BASF PRESENTS 2019-2020’S AUTOMOTIVE COLOUR TRENDS
BY ALLISON ROGERS
BASF’s Colour Design team has presented its new colours and colour concepts for the automotive industry. The ninth edition of the global Automotive Color Trends is characterized by the commitment to actively shaping the future and shows what colours will meet the zeitgeist of tomorrow. While it may be a few years before the shades are ready to make an official debut on the roads, BASF’S Glasurit team is currently working hard to provide high-quality refinish solutions that will be ready-to-go at the start of OEM production.
By analyzing tech trends and societal changes, the designers at BASF’s Coatings division translated its findings into a collection of future colour inspirations for automotive surfaces. Four design studios from North America, Europe, Middle East, Africa and the Asia Pacific worked within this collaboration. The focus on these regions creates a profound understanding of the related markets and its colour drivers.
The global colour trends mirror the positive commitment towards connecting digital advancements with human needs. The increasing digitalization in our world shows the acceptance of computer-based support. A decisive rethinking of the Earth’s natural resources is moulding new product landscapes and consumption patterns. The collection’s combination of multi-levelled chroma and multiple hues are designed to capture the open-minded attitudes to technological advances. Today, digital support is seen as a natural part of life and its influence on the world continues to grow. For BASF, the colouration of future mobility takes on a warmer, more approachable look. The new silver-toned hue reveals atypical automotive colour positions like yellowish off-tones and complex goldish metals, which are meant to mirror social efforts toward digitization.
The positive vibe of the collection indicates the upcoming changes in societal conventions in the Europe, Middle East, Africa region, where peculiar and unique colour shifts like violet metallic may soon become more common on the road. One of the aspects encouraging the optimism around current social change is the increasing importance of originality for traditional design concepts. To reflect uniqueness, BASF has added a twist on classic hues like beige and gold by including complex metallic shifts in its new range. Another aspect of life in Europe, the Middle East and African regions are the exploration of human needs where autonomous driving and mobility is concerned. A selection of colours in the range are characterized by an artificial look that deletes flashy effects but adds functionality. The semi-matte approach is BASF’s attempt to praise the pursuit of more progressive ideas. BASF’s full predictions for upcoming automotive colour trends presents 65 different colours. While most of the predictions feature yellow-hued silvers, bold golds, deep reds or peppy blues, each is equipped with its own complex shifts and levels of chroma, so it is certain there is a shade for everyone.
Every year BASF’s coatings division takes its findings and predictions of upcoming societal change and translates it into a collection that is predicted to influence the future of automotive colours. The company undergoes intensive research into future trends, which is used for the development of surface, texture and colour positions. As a result, the designers present global trends and developments within various global regions.
The newly designed colours will not be available to OEMs for at least three years, but BASF assures that its Glasurit team is already hard at work on the refinishing solutions.
