Chevrolet Talks Bold Colors for Small Cars

Although most consumers tend to buy white, silver and black vehicles, Chevrolet is bringing more splashes of bright color to its Spark and Sonic models. Color was the theme du jour at a presentation last week at the Manhattan headquarters of Stylesight, a fashion-trend analysis and forecasting firm that helps designers choose market-worthy colors, fabrics and other materials.

In an effort to appeal to the sensibilities of younger buyers, General Motors is looking to Stylesight for guidance. The idea is to buck the typical automaker tendency toward more conservative colors, said Sharon Gauci, G.M.’s color and trim design manager.

Younger buyers may be more daring and more interested in expressing themselves,” she said. “It may be their first vehicle.”

Over the last few years, Ms. Gauci said, Chevrolet has found that it could increase small car sales with bold signature colors introduced on short runs. This year’s signature color is Deep Magenta Metallic, following on the “Inferno Orange” Sonic and the “Techno Pink” Spark.

Ms. Gauci said G.M. wanted a car that would catch customers’ attention, and the pigmentation of the company’s current small car lineup may do just that. Even muted colors like black and brown are played up using liberal amounts of metallic flake in the paint. Aside from Techno Pink, Sparks are available in such wild colors as Jalapeño (bright green), Denim (bright light blue), Lemonade (light yellow) and Salsa (bright red). They are colors that do draw the eye, particularly among the mostly bland colors offered on other vehicles in the North American market.

Choosing colors for new vehicles is more difficult than color choice in practically any other industry, Ms. Gauci noted, adding that there is a long lead time between design and production. (G.M. designers are currently putting final touches on 2017 models, she said.) Colors are expected to remain fresh or at least not obsolete for the estimated four-year life cycle of each car, so choices tend to be conservative, although not with some of the newer models. Naming the colors is important too, Ms. Gauci said

.

“Every driver remembers the name of their car color,” she explained.

Sharon Graubard, senior vice president for Stylesight’s creative services, works with G.M. on color, helping look for hues that will be head turners — the kind dealers hope will make passing drivers swivel their heads toward showrooms.

Before Stylesight feeds its reports to G.M.’s seven design studios, Ms. Graubard studies fashion shows, street events and fairs for trends. She discerns themes in color well beyond simple silver, white, black, red and blue. In her PowerPoint presentations to clients, she says things like “there are new oranges, pumpkinized” and “we are seeing the beautification of browns.” A color like Cool Blue, she said, shows how blues become “dirty,” while a basic pink can shift from bubble gum or cupcake frosting colors to Techno Pink — the grayish-rose hue Chevrolet showcased last year on the Spark.

Flashed on a screen during Ms. Graubard’s PowerPoint, colors took on new diversity. She showed another subtle aspect of color choice: some look better on static objects, others on moving ones. A color must draw attention to the shape of the car’s body as it moves, she said.

Of course it doesn’t hurt that this year’s magenta comes as part of a Chevy Sonic option package that includes fog lights, a sunroof and the MyLink infotainment system, all for $990. It will be offered until November, when the same deal will be attached to a Cool Blue Sonic through March. Next spring, the spotlight shifts to a green hue called Dragon Green, which looks much like the bold metallic green now seen on the Chevrolet Camaro.

Ms. Gauci worked at Buick and Holden – G.M.’s Australian subsidiary – before turning her hand to the Chevrolet palette. She also worked on the Cadillac Converj concept and the Chevrolet Volt. While in New York to talk colors, she took advantage of the occasion to get in some shopping. What did she buy? A jacket, she said. A gray one.

Article Credit: www.nytimes.com

Kia Optima Hybrid Houston