Autoblog

White remains world's most popular car paint color, copper and bronze rising

Jonathon Ramsey — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 16:00:00 EST

When it came to paint colors on new cars, for ten years, silver was the one hue to rule them all, not just extending its lead through 2009 and 2010 but doing so in the U.S., Europe and Asia. The revolution came in 2011, when white took over as the top color in the States and black claimed the number one spot in Europe, silver maintaining its hold in the Orient.

The annual study by the paint experts at PPG Industries notes how the the colorless hue has made more gains this year, white cars being the number one choice here and in Europe and tied for first place with silver cars in Asia. Black took second place in every market. Here, silver and gray grabbed third place, while our European cousins displayed their taste for 50 shades of metallic: gray took third place on its own, silver in fourth, four points behind. In Asia, "natural," which includes browns, tans, golds, oranges and yellows, was the pigment of choice after white and black.

Further back in the pack, mineral and alloy shades like gold, copper and bronze are getting more buyers, and based on some of the colors being previewed for 2015 and 2016 it looks like our automotive future has more than a chance of sparkle. The PPG press release below has all the trends and the numbers.

Continue reading White remains world's most popular car paint color, copper and bronze rising

White remains world's most popular car paint color, copper and bronze rising originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Has Apple's influence made white cars cool?

George Kennedy — Fri, 31 Aug 2012 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Design/Style

When you think of Apple products, what color comes to mind? If you purchased a MacBook this year, maybe aluminum's gray hue, but for everyone else, the color that likely comes to mind is that clean white, maybe with a white Apple logo in the middle. According to a Fortune article, that prevalence may have led to a shift in popular car colors. While silver was the longtime favorite color, designers have apparently fallen for white. Says the report "Prior to Apple, white was associated with things like refrigerators or tiles in your bathroom. Apple made white valuable."

But not too fast, as the Yahoo! story that the Fortune article cites point to brown as a leading color in the modern car market. Jane Harrington, Global Color Manager for paint company PPG offered her insights on why that may be: "Think of the experience of a good coffee, good chocolate, great pieces of wood." Apparently, we associate the color brown with genuine materials and handmade luxury.

We could always do as the Yahoo! post did and cite our very own Alex Nunez: "We grew up at a time when you had all these brown cars in active use... this stuff is sort of subliminally ingrained as a feel good thing - these browns and earth tone colors."

How much does Nunez appreciate brown cars, you ask? He's only the founder of the Brown Car Appreciation Society. Hey, everyone has to have a thing.

Has Apple's influence made white cars cool? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Aug 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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White ousts silver as America's favorite automotive paint color

Jeff Sabatini — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, China, Europe, Japan, UK, Design/Style

When it comes to tastes in automobiles, Europeans and Americans tend to be on opposite sides of the spectrum. Small trumps big. Manual over automatic. Car against truck. Black versus white.

That's right, automotive paint supplier PPG says 20% of new cars in North America were white in 2011, while black dominated Europe with 26%. The Asian market preferred the neutrality of silver, which colored 25% of vehicles sold there.

Truth be told, none of the three major global markets embraced any real colors, as white, silver, and black made up the top three in each region. In North America, the order was white-silver-black, Europeans had it black-white-silver, while Asians chose silver-white-black. White took over the top spot globally with, of course, silver and black tied for second. Last year, silver topped PPG's list.

Perhaps the most important detail we found in PPG's press release was this factoid: "40 percent of the automotive consumers said they would prefer a wider range of color choices."

Read the entire release after the jump.

Continue reading White ousts silver as America's favorite automotive paint color

White ousts silver as America's favorite automotive paint color originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 06 Oct 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Americans like White, the world likes Silver in new Color Popularity Report

John Neff — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:57:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying

DuPont has released its annual Color Popularity Report, and for the first time has converged data from across the globe to create a worldwide report on how we, as a species, prefer our cars to be colored. OK, maybe that's a bit hyperbolic, but the new worldwide report confirms that Black, Silver and White reign supreme regardless of borders. The three colors are tightly packed in North America, where White is most popular at 17.8 percent with Black (17 percent) and Silver (16.8 percent) not far behind. Europeans, however, like the sleek look of Black at 27 percent compared to Silver at 19.9 percent and White falling pretty far behind at 10.2 percent. Different regions like different colors, but these three remain at or near the top across the board.

