PRESS RELEASE
DuPont Announces Most Popular 1996 Vehicle Color from Survey
Green Rallies to Win Most Popular Vehicle Color in 1996,
DuPont Automotive Survey Says
TROY, Mich., Jan. 2 -- North American vehicle buyers in 1996
selected green shades over all other colors -- including the perennial
favorite white -- for the first time since the early 1970s, according to the
DuPont Automotive annual color popularity survey. While dark green
leapfrogged to the top of the popularity chart, 1996 model-year color choices
bear out the rise DuPont predicted in the popularity of natural tones -- light
brown and beige, especially metallic-effect shades. Light brown even
displaced white this year as the number one color choice for luxury cars, and
is surging in the full and intermediate-sized car markets.
DuPont measures vehicle color popularity in the following vehicle
categories: luxury, full/intermediate, sport/compact and truck/van.
"The erosion this past year in the popularity of white, and the peaking of
green indicates that the trend toward lighter, brighter natural colors is
gaining momentum," said Bob Daily, color styling and marketing manager for
DuPont Automotive. "Approaching the new millennium, we see more consumers
showing interest in shades of golds, light browns and copper as well as the
special-effect finishes that will link nature and technology themes."
"These colors will evoke a fresh personality for soft, rounded aerodynamic
vehicle styling, including new crisp lines we see in 'new-edge' vehicle
designs," Daily added.
As the leading supplier of topcoat finishes (both color and clearcoat) to
the North American automotive industry, DuPont has tracked color preferences
as a baseline for analyzing color trends and to provide an authoritative
reference for automotive industry designers and stylists for 45 years. The
1996 results support DuPont Automotive's color trend analysis for the start of
the next millennium. Released last May, the assessment suggests that
consumers increasingly will opt for natural colors and earth tones with
brighter hues and shades into the year 2000 and beyond.
Other survey findings include:
* Black, always a popular vehicle color, is trending toward a top-three
color in all categories. "Its popularity generates feelings of mystery, high-
tech, power and influence," said Daily.
* Light brown gained popularity in the full/intermediate and sport/compact
categories, which can be attributed to its "popularity as the luxury car
leader," according to Daily. "We predict light brown will evolve into gold
tones utilizing DuPont advanced pigment technology to provide a natural, 'true
gold' feeling."
* Bright and medium red dropped across all categories, although, dark red
increased in luxury, full/intermediate and truck/van categories. "Rich-
looking reds are outperforming flashy reds, which is in line with the natural,
sophisticated trend," said Daily.
* White withstood the test of time as a consistent top-three finisher over
the last 15 years in each vehicle category, according to the survey. In 1996,
metallic white jumped significantly in the luxury category. "The refined look
evokes pearls and elegance," said Daily.
* Blues, previously on the downswing, are making a small comeback with
darker shades outperforming light blues and teals, according to Daily.
"Reminiscent of the '70s interest in earth tones, we're seeing a trend
toward natural tones, although the interpretation is lighter with brighter
hues and shades," said Daily. "While vehicle color preferences can be
cyclical, their interpretation can vary significantly based on the influence
of emerging fashion, fabric and home furnishing trends."
Whether it's "Woodland," "Polo" or "Chameleon," green has steadily gained
momentum over the last four years until 1996 when it finally reigned as the
undisputed leading choice. Green first topped white, the long-time perennial
favorite, as the color leader in the intermediate and luxury categories in
1994. The following year, white bounced back by leading consumer preference
for luxury, full/intermediate and truck/van segments, as green took the top
sport/compact spot with 15.2 percent of the market.
America's auto industry turned 100 in 1996, and DuPont has been making
vehicles colorful since 1924, beginning with DuPont Duco lacquers, the first
fast-drying color finish. DuPont gathers vehicle color popularity information
as a baseline for predicting trends four to six years in advance of vehicle
production. The company pools its color trend knowledge from business
interests in the fashion apparel, home furnishings and graphic arts industries
throughout the world.
DuPont currently is showing automotive stylists more than 100 exciting new
colors for year 2000 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 $3.6 billion in 1995.
1996 DUPONT AUTOMOTIVE COLOR POPULARITY SURVEY RESULTS
Numbers reflect percentage of vehicles manufactured during the 1996 model
year in North America
Luxury Full/Intermediate
1996 1995 1996 1995
1. Lt. Brown 17.8 13.4 1. Dk. Green 18.8 17.3
2. White 14.6 14.9 2. White 17.5 18.9
3. White Met. 13.0 7.8 3. Lt. Brown 10.3 9.7
4. Dk. Green 11.8 13.0 4. Med. Red 9.5 11.2
5. Black 9.0 9.7 5. Black 7.3 5.9
6. Dk. Blue 7.5 3.9 6. Silver 5.7 5.4
7. Med. Red 7.3 9.1 7. Med. Blue 5.2 4.4
8. Lt. Green 5.4 4.7 8. Dk. Red 4.7 2.1
9. Dk. Red 5.4 4.5 9. Bright Red 4.0 4.4
10. Silver 3.3 7.7 10. Purple 3.9 3.5
11. Med. Gray 2.7 3.2 11. Teal/Aqua 3.3 4.6
12. Lt. Blue 1.0 2.9 12. Med. Gray 3.0 1.9
Sport/Compact Truck/Van
1996 1995 1996 1995
1. Med./Dk. Green 21.2 15.2 1. White 23.6 23.8
2. White 14.4 14.4 2. Med./Dk. Green 20.7 15.9
3. Black 12.9 11.2 3. Black 10.3 9.1
4. Lt. Brown 10.4 4.4 4. Bright Red 7.6 8.5
5. Med. Red 9.0 11.3 5. Med. Red 6.1 7.5
6. Bright Red 8.7 9.5 6. Dk. Red 5.8 2.8
7. Dk. Blue 5.0 3.7 7. Lt. Brown 5.1 5.1
8. Teal 4.8 6.6 8. Teal/Aqua 5.0 7.4
9. Silver 4.3 6.3 9. Med./Dk. Blue 4.6 5.2
10. Purple 3.5 7.8 10. Silver 3.6 4.3
11. Bright Blue 3.3 2.3 11. Purple 2.1 1.8
12. Lt. Green 1.0 3.0 12. Lt. Blue 1.8 1.7
CONTACT: Terrence Q. Cressy of DuPont Automotive, 810-583-8102; or Carole Davies of Eisbrenner Public Relations, 810-641-1446