temp/humidity) coupled with the fact that the paint is 35 years+, I'm putting my $ on original.
Dan

I could be possible that one of them was repainted. I really don't know for sure. I have owned one since 1979 and the other since 2002. It would have been a superb paint job either way! They sure look original. Also, don't get me wrong, it's not a huge difference, maybe sun/heat could have caused it? The darker one is from Minnesota and the slightly lighter one is from California. Thanks for the information Scott.

Dan,
Thanks for the reply. When I park the cars side by side with the trunks open, I can see a difference between the two. The MN car is dark blue and the CA car is 1/4 of the way between dusk blue to lemans blue. The CA car is still dark blue but just lighter than the MN car. I hope this makes sense. Like Scott, I thought a paint code mix would be closer between the plants. Have you observed a noticable difference between like colors? Thanks Dan.

Maybe someone who knows about the assembly painting process back then could shed some light on the subject. I'm just thinking that all it would take would be "Bob" in MN to mix the color right, where "Fred" in CA had a rough weekend, mixed it on Monday morning and did something different.

I would bet that even if you gave "Bob" and "Fred" paint from the same can that their finished cars would be slightly different if you parked them next to each other. It's like when you do a partial repair you blend into the next panel so it's not as obvious. I don't know if I'm right, but it's my theory anyway.

P.S. The above names have been changed to protect the innocent!

Factory painted cars can easily be different. Ask any production painter who has tried to match them. The paint came in 55 gallon barrels. Even with the agitator in the barrels, the first paint out of the barrels would differ than the last paint out of the barrels. They also didn't have the automated paint processes in 1968 that they have today. If I'm not mistaken, they used a pressure pot system with conventional guns and paid by the hour painters making variances very easy.

I've never compared any factory paints next to each other or anything. But I do own a dusk blue 69 and I always notice alot of dusk blues look a shade different all the time. Not sure how many iv seen are repaints etc.. but They always seem to be just a tad different.

Thanks to all for you opinions and input. Now I won't feel so bad when I have my car repainted in a few years and it too will probably be a bit different. :)

Anyone have any good pictures of their Dusk Blue cars??? Mine was repainted Lemans Blue with black racing stripes, but originally was Dusk Blue. The repaint was prepped poorly by the previous... pervious owner (Did that make any sense??? :-) ). I've struggled if I want to go back to the original Dusk Blue because the color seems a little bland and doesn't have enough "pop". I've considered Jaguar's Pacific Blue cause it doesn't have TOO MUCH "pop". I know alot of people prefer the Lemans Blue, Garnet Red and Cortez Silver (I love the silver, myself).... but curious about everyone's thoughts and opinions on the color....

I would love to see a Dusk Blue car in person. That is one color that I have considered because it is unusual and would look good w/ white stripes.
Perhaps at one of the local shows I will stumble upon one.