White continues as the most popular vehicle colour in the world, but what kind of white — solid or pearl — depends on what part of the world you’re in, says Axalta Coating Systems in the Global Automotive 2016 Colour Popularity Report. The company, a global supplier of liquid coatings, pays close attention to trends in car colours in an effort to forecast where consumer choices are heading in years to come.
While there’s a clear preference for neutral shades, colourful hues are being added, says Nancy Lockhart, Axalta’s colour marketing manager. “Watch for tints and effects to add beauty to these neutrals in the future,” she says.
Regional highlights from this year’s report show:
Worldwide: White is in first place on nearly four out of 10 new vehicles.
Africa: Silver and white make up 63 per cent of new purchases.
Asia: In China, solid white is more popular than pearl white by more than 39 percentage points. Japan, however, prefers pearl white (27 per cent) to solid white (seven per cent).
Europe: Gray scores 17 per cent, making it more popular here than in any other region. Black is declining and is now seven points behind white, which is in first place.
North America: Gray rises two percent in popularity and lengthens its lead over silver.
Russia: Beige/brown scores eight per cent, as it also does in China.
South America: Green scores five per cent, and is tied with Russia for the colour’s most popular regions.
An awareness of the subtle differences among customer preferences helps the company “keep pace with discerning car buyers and with the automakers who rely on Axalta for colour choices,” says Axalta OEM colour designer, Annie You.
