Hyundai Paint Code: Where to Find It and How to Read It
The exact label to look for on a Hyundai, how the code is printed, what people mistake it for, and 12 verified Hyundai colour codes.
NHTSA vPIC has no colour field, so no VIN decoder returns one. The label on the vehicle is the reliable route.
On almost every Hyundai the paint code is on the driver-side door jamb label, printed as a two- or three-character code beside the field marked COLOR or PAINT, usually near the bottom of the label. Modern Hyundais use three characters (SAW, S3B, R2T); cars up to about the mid-2000s used two (3E, EB, W1). The 17-character VIN does not contain it.
Where is the paint code on a Hyundai?
- Driver-side door jamb. On the B-pillar face exposed when the driver's door is open, on the main vehicle information label. This is the standard position from the late 1990s through to current cars — AutomotiveTouchup, ChipFixx and PaintScratch all place it here. ChipFixx adds that the code sits near the bottom of the label. On taller models (Tucson, Santa Fe, Palisade) the label is often low in the door opening rather than at eye level.
- Driver's door edge or door pillar. AutomotiveTouchup lists door jamb, door pillar and door edge as interchangeable positions for most 1997-2008 Hyundais, naming the Accent, Azera, Elantra, Entourage, Santa Fe, Tiburon, Tucson, Veracruz and XG350. Check the shut face of the door itself before concluding the label is missing.
- Engine bay (older models). On the centre of the firewall on the Excel and Scoupe, and in front of the radiator on some Sonatas, per AutomotiveTouchup. PaintScratch corroborates the engine bay generally — 'some models hide the color code in the engine compartment' — but does not name which. Treat this as the fallback for pre-2000 cars, not the primary spot.
How to read the Hyundai paint code
Two or three characters mixing letters and digits, printed next to a field labelled COLOR, PAINT or C — usually on or near the bottom line of the door-jamb label, often beside a barcode. Hyundais from roughly the mid-2000s on use three characters (SAW, NKA, S3B, R2T, W6H, YP5); earlier cars used two (3E, EB, W1). Labels sometimes print a shortened form of the supplier code: S3 for S3B, W8 for WW8. Do not copy the longer interior/trim code, the model or option codes, or the VIN itself from the same label — none of those is the paint code.
- Open the driver's door and look at the label on the jamb — the B-pillar face beside the striker. On taller models such as the Tucson, Santa Fe and Palisade it often sits low in the door opening rather than at eye level.
- Find the field marked COLOR, PAINT or C on that label. The paint code is the short two- or three-character group next to it, usually on or near the bottom line and often beside a barcode.
- If the jamb label is gone, painted over or unreadable, check the shut face of the door itself and the door pillar, then the engine bay — AutomotiveTouchup puts the code on the centre of the firewall on the Excel and Scoupe, and in front of the radiator on some Sonatas.
- If the car is two-tone, write down both codes. Hyundai prints a body code and a separate roof code, and the black roof on most two-tone builds is MZH.
- Copy the code exactly as printed, including characters that could be read either way (0 and O, 1 and I). Note if it looks shortened — a label reading S3 or W8 usually corresponds to supplier codes S3B and WW8.
- Verify before ordering: check the code against a paint database to confirm it returns the colour name you actually see on the car, or have a Hyundai dealer parts counter read the factory colour off the build record for your VIN.
Common Hyundai paint codes
| Code | Hyundai colour name | Where it appears |
|---|---|---|
| SAW | Atlas White | Roughly 2021 on — Elantra, Kona, Tucson, Santa Fe. Hyundai's own dealer touch-up pen is part 00F05-AU000-SAW. Also filed as SW1. |
| S3B | Phantom Black | Roughly 2011-2025 across most of the range. Refinish databases also file it under Black Noir Pearl; some labels print it shortened as S3. |
| NKA | Black Noir Pearl | Roughly 2011-2023, mainly Elantra and Sonata. Also listed as Phantom Black Pearl — Hyundai has used both names for it. |
| R2T | Shimmering Silver | Roughly 2011-2025. One of the most common Hyundai codes; heavy use on Elantra, Sonata and Tucson. |
| WW8 | Quartz White Pearl | About 2015-2023. A three-stage tri-coat, so it needs a base plus a pearl mid-coat. Frequently printed as W8 on the label. |
| W6H | Serenity White Pearl | Roughly 2023 on — Elantra, Sonata, Santa Fe, Tucson. Also a tri-coat. Cross-listed as WH6. |
| YP5 | Intense Blue Pearl | Roughly 2019-2025, most often on the Elantra. |
| PR2 | Fiery Red Pearl | About 2016-2023. Sold under both Fiery Red and Scarlet Red Pearl depending on market and model year — same code. |
| R4G | Titan Gray | Roughly 2024 on. Listed as Titan Gray Metallic (also spelled Grey). |
| M6T | Fluid Metal | Roughly 2020-2025. Cross-listed as MTT in some databases. |
| A2B | Abyss Black | Roughly 2022 on, common on Santa Fe and Kona. Databases list it as both Abyss Black Metallic and Abyss Black Pearl. |
| MZH | Phantom Black Metallic | The roof colour on most Hyundai two-tone builds, and a standalone body colour too. Paired with body codes such as TT1 and SS1 on the Kona. |
This list is not every colour Hyundai has sold. Always confirm against the label on your own vehicle before ordering paint.
