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      09-05-2019, 02:11 AM   #1
Feddersen
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Where did all the exciting-colored cars go?

Why are “all” cars today in some sort of a non color? I have just been to the BMW plant in Leipzig and the majority of cars produced are white, black or a gray shade in between. We have just bought a Sunset Orange BMW our self and looking at the production line in Leipzig the Sunset Orange was really rare. The same goes for the Long Beach Blue.

I am sure my next car will have some sort of visible/shiny color in orange, blue, red or similar but why have people discarded the nice variety of colors of the 70’s and 80’s? We have received some comments about resell value of the orange but with the intent of keeping the car for more than a few years the difference in resell value will be next to zero.

Are you into colors or fifty shades of grey? And why the gray shades? I also believe the colorfull cars are safer to drive because you are more visible.
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      09-05-2019, 02:53 AM   #2
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That is so true! Even here in South Africa, theres mainly just white BMW cars, even black and grey are hard to find
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      09-05-2019, 04:52 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The Mo View Post
That is so true! Even here in South Africa, theres mainly just white BMW cars, even black and grey are hard to find
Yup, driving to work in the morning is a dreary affair.

I actually wanted a blue 540i, but the Med Blue were a tad too dark, would have loved something like a Marina Bay Blue.
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      09-05-2019, 07:40 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Feddersen View Post
Why are “all” cars today in some sort of a non color? I have just been to the BMW plant in Leipzig and the majority of cars produced are white, black or a gray shade in between. We have just bought a Sunset Orange BMW our self and looking at the production line in Leipzig the Sunset Orange was really rare. The same goes for the Long Beach Blue.

I am sure my next car will have some sort of visible/shiny color in orange, blue, red or similar but why have people discarded the nice variety of colors of the 70’s and 80’s? We have received some comments about resell value of the orange but with the intent of keeping the car for more than a few years the difference in resell value will be next to zero.

Are you into colors or fifty shades of grey? And why the gray shades? I also believe the colorfull cars are safer to drive because you are more visible.
I just got an M5 and the color list (without going individual, which adds a bunch of time) was bland as hell.
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      09-05-2019, 07:48 AM   #5
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Car companies are now only building cars for the masses, and the masses want grey, white, or black cars with automatic transmissions. It's a sad state of affairs.
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      09-05-2019, 08:01 AM   #6
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I think white is the best paint 'color' for most cars. Some non greyscale stuff can look nice, but generally aren't for me.
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      09-05-2019, 08:41 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The Mo View Post
That is so true! Even here in South Africa, theres mainly just white BMW cars, even black and grey are hard to find
I do get the idea of choosing white in very sunny areas since they are cooler in sunny weather. However I think all black and white (or shades) remove a lot of the design lines in the car. Mazda developed their current red color mainly for showing the lines of the car in as many sort of lights as possible.
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      09-05-2019, 08:44 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KingOfJericho View Post
Car companies are now only building cars for the masses, and the masses want grey, white, or black cars with automatic transmissions. It's a sad state of affairs.
This is it right here. These colors sell because they appeal to the most people.
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      09-05-2019, 09:14 AM   #9
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This is because most people are color blind now because their face are planted onto their smartphones! Every time I plan on buying a new car and go look at their color palette offerings, I became uninterested. Actually, there are nothing in the current BMW line up (aside from the M2) that appeals to me anymore - they're all made for the masses now. Having no color palette doesn't help its case.


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Originally Posted by jillcooper View Post
I guess it's mostly a matter of looks & standards (I in no way mean that people with colored cars have no standards. it's just about common thought process) these colors represent a class of decency, professionalism.

Just like you wouldn't see a self-respecting CEO or Professional from a self-respecting company wearing a yellow or orange or purple colored suit. You also would not see them driving an orange-colored car.
I understand this for your everyday pedestrian sedans/jacked-up wagons, but people want colors for sports cars!
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      09-05-2019, 11:05 AM   #10
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      09-05-2019, 11:47 AM   #11
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      09-05-2019, 11:52 AM   #12
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I said this 15 years ago when I landed here from Australia, the colours are SO FUCKING DULL.

I am shopping for a sports car and 90% of them are grey, black or silver. I can cop white with gloss black rims but jesus the greys and blacks are EVERYWHERE.
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      09-05-2019, 12:15 PM   #13
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Oh my gosh, that is hysterical!

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      09-05-2019, 03:24 PM   #14
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Because people are predictable, followers, sheep...All you see is white, black, white, grey, white, white white!!! Fkn boring. Scared to be different.
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      09-05-2019, 04:23 PM   #15
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Mine doesn't have that problem
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      09-05-2019, 06:42 PM   #16
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      09-05-2019, 07:02 PM   #17
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I have blue since I specifically wanted a color.

But to answer your question it starts from resales. Cars with colors were harder to move upon lease turn in, so dealers ordered less of them.
If dealers order less (even though you can custom order a color), when impatient people want to walk off the lot with a car and not order and wait, they ended up with a machine in greyscale since that's all there was.
And the cycle just made itself worse since more bland made more bland available.

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      09-05-2019, 07:55 PM   #18
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Give me a vibrant blue, red, etc any day over boring white/gray/silver.
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      09-05-2019, 08:38 PM   #19
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We as a society are so used to conventional greyscale colors that we are afraid to go outside our "comfort zone." Additionally, people don't want to draw more attention to themselves than absolutely necessary. It's a big reason why window tints exist.

My pops almost pulled the trigger on a Miami Blue Porsche last week but got cold feet over the color.
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      09-05-2019, 09:28 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Feddersen View Post
Why are “all” cars today in some sort of a non color? I have just been to the BMW plant in Leipzig and the majority of cars produced are white, black or a gray shade in between. We have just bought a Sunset Orange BMW our self and looking at the production line in Leipzig the Sunset Orange was really rare. The same goes for the Long Beach Blue.

I am sure my next car will have some sort of visible/shiny color in orange, blue, red or similar but why have people discarded the nice variety of colors of the 70’s and 80’s? We have received some comments about resell value of the orange but with the intent of keeping the car for more than a few years the difference in resell value will be next to zero.

Are you into colors or fifty shades of grey? And why the gray shades? I also believe the colorfull cars are safer to drive because you are more visible.
The people that bought the fun colours are now all buying Porsches. I drive by a Porsche dealer everyday to work and I like to refer to it as a Skittles box based on what they are displaying for the freeway. #bmwlostitsway
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      09-05-2019, 10:23 PM   #21
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The only color of M2 I liked was white. Too bad orange wasn't available. The blue was way too wimpy for me. The blue on my M235i was much better.
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      09-05-2019, 11:24 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by spiceyxi View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Feddersen View Post
Why are "all" cars today in some sort of a non color? I have just been to the BMW plant in Leipzig and the majority of cars produced are white, black or a gray shade in between. We have just bought a Sunset Orange BMW our self and looking at the production line in Leipzig the Sunset Orange was really rare. The same goes for the Long Beach Blue.

I am sure my next car will have some sort of visible/shiny color in orange, blue, red or similar but why have people discarded the nice variety of colors of the 70's and 80's? We have received some comments about resell value of the orange but with the intent of keeping the car for more than a few years the difference in resell value will be next to zero.

Are you into colors or fifty shades of grey? And why the gray shades? I also believe the colorfull cars are safer to drive because you are more visible.
The people that bought the fun colours are now all buying Porsches. I drive by a Porsche dealer everyday to work and I like to refer to it as a Skittles box based on what they are displaying for the freeway. #bmwlostitsway
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