Who knows why car buyers the world over seem averse to all the colors of the rainbow. Not us. While we dig a nice metallic Silver, other colors like Red, Blue and even shades of Green have a way of teasing out a car's personality better than the grayscale stuff. If you were shopping for a new car (or are), what colors are at the top of your list? We've included a poll below to see if our audience thinks anything like a DuPont customer.

View Poll

[Source: DuPont]

Continue reading Americans like White, the world likes Silver in new Color Popularity Report

Americans like White, the world likes Silver in new Color Popularity Report originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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REPORT: Silver still king of car colors, the future looks blue

Michael Harley — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 17:58:00 EST

Automotive paint supplier PPG says the color of tomorrow's car is blue. According to Jane Harrington, PPG's manager of color styling, "It's one of those colors that complements vehicle shapes... It's a globally acceptable color. It doesn't have any bad connotations."

The company studies trends in fashion, interior design, and consumer products to predict the tastes of fickle consumers. PPG isn't the only company predicting more blue sheetmetal on our roads and highways. An April report by chemicals giant DuPont also predicted a resurgence in the color, adding it was influenced by ecological concepts such as the sky and water. Consumers in 2008 apparently haven't caught on to the new "blue" trend yet. So far, 20 percent of the cars sold this year have been silver ("A neutral color that works on just about any car," says Harrington). White is second (18 percent), followed by black (17 percent) and red (13 percent). Although blue may be the new green, most consumers will still stick with black, white, and silver -- core colors that are always offered on nearly every vehicle.

[Source: AP via Google News, photo by Magic Super Toys]

REPORT: Silver still king of car colors, the future looks blue originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 16 Oct 2008 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Color trend update: Blue gaining on White

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:59:00 EST

Filed under: Trends, Etc., Lifestyle

Click above to view gallery of more happy and confident cars

Each year, DuPont does a study on color trends in the automotive industry. As the leader in supplying finishes for both the new and aftermarket auto realms, this is the kind of information that the company needs to know. Thankfully, DuPont's researchers always share their findings with the rest of us, and last year it was reported that white had taken over from silver as the color in which to be seen. This year, the pigment company decided to shake things up with a mid-year check on the multi-hued situation around the world, and it seems that blue, which is also the new green, is making a bit of a run at adding some pizazz that's been missing from simple achromatic white. Interestingly, the masses seem to be reacting just a little bit to the economic downturn that this country has been facing, choosing simple solids instead of more flashy hues. Perhaps those downers are just lacking in self-worth.

Gallery: Pixar CARS Photochops

[Source: DuPont]

Color trend update: Blue gaining on White originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIDEO: The Bentley's just so crazy about that jazz

Noah Joseph — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 18:01:00 EST

Filed under: Coupe, Videos, Bentley

Somebody buying a Bentley Brooklands isn't so concerned with how it performs, how it stacks up to the competition or how much it costs. They're far more taken by the Bentley-ness of the whole thing, that je ne sais quoi, a certain indescribable quality that you just can't put your finger on, lest the car's owner release the hounds...so you'd better get your own.

Put yourself in that mindset before you watch the following video. Imagine you've got all the money and taste in the world and ignore the notion that the Continental GT is the better performer, because the "baby Bentley" is just so nouveau riche. Now pour yourself a brandy, light up a cigar and enjoy what amounts to little more than some black and white footage of a land yacht accompanied by some acid jazz...jaaaazzzz!

[Source: The Hollywood Extra]

Continue reading VIDEO: The Bentley's just so crazy about that jazz

VIDEO: The Bentley's just so crazy about that jazz originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 08 Jul 2007 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Holy Mother of Pearl...Maybach 57S gets new white finish

Alex Nunez — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 12:33:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Europe, Paris Motor Show, Maybach

While the two-tone look of the "standard" Maybach super sedans leaves this writer a bit cold, all is well with the monochrome 57 S. Until now, the sportiest version of DaimlerChrysler's ultraluxury saloon was available in black or silver only, and both look good -- no surprise. The latest addition to the palette, however, is the best, and it'll be on display in Paris later this month.

