Münster, Germany — While white, black, grey and silver remain dominant for non-commercial light vehicles, when it comes to overall automotive trends, the old colour wheel is changing, says BASF Coatings’ 2023 colour report.
The report, which reviews automotive colour trends for 2023 around the world reveals that while achromatic tones—such as white, black, grey and silver—remain the foundation of automotive trends, these hues are experiencing a significant shift.
Across the globe, the report noted that while white continues to hold its position as the most popular colour for light passenger vehicles, it has seen a notable decrease in market share as other colours climb the wheel to try and take its place.
When looking at the colour preferences of specific regions, in North America, there is a growing preference for lighter shades of silver over darker greys, and notably, achromatic colours gained two percentage points overall in their popularity.
North America also had the highest share of red cars compared to other regions in 2023. However, despite this increasing popularity, red was not able to beat out blue as the most sought after chromatic colour in the region.
Comparatively, in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), car buyers instead shifted away from lighter colours of white and silver to darker shades of black and grey.
Across these areas, premium cars also had more effect pigments than entry and mid-price classes of vehicle, showing a greater depth of pigment, the report further noted.
Also according to the colour report, when European consumers chose colors, there were country-specific preferences. German consumers loved blue (11 percent), Spain and the UK preferred red and orange (approximately 9 percent), France adored green (6 percent), and Italy showed its love for all the colors, with its share of chromatic colors being the largest among all five countries (30 percent).
However, when looking at the globe as a whole, the Asia Pacific region saw a continuing leading position with the share of chromatic colours continuing to trend upwards from 2022 statistics.
Here, the popularity of natural colours also increased—especially green—and lighter colours became more popular such as light greys and silvers.
“Colors aren’t just colors any more. They are experiences,” said Marcos Fernandes, director, BASF Coatings South America. “Whether it’s a pearl or metal flake or other pigment, the effects make the color leap from the vehicle into the eyes of the beholder. It gives a certain flair that’s becoming more and more popular.”
For more information or to read the full report, click here.
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