It’s back to where it all started for the automotive industry– the Motor city.
Collection influencing vehicle colors for 2019 and beyond.
Detroit has gotten a bad rap in the past but times are changing and the world is taking notice. The city is becoming a symbol for urban revitalization, fixing things from the ground up, optimism, resilience and a true ‘can do’ attitude. These ideals contributed to BASF’s car color predictions for the 2019 vehicle models, where it’s expected that brighter, more varied colors and deep, saturated blues will take on more prominence.
Each year, designers from North America, Asia and Europe come together to predict the car colors of the future. They focus on looking forward three to four years to match automotive production cycles, and researching societal trends that may influence consumer perception.
BASF’s Color Excellence Group has a long standing reputation with automakers for not only accurately identifying the color trends that will affect the marketplace, but using its expertise in paint formulations and pigment qualifications to supply visual concepts and automotive colors according to OEM requirements.
This year the designers toured Detroit, gaining inspiration from landmarks such as Eastern Market, the Michigan Central Station and the Packard Plant. While some of the buildings are not in their prime, they demonstrate raw potential and authenticity. In addition, the designers experienced a resounding feeling of positivity when interacting with Detroit locals.
Each year the designers pick one global theme that is going to influence the car colors of tomorrow and after their experiences in Detroit, there was no question that the theme is RAW, for Real Authentic Ways.
In North America, the resurgence of powerful cities like Detroit and the raw potential is reflected in a brighter, more diverse color palette than in past years. For example, the bright golds and deep blues transcend the traditional applications and represent people redefining themselves. Silver, on the other hand, exudes the promise of the future.
There is a strong prevalence of blue shades in this year’s color predictions, which were inspired by water management issues in urban environments. Water is the definition of raw and has a beautiful, mesmerizing and sustaining effect. The saturated and cool color blue is intended to be a soothing balance to the hectic pace of life, as water is in many cases.
And, the trend is not only depicted in the blue shades that were chosen but also in the textural elements of the pigments. For example, the color prediction ‘Downpour’ has the inclusion of specific pigment technology designed to mimic the look of rain.
Bright colors and deep saturated blues are the car color predictions for North America for 2019 and beyond. The designers and coatings experts at BASF and automakers have already begun conversations about bringing these predictions to life and creating the next hot color of the future.
