The 2012 DuPont Automotive Color Popularity Report is in, and it seems dealers may want to stock lots of white vehicles, but cut back on the silver ones.

The DuPont report, released this week, has found that for the second consecutive year, white/white pearl dominates customers’ auto color choice, representing 23 percent of the global market in the 2012 report.

Silver, however, which ranked second last year for color choice, dropped 4 percentage points in global popularity, especially in the large markets of Europe and Asia, to land in third place.

So which color has moved up to take silver’s place? Black/black effect ranks second globally, a move DuPont says is largely due to its increased popularity in the Asia Pacific market, and a worldwide perception of the color as high quality and luxury.

The DuPont report, now in its 60th year, is the largest and longest running report of its kind in the automotive industry, the company says, and the only to include global auto color popularity rankings and regional trends from 11 leading automotive regions of the world.

Over the past decade, DuPont has noted white’s popularity across all vehicle segments, though historically, it had been most popular among the truck segment.

White first broke into the luxury segments following advancements in pearlescent whites, company officials said.

“Today, white tri-coats are more readily applicable to the global manufacturing base and evoke quality and value among a variety of vehicle segments,” said Nancy Lockhart, DuPont color marketing manager. “Solid whites have been seen in vanilla shades, stone shades and the current preference of bright whites.”

Lockhart also said that while silver peaked between 2000 and 2006, “We’re seeing more luxury vehicle purchases now that the economy has started to stabilize, and vehicles painted black/black effect are seen as luxury status symbols in several key global markets.”

Gaining one percentage point each in 2012 are red, gray and brown/beige; blue remained at its 2011 level of popularity.

The top global vehicle colors in DuPont’s report are:
1.    White/White Pearl – 23 percent
2.    Black/Black Effect – 21 percent
3.    Silver – 18 percent
4.    Gray – 14 percent
5.    Red – 8 percent
6.    Blue – 6 percent
7.    Brown/Beige – 6 percent
8.    Green – 1 percent
9.    Yellow/Gold – 1 percent
10.  Others – 2 percent

The Breakdown

In North America, vehicle color in 2012 followed the global trend and for the sixth consecutive year was dominated by white/white pearl in the DuPont report, with a 24 percent market share, and also led the compact/sport and truck/SUV segment.

Black/black effect was at the top of the intermediate/CUV segment and luxury/luxury SUV segment popularity ranks in North America, with 19 percent of the overall market.

Solid blacks are most favored in the truck segment, while metallic blacks have been widely used in all segments, especially in luxury/luxury SUV, DuPont said.

For the first time since 1998, silver did not lead in any North American vehicle segments, but took third place overall with 16 percent market share.

Gray rose two percentage points in 2012 as it saw increases in the truck, luxury and intermediate vehicle segments.

For the past 10 years, the top four color preferences of white, black, silver and gray have represented the most popular color choices.

Rounding out the top five color choices for 2012 across each vehicle segment and consequently, overall in the region, was red, with 10 percent of the market.

European Market

In the European market, white/white pearl overtook black/black effect in 2012 as Europe’s most popular vehicle hue, with 24 percent of the overall European market.

Black/black effect has been dropping in popularity in Europe since its peak in 2009, according to DuPont, and slipped to second place overall with 23 percent of the market. However, black did maintain its lead in the intermediate/MPV and luxury/luxury SUV categories.

Gray, at 15 percent, and silver, at 14 percent, both decreased in popularity this year too, while blue rose to eight percent of the overall European market in 2012.

Asia Pacific

White, black and gray ranked as the top colors in the Asia Pacific region overall in the DuPoint report, with white overtaking silver for the lead this year with 22 percent market share.

Black and gray were at 21 and 20 percent respectively, while silver dropped to fourth with 14 percent. Red rounds out the top five colors in the region, with 7 percent of the overall market.

In Japan, white/white pearl continued its popularity for the sixth consecutive year, taking the top spot and 27 percent share, up a point from 2011.

At 22 percent, black/black effect ranked second, and rounding out the top five for Japan are silver, 17 percent; blue, 8 percent; and gray, 7 percent. Red grew slightly, netting 6 percent of the overall market.

“The compact car segment in Japan shows more eco-trends with more natural and earthy color choices, which we expect to see more of in the market moving forward,” said Kumiko Ohmura, DuPont color marketing manager, Asia Pacific.

South Korea, meanwhile, has the highest popularity of white/white pearl in the Asia Pacific region at 28 percent, an increase of 3 percent over 2011 and overtaking the longtime leader, silver, by 3 percent.

Black/black effect represent 16 percent of the South Korean market and gray colors 15 percent, with blue and red tied in fifth at 5 percent each.

For the first time in China, black/black effect topped the market with 24 percent. Silver ranked second with 20 percent, while gray increased to 17 percent, tying with white/white pearl. Red rounds out the top five overall at 9 percent.

India saw the lightest colors at the top of the color popularity charts: Silver leads with 28 percent of the overall market, while white/white pearl is a close second at 27 percent, and light versions of brown/beige rank third with 12 percent. Gray follows with 11 percent, and black receives its lowest global ranking in India, at 7 percent.

Color in Russia

In the Russian market, white/white pearl, 18 percent; silver, 15 percent; and black/black effect, 14 percent, lead the color preference charts, but more vibrant colors are on the rise.

Red is in a race with black/black effect for third place, with 13 percent of the market, and blue follows with 12 percent. Green shows the highest ranking in the world in the Russian market, with 8 percent.    

South America

Silver was most popular in the South American market with 29 percent share, down 1 percent from last year. White/white pearl increased 4 percent to move into second place, with 21 percent.

Rounding out the top five colors in South America are black/black effect, 19 percent; gray, 13 percent; and red, 9 percent.

South Africa

South Africa had the world’s highest market share of white/white pearl of any region or country analyzed by DuPont in this year’s report, with more than 38 percent share.

Silver followed in second with 20 percent, while black/black effect and gray tied for third place with 13 percent of the market each. Red and blue rounded out the top five colors, each represented 5 percent.

“Color Mind” Showcases Global Color Trends

As a complement to its 60th Global Automotive Color Popularity Report, this year’s DuPont global color collection showcases new trends and technologies to inspire automotive designers.

The latest collection, called “Color Mind,” focuses on four groups:

Noble Ambition: Colors associated with exceptional luxury and quality

Individual Attitude: High visibility design trends and modern colors

Progressive Nature: Feature innovative technologies and energy initiatives

Authentic History: Revived past color favorites reformulated with a modern twist.

Earlier this year, DuPont and The Carlyle Group announced a definitive agreement in which Carlyle will purchase DuPont Performance Coatings for $4.9 billion in cash. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter 2013.