the original was sort of a red, but not a true red. there is a bit of orange tint. it is the typical red color seen on most Japanese bikes of that era. i was able to buy period packaged nos for 4363, they are not red nor orange. the color is definitely more red than orange but was not a true red. i've seen the new switches w/ red lettering. and i've seen used switches that appear to have faded out orange.