What to know before you order paint
- A 17-character VIN carries no paint information. Decoding a 2013 Sonata VIN and a 2023 Kona VIN through NHTSA's public vPIC API returned 154 fields each — make, model, body class, plant, restraint systems — with no exterior colour field in either. The two 'Trim' fields vPIC does return are trim level, not paint. Under 49 CFR 565 the VIN has no position reserved for colour.
- Hyundai itself sells touch-up paint by code, not by VIN decode. The dealer catalogue lists pens as 00F05-AU000 plus the paint code (00F05-AU000-SAW for Atlas White, 00F05-AU000-S3B for Phantom Black). Hyundai dealer parts stores such as hyundaishop.com ask buyers for a VIN so staff can pull the colour from Hyundai's build record — a database lookup, not a reading of the VIN characters.
- Two-tone Hyundais carry two codes. The paint database paintref.com records them as pairs — the 2022 Kona two-tone is filed as 'MZH,TT1' — with MZH (Phantom Black) as the roof on most black-roof builds, over body codes including TT1, SS1, SU1, Z31 and Y21. hyundaishop.com's product notes tell two-tone owners to specify which colour they need.
- Hyundai's pearl whites are three-stage, so one code means more than one product. PaintScratch and TouchUpDirect both sell WW8/W8 Quartz White and W6H Serenity White as tri-coats: a solid white base, a translucent pearl mid-coat, then clear. A single-stage pen in that code will not match.
- Colour names drift where codes do not. AutomotiveTouchup files S3B under both Black Noir Pearl and Phantom Black Pearl, and PR2 under both Scarlet Red Pearl and Fiery Red Pearl, while Hyundai's own parts catalogue calls S3B Phantom Black. The code is the stable identifier; the name is not. PaintScratch also notes labels can print a two-character short form (S3) of a three-character code (S3B).
Hyundai and refinish sources
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
Hyundai paint code questions
How do I find the exact paint code for my Hyundai Sonata?
Open the driver's door and read the label on the jamb — the paint code is the two- or three-character group beside COLOR or PAINT, usually on the bottom line. On Sonatas from roughly 2011 on it is three characters, such as R2T (Shimmering Silver) or WW8 (Quartz White Pearl). AutomotiveTouchup notes that on some early Sonatas the code sits in the engine bay, in front of the radiator, instead.
Where is the paint code located on a Hyundai Santa Fe?
On the driver-side door jamb label. On the Santa Fe the label often sits low in the door opening rather than at eye level, so crouch and look down the jamb before deciding it is missing. Read the short code next to COLOR or PAINT. Codes you will commonly see on a Santa Fe include SAW (Atlas White), A2B (Abyss Black) and W6H (Serenity White Pearl, a tri-coat).
Can I get my Hyundai paint code from the VIN?
No — a 17-character VIN does not encode paint. NHTSA's free vPIC decoder returns 154 fields for a Hyundai VIN, covering make, model, plant and restraint systems, and none of them is exterior colour. Sites advertising a paint code by VIN are either querying a manufacturer build record behind the scenes or guessing from the model and year. The door-jamb label is the reliable source.
What colour is Hyundai paint code S3B?
S3B is Phantom Black. Hyundai has used it across most of the range from roughly 2011 to 2025, and Hyundai's own dealer touch-up pen is catalogued as 00F05-AU000-S3B. Refinish databases sometimes file the same code under Black Noir Pearl, which is the same paint under a different market name. Some door-jamb labels print it shortened, as S3, so match the first two characters if the third is worn away.
What is Hyundai's Intense Blue paint code?
Intense Blue Pearl is YP5, used from roughly 2019 through 2025, most often on the Elantra. Check it against your own door-jamb label before ordering. Hyundai runs several similar blues at the same time — TN6 Denim Blue and U3P Lucid Blue Pearl among them — and marketing names get reused across model years. A paint supplier mixes from the code on the label, not from the colour name.
My Hyundai has a black roof — which paint code do I use?
Two codes, one per colour. Hyundai two-tone builds carry a body colour code and a separate roof code, and the roof on most black-roof Hyundais is MZH, Phantom Black. The paint database paintref.com files these as pairs — a 2022 Kona two-tone is recorded as MZH,TT1. Hyundai dealer paint sellers ask two-tone owners to state which panel they are repairing before shipping a pen.
Can I match my Hyundai's colour with online paint colour charts?
Only to narrow it down, never to choose the code. On-screen swatches shift with your monitor and lighting, and Hyundai has run several near-identical whites at once — SAW Atlas White, WW8 Quartz White Pearl and W6H Serenity White Pearl all read as plain white on a chart. Use a chart to sanity-check a code you already read off the label, not to pick one.
What if the door-jamb label is missing or painted over?
Ask a Hyundai dealer parts counter to look up the colour against your VIN. Hyundai records the factory colour in its build system, so the counter can read it back even when the label is gone — that is a database lookup, not a decode of the VIN characters. Before you call, check the shut face of the door itself and the engine bay, where older Hyundais carried the code.