With the BASF Color Report for Automotive OEM Coatings, BASF's Coatings division presents a global analysis of the color distribution of passenger cars in 2022. Despite the color shifts, the achromatic shades - white, black, silver and gray - continued to be used for the paintwork of most cars produced in 2022. White-painted cars are still the most popular due to their high resale value.

When buyers did not choose achromatic hues, they often opted for blue or red. While these two color spaces are still very popular, other chromatic colors such as yellow, orange, green and violet are gaining market share in most regions of the world. This shows that BASF's customers - the car manufacturers - offer a broader and more diverse color spectrum than before.

The data in the report also shows that car manufacturers are producing more vehicles again following the global pandemic and regional supply chain challenges.

EMEA becomes more colorful

Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) recorded increases in the two most popular colors - white and black - and losses in gray and silver. At the same time, the region became more colorful. Blue is still the leading chromatic hue in EMEA, but both blue and red lost market share. Car buyers showed a preference for orange for the first time. Yellow, brown and green each gained a few percentage points.

"White and black have increased this year, but the most important thing is the variety of chromatic hues," says Mark Gutjahr, Head of Automotive Color Design, EMEA. "When you add up the market shares of yellow, orange, brown and green, you see more hues and variety, reflecting more nuance in the color palette and a breadth and depth of hues that has evolved over the last year or two."

North America: More chromatic shades such as violet

North American car buyers have fewer chromatic color choices. However, that doesn't mean they are opting for less chromatic cars, vans or SUVs. Blue and red are still dominant, but the region is more colorful than before, with green, yellow, purple and beige appearing more frequently.

Blue is still in the lead, and the gap between blue and red is widening as blue increases in popularity. Achromatic shades such as black, gray and silver have lost some market share, especially in larger vehicles. As a result, earthy colors such as beige, brown and green have increased. Purple gained market share as car buyers' preferences have changed.

"If you look at the heavyweights in chromatic hues, blue and red are at the top. But as people turn more to nature, natural hues like green, yellow, purple and beige are becoming more prevalent," says Liz Hoffman, Head of Design, Americas. "Car buyers are also looking for a vehicle color that expresses their positive attitude."

Asia-Pacific: increase in shades of gray

As in other regions of the world, BASF designers in Asia Pacific found that white was the most popular color. At the forefront this year is the increase in shades of gray, which points to a new era in the automotive industry and the changing values and habits of car buyers.

Although the overall volume is not very high, brown, green and purple are all consistently popular. It will be a long time before they replace white as the most popular color, but for now they contribute to the impressive color diversity in Asia Pacific. This is especially true for small cars and electric vehicles, which are sold in a wider range of colors.

Gray has gained around six percentage points in popularity, taking over market share from blue, red, gold and brown. "Gray is more attractive and popular than ever. Buyers continue to strive for uniqueness and individuality with achromatic shades," says Chiharu Matsuhara, Head of Design, Asia Pacific. "Some shades of grey with blue or purple shades, solid effects and additional pearl effects are gaining acceptance in the market, showing a wide variety in the color space."

South America: The region with the brightest colors

In the past, South American car buyers tended to choose more traditional and less flashy colors. As in other regions, white is by far the favorite, and gray is ahead of black for achromatic colors. Among chromatic colors, red and blue remained stable, while brown gained some market share. These colors were most likely to be chosen for smaller vehicles. Larger cars and SUVs had the highest share of achromatic hues, including new and varied effects for grays on larger cars.

"South America is still a conservative region. In South America, you may not have the same variety of colors when buying a vehicle, but within each color space there are really exciting and different effects," says Marcos Fernandes, Director Regional Business Management, Automotive Coatings South America.