Where did all the colours go?
Where did all the colours go?
Author
Discussion

Rawwr

Original Poster:

22,722 posts

264 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
So I've been mooching around at possibly getting a new car and from playing with nearly every manufacturer's configurator now, I've noticed that colour choices seem to be rather limited these days.

I'm sure you used to be able to get most cars in at least one variation of each rainbow colour as well as blacks, whites and silvers, but now it seems every manufacturer has a choice of about 40 different silvers, 5 blacks, white and a deep blue and/or red to choose from. Dull as mud.

I have no idea why I posted this.

Georgie182

30 posts

209 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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Get yourself to Australia ! I guarantee you'll be stuck for choice.. Almost every car on the road is a completely different colour to the next !

kambites

71,566 posts

251 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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I have to agree. Especially annoying as silver/grey is the most god-awful looking colour for a car.

5harp3y

1,966 posts

229 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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pushes people to order 'special finishes' i.e. BMW Individual

rsv gone!

11,288 posts

271 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
Rawwr said:
So I've been mooching around at possibly getting a new car and from playing with nearly every manufacturer's configurator now, I've noticed that colour choices seem to be rather limited these days.

I'm sure you used to be able to get most cars in at least one variation of each rainbow colour as well as blacks, whites and silvers, but now it seems every manufacturer has a choice of about 40 different silvers, 5 blacks, white and a deep blue and/or red to choose from. Dull as mud.

I have no idea why I posted this.
Because everyone chooses 'resale silver'

(Even the BiB in Beds).

Dracoro

9,033 posts

275 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
kambites said:
I have to agree. Especially annoying as silver/grey is the most god-awful looking colour for a car.
It's common that's all, nothing particularly wrong with the colours themselves.

What's also a sad cliche is those british sports cars in green, where's the imagination. "british racing green"? my arse biggrinbiggrinwink

Anyway, people don't colour their houses in all sorts of colours either do they. Alway brick colour or white, yaaawwwwnnnn...... Then there's those that only buy blue jeans, where's the imagination......

Really though, what does it matter what colour people choose?

Rawwr

Original Poster:

22,722 posts

264 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
Nothing wrong with silver, per se, we just don't need 4,000 shades of it.

kambites

71,566 posts

251 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
Dracoro said:
Really though, what does it matter what colour people choose?
There is nothing wrong with picking silver if that's what you want. What this thread is objecting to, is that fact that you basically don't have any choice not to pick silver any more.

For what it's worth, I didn't want a green Elise - they make the Elise in a wonderful deep purple colour call "aubergine" but I couldn't find one because everyone who buys new Elises picks bloody silver. hehe

Rawwr

Original Poster:

22,722 posts

264 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
kambites said:
everyone who buys new Elises picks bloody silver. hehe
Maybe on the S1, but you don't see many silver S2s smile

kambites

71,566 posts

251 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
Rawwr said:
kambites said:
everyone who buys new Elises picks bloody silver. hehe
Maybe on the S1, but you don't see many silver S2s smile
Well OK, silver, black, white or grey, (which are only shades of silver, after all).

The Wookie

14,209 posts

258 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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I must say I was surprised when I picked up a load of 1-series brochures to find there were only about 6 different colours, and 3 of them were different shades of silver.

I know the logistics behind manufacturer colour offerings, it just surprised me that they wouldn't bother at all with even a single yellow or green hue

wildcat45

8,160 posts

219 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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Then there are the cars that come in all sorts of differnet colours in overseas markets - but not here.

My Mazda CX7 is black - the only standard colour. At the time when I bought there was silver, a dull met red a grey and a striking bright blue which didn't suit the car at all.

A glance at Mazda USA's site shows up a host of other colour options for the same cars.

Annoying, because I fancy a white one next or perhaps a dark gold colour - like Audi do in the TT. Not available in the UK though.

patmahe

5,920 posts

234 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
kambites said:
Rawwr said:
kambites said:
everyone who buys new Elises picks bloody silver. hehe
Maybe on the S1, but you don't see many silver S2s smile
Well OK, silver, black, white or grey, (which are only shades of silver, after all).
My S2 is red tongue out

Edited by patmahe on Tuesday 25th May 09:19

Rawwr

Original Poster:

22,722 posts

264 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
patmahe said:
My S2 is red tongue out
How frightfully common.

patmahe

5,920 posts

234 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
Rawwr said:
patmahe said:
My S2 is red tongue out
How frightfully common.
We all know the red ones are the fastest biggrin

busta

4,504 posts

263 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
I was going to start a thread on exactly the same thing last week! Whatever happened to vivd blues, bright yellow and british racing green?

All the blues look like black, the greys all look like black and then you're left with dull silver or fashion victim white!

You can still get a Jag in a decent shade of green though so all is not lost.

Baked_bean

1,945 posts

222 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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I don't know about other more 'budget' cars but Renault offer a nice selection of colours.

aeropilot

40,821 posts

257 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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Baked_bean said:
I don't know about other more 'budget' cars but Renault offer a nice selection of colours.
Most of the 'small or budget' car manufacturers do some nice bright colours, it's only when you get into BMW/MB/Audi/blah/blah/etc 'exec' territory that people (or lease firms to be more accurate) are paranoid about resale value and percieved image - hence the proliferation of various shades of black and resale silver..... rolleyes


Twincam16

27,647 posts

288 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
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It is refreshing to see Ford Focus STs and RSs in vibrant orange and green, and likewise, Astra VXRs in bright metallic blue and solid red. However, it does just go to show how unusual these are compared to others.

Citroen, for example, only produce the C6 in dark colours unless you do a special order at an exorbitant price.

I do wish that people would be given more choice in the matter. We had more choice in the '70s. Take the likes of the TR7, SD1 and Dolomite Sprint for example. You could get them in silver, black or white, but you could also get them in psychedelic green, yellow, red and blue, and whilst they were at it, sludgy '70s 'organic' shades of green and brown.

What was wrong with that, exactly?

Dracoro

9,033 posts

275 months

Tuesday 25th May 2010
quotequote all
aeropilot said:
Baked_bean said:
I don't know about other more 'budget' cars but Renault offer a nice selection of colours.
Most of the 'small or budget' car manufacturers do some nice bright colours, it's only when you get into BMW/MB/Audi/blah/blah/etc 'exec' territory that people (or lease firms to be more accurate) are paranoid about resale value and percieved image - hence the proliferation of various shades of black and resale silver..... rolleyes
Nothing new though, small cars and sports cars usually come in a variety of colours. Big exec cars in more conservative colours.

As for companies and resale values (although many are leased), well they ARE businesses, why compromise on monetary value of a car because some of their employees have personal issues with driving a silver car?