Find the label
Where is the paint code on my car?
Most cars carry the paint code on a small label in one of three places. Pick your make for the exact spot and what the code looks like — or skip the hunt and look it up by registration.
- 1Driver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- 2Under the bonnet
- 3Boot floor / spare-wheel well
Choose your make
- VolkswagenBoot floor / spare-wheel well
- AudiBoot floor / spare-wheel well
- SEATBoot floor / spare-wheel well
- ŠkodaBoot floor / spare-wheel well
- FordDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- VauxhallUnder the bonnet
- BMWUnder the bonnet
- MINIUnder the bonnet
- Mercedes-BenzDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- ToyotaDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- NissanDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- HondaDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- KiaDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- HyundaiDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- PeugeotDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- CitroënDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- RenaultDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- MazdaDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- VolvoDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
- Land RoverDriver’s door frame (B-pillar)
Three places to check, in this order
- Driver’s door frame. Open the door and look at the pillar by the seat belt, and the edge of the door itself.
- Under the bonnet. The panel behind the headlights (the slam panel), the inner wings, or the top of a suspension turret.
- In the boot. Lift the boot floor: VW-Group cars put a data sticker by the spare wheel.
The code is not on the V5C logbook. The label also carries the VIN and weights — the paint code is the short code, usually next to the word “Paint”, “Colour” or “Lack”.