Axalta Coating Systems has released its annual Color Popularity Report. This year’s report includes "Say it with Color," Axalta’s forecast of four color megatrends for automotive designers around the world.
“Our customers count on our data every year to drive market decisions,” said David Fischer, vice president of Axalta’s global OEM business. “Our global team of color specialists relies on our advanced forecasting to formulate the next generation of coating colors. The result is an ever-evolving color palette for automotive designers. As the industry continues to evolve and strives to innovate for customers worldwide, Axalta is committed to partnering with our customers to provide the best possible coatings available.”
Produced since 1953, the report reflects the most popular colors for automobiles in 2013. White and white pearl came in as the global favorite, with nearly a 10 percent advantage over the next most popular color: black. Silver, gray and red took the next top spots across the globe.
The following is a breakdown of color popularity by region:
North America
- At 26 percent, white continued to increase in popularity and remained the most popular color choice for the seventh consecutive year.
- At 20 percent, black also increased in popularity as consumers gravitated toward black effects in the luxury and luxury SUV segments.
- Silver has continued its slow decline along with gray.
- The two most popular chromatic color choices are red at 9 percent and blue at 7 percent.
- Mexico prefers the lighter neutrals with white at 32 percent and silver at 18 percent.
- Black falls third at 17 percent in Mexico.
- Other colors in Mexico fall in line with the overall North American trends.
Europe
- Preference for white increased 5 percent in 2013 to capture 29 percent of new car sales with solid white being the most popular variant.
- At 21 percent, black was the second most preferred color, but decreased in popularity compared to 2012.
- Interest in gray and silver waned in 2013, in line with global trends.
- Blue decreased slightly and red slightly increased to bring both to 7 percent levels.
Asia
- In Asia, neutrals reached 75 percent of the market, a two percentage point increase over 2012 – still short of 2001 levels when neutrals made up 86 percent of the palette. Red was the most popular non-neutral color used on vehicles.
- Japan continued to report white as the most popular color for the seventh year in a row, followed by black and silver. Gray’s popularity at 7 percent was low compared to other world trends. Blue was the most colorful choice at 7 percent of the market.
- In China, black continued to remain strong, especially on luxury vehicles. However, interest in white increased in line with its overall global popularity. Blue, green and yellow were low in popularity compared to colorful reds and browns.
- In South Korea, white remained the No. 1 preference at 32 percent of the market. Silver was a distant second at 18 percent. Gray held third place followed by black as the lighter color spaces dominated the market.
- Silver remained the most popular color in India at 30 percent. White was a close second at 28 percent, as these light colors proved to be popular in the warm climate. Browns/beiges were popular at 10 percent, but darker colors like black received little interest, holding only seven percent of the market.
South America
- At 29 percent, white eclipsed silver to take the top spot for the first time since 2001, followed closely by black at 14 percent.
- Gray and red followed in popularity at 9 percent each. Red remained the fifth most popular color since 2002.
- The prevalence of brown/beige, blue and green colors slightly increased.
Other countries and regions
- In Russia, white held the top color space at 18 percent. In contrast to other countries, green was quite popular in Russia with 8 percent of the market.
- Light color spaces dominated Africa with white, silver and gray at the top. White had a strong lead at 43 percent. Red was the most popular non-neutral colorful preference at 6 percent, followed by blue at 4 percent.
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