I've been working on an 85 4Runner for a few months now, and I'm trying to decide what to do with the paint. The paint is mostly plenty good enough. A picture from the right angle looks great. However, there are quite a few places where its age plus a bit of trail wear has created some rust spots. I don't mind a dent here and there, especially if I've earned it, but I don't want rust to creep up on me. THAT SAID, I'd prefer to keep it looking decent.

So, my plan had been to just get some matching paint and hit the problem spots myself. The issue I've run into is I can't find a good match for the factory 3D7 paint unless I have it custom mixed... Not to mention a few decades of fading, so I doubt it would even match that well anyway.

Should I:
1) Get a relatively cheap full paintjob with an easily matched color (specifically a color I can match with an aerosol can myself for future fixes)?
2) Get some matching paint made and try to maintain the factory paint color?
3) Grab the closest match spray can from the local autoparts store and just hope it's not too ugly? (This solves the most important problem... the rust spots)

Right now I'm leaning toward option 3, at least as a temporary fix, with a full paintjob as an option down the road. Actually, I've pretty much talked myself into this, but I'd still appreciate input.
Does anybody know a Duplicolor that's similar to 1985 Toyota 3D7 red?

Pic mostly for fun. The 2018 is Barcelona Red, which has a little bit of metallic sparkle. The 1985 is just "red", and this is the cleanest angle.

 

Is that the original color on the 85? I ask because according to this website, 3D7 was an 86-89 code.
I have an 87 3D7 myself and thinking about some paint work. I could probably make due with spray cans but i know the results will be better with a spray gun. Originally this was single stage paint.
http://importarchive.com/toyota/4runner/1984-1989/paint

 

Well… I’m at least the 3rd owner I know of. I don’t see any signs it’s been repainted. The metal tag on the firewall behind the motor starts with 3D7. This is part of my confusion though. A quick comparison to that chart and I think it could be 391, which works for the year but means the tag is wrong?

 

When was it built, by the date on the door jam tag?

 

mar/85

 

My vote, I'm partial, 3M wrap, cheaper and more fun, plus you can change the color whenever you want.

 

Yours looks great wrapped, but I would have to do the same amount of body work either way.

 

A wrap is interesting, because I could just focus on rustproofing underneath first. Right now Im kinda leaning toward a pretty cheap paintjob, and making sure it's a color that's more readily available.