The Maybach 57 S is now available in "Antiqua White," a pearlescent finish that has a richness befitting a car of this exclusive nature. There's something about the light-colored versions of vehicles like this that communicates wealth better than the darker shades. Similarly-colored Rolls-Royce Phantoms have the same effect. They look as if they cost even more money.

In any case, as casual observers and aficionados who enjoy this sort of thing, we're happy to see that the hottest Maybach is now available in the deluxe white finish. We're sure that our sentiment is shared by the scores of high-profile executives, entertainers, professional athletes, and bazillionaire Saudi oil magnates who will undoubtedly add the 57 S in Antiqua White to their shopping lists. In the case of the Saudis, Maybach had better stock up on paint supplies. Those guys order in bulk.

(Photos, press release after the jump)

[Source: DaimlerChrysler]

Continue reading Holy Mother of Pearl...Maybach 57S gets new white finish

Holy Mother of Pearl...Maybach 57S gets new white finish originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 13 Sep 2006 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Grown-ups want a pony, too: Shelby GT details, photos

Alex Nunez — Sun, 13 Aug 2006 15:55:00 EST

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Ford

With the release of Bold Moves Episode 9, Ford has officially launched the new Shelby GT Mustang. As we'd already reported, the Shelby GT is essentially a retail version of the rental-only Shelby GT-H. In some ways, it's more appealing, though. For one thing, it can be had with a five-speed manual that appears in the form of a classic Hurst cueball-topped shifter.

The Shelby GT begins life as an ordinary Mustang GT which is then shipped off to Shelby Automobiles in Las Vegas for transformation into a 325-horsepower snake. Its soul comes largely from Ford Racing performance parts. First up: the Ford Racing Handling pack, which drops the car and gives it more athletic suspension settings. To accent the changes, all the important suspension bits are painted Ford Racing Blue.

The Ford Racing Power Pack improves on the stock 4.6L V8 by adding a new cold-air intake, performance-oriented engine recalibration, a freer-flowing, better-sounding exhaust, and a shorter rear axle ratio. The aforementioned short-throw Hurst is also included if the car's equipped with the standard tranny. Power numbers rise to 325-hp and 330 lb-ft of torque.

Outside, cars are painted either Performance White or Black and receive silver LeMans striping. Lower side accent stripes with "Shelby GT" markings also appear in the transformation. GT-H-style front and rear fascias are installed and centered Shelby badging is added to the trunklid (this looks better than the offset "SHELBY" on the GT500). Unlike the GT-H, the Shelby GT does not include the rear declkid spoiler -- a change for the better, in our opinion. The stock Mustang GT badge stays in its familiar spot on the front quarter panels, and 18" chromed "Bullitt"-style rims reside in the wells. Finally, hood pins and a Cobra-style scoop are added to complete the visual upgrades. (This is another area where the Shelby GT differs from the GT-H, which wears a Shelby Performance hood).

The interior is highly reminiscent of the Hertz car, with its prominent dash and branded sill plates. Shelby GT floor mats and the Hurst (on 5-speed-equipped cars) complete the look. The number on the dash plate matches the one found on a similar plate in the engine bay.

Still no word on pricing, which will slot in somewhere between the Mustang GT and Shelby GT500. Whatever the cost, we certainly like the appearance of the new Shelby, and expect that it should be as fun to drive as it looks.

Author's Note: The standard transmission was erroneously referred to as a six-speed in the original post. The error has been corrected. The Shelby GT is available with a five-speed manual transmission.

(Hi-res photo gallery, press release after the jump)

[Source: Ford]

Continue reading Grown-ups want a pony, too: Shelby GT details, photos

Grown-ups want a pony, too: Shelby GT details, photos originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 13 Aug 2006 15:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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