Grey top in Europe in 2019

According to the “Global Automotive Color Popularity Report 2019” from the paint manufacturer Axalta, grey came out on top in Europe in 2019.

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The Axalta, a global manufacturer of liquid and powder coatings, report on the most popular automotive paints in 2019 shows that in Europe, grey took first place last year with 24 per cent for the most popular colour for new cars. It overtook white, with 23 per cent, but white still reigned supreme worldwide. Black came in third in Europe. Together, these three colours have a two thirds market share; when silver, with a share of 10 per cent, is added, it is more than three quarters. Blue (10 per cent) and red (6 per cent) are the first “bright” colours.

For Elke Dirks, Automotive OEM Colour Designer for Axalta in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the rise of grey came as no surprise: “Grey stands for practicality and professionalism, style and elegance,” she says. “A grey car signals that the driver does not need to draw attention to themselves with a bright colour. Thanks to new pigments and effects, the previously rather inconspicuous colour is now often very stylish. It takes around two years to completely develop a new colour, so we have to recognise tomorrow’s colour trends today.”

The Axalta OEM colouristic team evaluates a wide variety of indicators: in addition to analysing colour statistics as well as customer and model-related properties, they also look at fashion and zeitgeist. Dirks adds, “Trends in clothing, furniture and accessories, even articles in magazines – everything can provide clues.”