What color would you choose for your vehicle?
Despite dabbling in concours judging in the past, I’m by no means a perfection hound. Rather, I’d consider myself an open-minded enthusiast that’s open to embracing new things. Things like new paint, for example. If an owner wants to change the color of their car, well, it’s their money and their car … right?
More to the point, what if nothing were stopping you from changing your car’s color? What color would it be?
Custom paint jobs will never go out of style, and new technology has made a diverse color palette attainable for the common hobbyist. Paint colors are becoming more and more relevant to automotive enthusiasts looking to stand out as our hobby grows and diversifies. But there’s a whole lot more to this story, because we don’t always get what we need in a traditional spray booth.
Sometimes, vinyl can provide the same quality as a proper re-spray. The depth and clarity of modern vinyl wraps are, quite frankly, shocking to see in person. It can also be much cheaper, especially if you have the time/patience to lay it down yourself.
That said, there can still be downsides to a vinyl wrap, depending on your tastes and local regulations. Some creativity might be too reflective for other motorists, and I admit this technology is more appropriate for a modern classic, a flashy exotic, or a modified specialty vehicle.
That said, vinyl wraps may also serve as a responsible solution for cars that are so old that they no longer have a strong following, too. Think about four-door sedans from the 1940s and 1950s, for example. This Packard likely needs little else but flashy paint and a mild restoration to become a cool weekend cruiser—one that nobody else in town would have. Would I wrap it in a wild shade of vinyl and rock it down the boulevard, ensuring it would never be sold for a price dangerously close to scrap value? You betcha.
So the fact remains, it’s very easy and somewhat affordable to re-finish a vehicle to your wildest dreams. If nothing was stopping you from changing your car’s color, what would you choose?
GREEN. I’m a sucker for green. Or at least, most greens. British Racing Green is great. The old Verdoro Green from Pontiac also appeals to me. Some of “lime” and/or fluorescent greens (e.g. – ’70s Mopars) just don’t trip my fancy, though. Oddly, I like the old light green utility color that used to be on Forest Service trucks and such. Weird, huh?
Second with me would be some shade of grey. Some of the newer greys have an almost greenish cast to them, and I’m drawn to that on SUV or Crossover body-styled vehicles.
The one color I would NOT pick is red. I’ve never been a red guy. And yet, when my buddy sprayed the jambs on my ’66 Pontiac, I agreed with him that red was the right color for the car. It just looked right (no green I could imagine on it looked nearly as correct). So, apparently, if SOMEONE ELSE is picking a color for me, red is fine. 😎
I agree with green – in the right shade. I have been looking for the properly equipped Audi RS in the rare color Sonoran Green – it is stunning. I had an ’05 Mini in BRG, and an ’09 911 Carerra CS2 in Porsche’s similar shade. I, too, like a non-metallic grey…..such as the now-popular color that used to be called “Dove Grey” back in the day. Much nicer than any silver or charcoal yawner colors. It’s offered on everything from Porsche to Honda now. There is a similar non-metallic beige, a rare color Mopar used to call “Parchment”. I have seen something similar on a few new cars, I think it now has a name like ‘mochaccino’?. It’s quite rare, which appeals to me.
I never had a red car (nor wanted one) in my life until I saw a special order Andromeda Rosso on a 2008 Gallardo Spyder 6-speed. Bright red, like Ferrari or Guards red. Because most all Lambos come in weird and outrageous shades like old Mopar muscle cars – Neons of green, blue, yellow, orange. I loved it because it was unique so I bought it in 2009 It remains my first and only red car, out of the slightly less than 100 cars I’ve owned. If anybody is still reading this, I ask for input – I am going to wrap my (current) Diamond white over saddle Mercedes e class coupe, and have it narrowed down to a black cherry shade. I like the uniqueness and flexibility to go back to original. Thoughts?
I like the Black Cherry idea, although I have no idea whether or not a wrap will do that color justice. Seems to me that something like Black Cherry is a “deep color” that you only really see when you look down into several layers of paint (as opposed to just a “one layer” color like “red”, where the whole thing is right on the surface. Can a wrap give you that deepness?
Bamboo Pearl Green (a Lexus color). I’m drawn to most shades of green and admit that there are other colors out there that simply pull the trigger (even though they’re ‘aren’t’ green). I owned one red car in my lifetime and I can honestly say I didn’t like it one little bit (1988 Corvette, red over red). I did love the red interior which is very rare to be had these days.
White. I live in AZ. Otherwise, I don’t care much for non-daily’s, they all good. Even 70s GM sea foam green.
Oldest son is into Mopars, so in that case we’re going to prep with 68 Valiant and paint it some obnoxious period correct color.
I’m partial to darker blues, but it can also be make-specific. Very few German cars look bad in silver, and BRG is top for British cars.
I’m actually in the process of wrapping a brown 69 GTO orange and it’s turning out great.
If I had my old ‘73 Satellite back, no question: Silver Frost Metallic. I’d use a charcoal base to deepen the color, and a few coats of clear lacquer topcoats to make those curves go on for days.
Nowadays all cars are just black, white or gray. Bporing.
Couldn’t agree more. God forbid someone have an imagination. And I’m also over Darth Vader black interiors.
Colors are car dependent, some look good, and others bad… In my case, I have a 71 El Camino that is what I call Slimy Green, which is a little greener than the Sublime Green above. At first, I didn’t think it was that nice, but it grew on me. Another example, a friend had a 2006 Pumpkin Orange Mustang, and that color fit the car perfect, at least during Halloween 😉
Anything with a boat load of flake. Todays metallics are top notch. I am not talking custom flake that has always been wild. I am amazed how some factory metallics really pop in the sun.
Agree with Eldo above… but white is the least offensive. It is rare to see a car in a pretty color, but then the cars all look alike anyway… and there are some really stupid colors for those who want to be different. The reality is that more colors mean more cost to the auto makers…
my 1966 gto is factory yellow and i am a body man i painted my daily driver 2004 Z71 2015 hynd pearl white lower 2015 ford dark blue upper with pink and green in the center of them everyone loves it no one. has any zest anymore 90% of cars today are black,white,silver,lite gold or some shade of gray no more colors like we had in the 60s & early 70s
Myself I’m partial to a soft sunshine yellow.Surprised yellow was not included in the palette.
Love Frostbite!
Earl Scheib turquoise, roughly masked, painted right over the trim & medallions, no jambs. Great for $49.95!
😋
F8 Green. I think this particular color choice would deliver ‘long-term’ enjoyment even though I’d be happy owning any one of Chrysler’s offerings back in the Sonny & Cher era.
This is one of those “can of worms” subjects. I’m really tired of looking across a parking lot and seeing a sea of black, white and silver. It reminds me of the photos I’ve seen during the Great depression. For me it all depends on the car. Some cars, like a VW beetle and several others, can wear ANY color and it will work just fine. Some of the “true classics” would look hideous in something like Lime green or something that wasn’t made back in the teens, 20’s or 30’s. One of my favorite colors is Mopar B5 blue, but it wont work on just anything. I currently have nine cars and sadly none of them are blue. White is my least favorite for a car, but I have three. One of my favorite cars on my list is a Porsche 928, but I’d want one only in white.