Viridian Joule picked as winner of Chevy Volt Paint Color Contest

The votes have been cast, the tallies tallied and the winner determined: Viridian Joule will be the official name of the silvery-green hue as seen on a slew of Chevy Volt marketing material for what seems like the last decade or so. So, um, what does Viridian Joule mean? We'll let the winner himself, 40-year-old David Thomas of Sanford, Florida, explain:

I looked at the photo of the Volt on the contest web site and thought it looked emerald in color, which led to jewel and then to an alternate yet appropriate play on that word – joule.

We needed a bit more help, so we looked up the word viridian. So says Dictionary.com: a long-lasting, bluish-green pigment, consisting of a hydrated oxide of chromium. OK, fine. Joule wasn't so hard to figure out, but here's the definition anyway: a unit of electrical energy equal to the work done when a current of one ampere is passed through a resistance of one ohm for one second. So, there you have it.

Want to know more? Click past the break to read the official press release, and see the image gallery below for more views of a Viridian Joule Chevrolet Volt.

[Source: Chevrolet]

PRESS RELEASE

Florida Man Wins Chevrolet Volt Paint Color Contest
Consumers choose 'Viridian Joule' as winning color name

2009-12-01

o Consumers determined the winner
o Nearly 3,000 consumers voted for their favorite name
o 'Viridian Joule' led all finalists in consumer voting since Nov. 16
o Winning name announced today in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES – David Thomas, 40, of Sanford, Fla., has won Chevrolet's national contest to name the Volt's lead paint color and the opportunity to be the first consumer to test-drive a pre-production Volt. Nearly 3,000 people cast their votes at chevroletvoltage.com for Thomas' "Viridian Joule." Voting ended at 8 a.m. ET and Chevrolet announced the winner in Los Angeles.

"I looked at the photo of the Volt on the contest web site and thought it looked emerald in color, which led to jewel and then to an alternate yet appropriate play on that word – joule (a unit of electrical energy)," said Thomas.

Although it was a close race among the three finalists throughout the contest, "Viridian Joule" led throughout the Nov. 16 to Dec. 1 voting period. Chevrolet also selected "EV-ergreen," offered by Devin McQuarrie, 30, of San Jose, Calif., and "environMINT," entered by Matthew Valbuena, 30, of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., as finalists. About 300 votes separated "Viridian Joule" from the second-place entry, "environMINT."

Thomas traveled to L.A. and joined the two California-based finalists for the announcement.

"This was a fun way to engage Chevrolet and Volt enthusiasts by inviting them into the process and naming our lead color, and the name reflects the innovation of the Volt's extended-range technology," said Maria Rohrer, Global Volt and Global Marketing Director at Chevrolet. "When our Volt marketing materials arrive in dealerships, you'll see "Viridian Joule" as the official name of the silver exterior with an emerald hue."

Chevrolet narrowed down nearly 13,000 name entries to the three finalists, judging them on originality, creativity and the ability to capture the innovation and spirit of the Volt. About 27,000 people – or half of all visitors to www.chevroletvoltage.com during the Oct. 22 to Nov. 4 entry period – submitted a color name.

A sales representative for an awards and promotions company in the Orlando area, Thomas is originally from Southeast Michigan and has family ties to the auto industry. He submitted several color names, but "Viridian Joule" wasn't his first entry.

The Chevy Volt is an electric vehicle with extended-range capability. It is designed to drive up to 40 miles on electricity without using gasoline or producing tailpipe emissions. When the Volt's lithium-ion battery is depleted of energy, an engine/generator seamlessly operates to extend the total driving range to about 300 miles before refueling or stopping to recharge the battery.

Production for the Volt is expected to begin in late 2010. Pricing has not been announced.