Silver and Natural Colors Attract More Car Buyers in 1998
4 January 1999
Silver and Natural Colors Attract More Car Buyers in 1998; Green and White Stay No. 1, DuPont Automotive Survey Says TROY, Mich., Jan. 4 -- North American vehicle buyers are
increasingly choosing natural and high-tech colors, such as light beige
metallic with a gold effect and silver as their favorite car colors, but green
and white were still the most popular in 1998, according to the DuPont
Automotive 47th annual color popularity survey. Interior color possibilities,
meanwhile, may expand as a result of innovative interiors concepts DuPont has
developed to support the integration of the vehicle exterior and interior.
Trends for exterior colors in North America indicate green has peaked in
popularity, giving way to a more diverse, emerging palette, which includes
beige, gold, brown and blue. In Europe, blue has reached its height in
popularity, while other colors, such as new tints of silver, increasingly are
identified with particular vehicle brands.
DuPont measures exterior vehicle color popularity in four segments --
luxury, full/intermediate, sport/compact and truck/SUV/van -- as a baseline
for predicting trends four to six years in advance of production. The 1998
results support the DuPont Automotive "Colors For a New Millennium" analysis
and the themes of "Emotion and Technology."
"These themes suggest consumers increasingly will opt for softer golds and
ambers, fresher, lighter-shade greens and warm browns reflecting the natural
side of our emotions, while red, black and yellow make strong emotional
statements for the right vehicles," said Robert S. Daily, color styling and
marketing manager, DuPont Automotive Finishes. "Black also bridges the
technology theme along with mineral-looking colors, such as bright dimensional
and tinted silvers."
Highlights of the 1998 survey of popular vehicle colors follow (see
attached chart for specific data):
Results by Vehicle Category
* Light brown held its lead in the luxury car category, but medium gray
and gold moved into the eighth and 10th spots, respectively, after an
absence from the top 10 the previous two years.
* Silver gained more than 6.2 percent in the full/intermediate category,
closing the gap on the two leaders -- green and white.
* Green continues to dominate the sport/compact and full/intermediate
categories, but lost ground to white, black and silver.
* White outpaced green to remain the perennial favorite in the
truck/SUV/van category, which represents more than 40 percent of all
vehicles sold. In third place, black continued its challenge for the
lead with a gain for the third straight year.
Overall Results
* Both silver, one of the emerging "high-tech" colors, and black, always
a popular vehicle color that evokes high technology and mystery,
increased in popularity in all four categories.
* Silver doubled in the full/intermediate category and nearly doubled in
the sport/compact and truck/SUV/van categories.
* Green, a member of the top two in three of the four categories for the
previous three years, lost ground in all four categories.
"Overall, we're seeing a shift in consumer interest in natural and earth
tones to colors such as copper and warm brown," said Daily. "The resulting
decrease among the brighter shades, such as bright red and teal, may correlate
to consumers favoring functional sport utility vehicles and mini-vans over
compact varieties."
Consumer Color Preferences
There is no "sure-fire" way to explain how color affects consumers' buying
habits because individual car buyers have unique tastes. However, there is no
doubt color is important. Nearly 40 percent of U.S. consumers will switch
vehicle brands if they can't get their color of choice, according to a study
by national polling firm Yankelovich & Partners.
An Inside Look at Car Colors
Overall, automotive stylists are looking to use exterior design themes as
cues for interiors. DuPont is developing innovative technologies in fibers
and plastics to enhance the aesthetics of interior accents for a complete
styling package. DuPont has developed concepts under two interior themes,
"Retrotech" and "Luxe Natural." The "Retrotech" look may feature glossy,
molded-in-color trim accents of Surlyn(R) Reflection Series(TM) and fabric
color piping to accent links between interior and exterior colors. This look
also may feature flat woven bolster fabrics combined with inserts of lustrous
leather or suede-like fabrics made from Dacron(R) polyester or Antron(R)
nylon.
"Luxe Natural" may include interior accessories with an etched-glass look
and silky feel and pale wood finishes with low luster. Soft touch Surlyn(R)
TopGrain may be used for instrument panel covers and door panels. On the
fabric side, this look may emphasize velours and knits, along with neutral
suede-look fabrics for seating applications, while floor coverings may be
light-colored and made of Antron(R) nylon, including Teflon(R) stain and soil
protector.
"We're continuing to maximize our unique technology and No. 1 brand
position to develop exciting new color effects and tactile aesthetics for
upscale vehicles," said Larry Cole, executive product planning manager --
Interior Systems, DuPont Automotive. "These new color and tactile
technologies -- based on fiber cross-sections, yarn textures and improved
stain and soil resistance -- also support the trend to integrate the vehicle
exterior and interior."
Some of these new interior technologies will be displayed at the 1999
Society of Automotive Engineers International Exposition and Congress in
Detroit this March.
As the leading supplier of topcoat finishes (both color and clearcoat) to
the North American automotive industry, DuPont develops its analysis from its
business interests in automotive, fashion apparel, home furnishings and
graphic arts throughout the world. DuPont will supply topcoat finishes on
1999 models of the top-10-selling vehicles from model year 1998. DuPont
currently is showing automotive stylists more than 100 innovative new colors
for year 2002 models, and leads in the number of new colors chosen for new
vehicle production throughout the world.
With world headquarters in Troy, Mich., DuPont Automotive offers more than
100 product lines to the global automotive industry, including plastics,
advanced composites, finishes, fibers, fabricated products, refrigerants,
specialty chemicals and lubricants. DuPont worldwide automotive sales were $4
billion in 1997.
Surlyn(R), Dacron(R), Antron(R) and Teflon(R) are registered trademarks of
DuPont.
Reflection Series(TM) is a trademark of DuPont.
1998 DUPONT AUTOMOTIVE
COLOR POPULARITY SURVEY RESULTS
Numbers reflect percentage of vehicles manufactured during the
1998 model year In North America
Luxury Full/Intermediate
1998 1997 1998 1997
1. Lt. Brown 17.7 19.8 1. Med./Dk. Green 16.4 17.5
2. White Met. 12.3 12.6 2. White 15.6 17.0
3. Black 12.3 11.0 3. Lt. Brown 14.1 14.4
4. White 11.3 10.1 4. Silver 11.0 4.8
5. Med./Dk. Green 10.0 13.0 5. Black 8.9 8.0
6. Silver 9.2 6.7 6. Med. Red 6.5 7.4
7. Med. Red 7.5 5.2 7. Med./Dk. Blue 6.0 3.9
8. Med./Dk. Gray 5.3 N/A 8. Dk. Red 4.9 5.2
9. Med./Dk. Blue 4.8 N/A 9. Lt. Blue 3.8 N/A
10. Gold 4.8 N/A 10. White Met. 3.2 N/A
Sport/Compact Truck/SUV/Van
1998 1997 1998 1997
1. Med./Dk. Green 15.9 20.3 1. White 22.5 23.2
2. Black 15.0 12.9 2. Med./Dk. Green 15.5 18.5
3. White 14.7 13.9 3. Black 11.5 11.2
4. Silver 10.4 5.7 4. Med. Red 7.2 7.5
5. Bright Red 9.5 9.1 5. Bright Red 7.1 7.6
6. Lt. Brown 7.0 12.8 6. Silver 6.2 3.7
7. Med. Red 6.4 7.5 7. Lt. Brown 6.1 6.1
8. Med./Dk. Blue 5.3 5.4 8. Med./Dk. Blue 4.7 2.9
9. Teal/Aqua 4.0 N/A 9. Dk. Red 4.5 5.2
10. Purple 3.4 3.4 10. Med./Dk. Brown 3.2 N/A
