Volkswagen: The Colour of Fashion

Press Release

Candy White and Ice Age

• Buyers lean towards white finishes and special-effect variants
• A wide-ranging spectrum of more than 360 colour nuances

Volkswagen customers can choose from a huge spectrum of more than 360 colour finishes and variants. And it is easy to spot new colour trends. Alongside classically favoured black, new shades of silver are now setting the scene on the market, while design enthusiasts are opting for trendy Candy White.

In recent years, Reflex Silver Metallic and Pearlescent Black Magic were the most popular choices of finish for the Polo, Golf, Passat and Co. But Volkswagen offers a spectacular range of finishes for all its vehicles, from the Fox to the Phaeton. Its offering includes a total of 63 series finishes as well as some 300 special finishes, including Broom-Flower Yellow, Rape-Field Yellow or Sulphur Yellow, to name just some of the variants. One colour finish that has been around since the days of air-cooled engines is classic Black (order code “A1 A1”, finish no. “O 41”) – an immortal choice.

The forecast is for a greater demand to develop in future for variations on silver and special-effect variants such as the heliochrome finishes offered in the Phaeton programme. And that means the new Polo BlueMotion caters ideally to the current trend, with Volkswagen’s new Ice Age metallic finish, a variation on silver in light green/turquoise, premiered on this model.

Another trend is already foreseeable: For some months now, a growing number of customers has ordered the Golf GTI in one particular finish, in white. In contrast to red or black, the traditional GTI colours, Candy White gives the Golf GTI a particularly sporty-cum-elegant look and one rich in contrast. The colour favoured by purists and design enthusiasts, white radiates puristic elegance and clarity.

In search of new colour trends, Volkswagen designers direct their observations to a variety of sources: fashion shows in Paris, furniture fairs in Italy or the designs produced by star architects from around the globe. Historical factors come into play as well – they actually led to the pastel tones used on the New Beetle, for example.

The names given to the different finishes are derived from all sorts of sources. Inspired by trade terms used in art, geography, astronomy or music, the colour designers have coined vehicle finishes such as Harvest Moon Beige (New Beetle Cabrio), Tossa Blue (Polo) or Mazeppa Grey metallic (Phaeton). These descriptors are then applied to a spectrum of five variants. Solid tones are the basic finishes in the palette. The Golf is available in the solid finishes Candy White, Pearl Blue and Black, among others. Metallic finishes create a slight shimmer from light to dark. Buyers of the Polo, for example, can choose from a range of six metallic finishes. Brilliance is the effect of a pearlescent finish which gives off an iridescent switch between two colours – black and grey, say. In the case of the Passat, Mocha Charcoal-Grey is a colour offering available exclusively to that car. So-called heliochrome finishes, which give off three different colours, depending on the angle of view, make for a particularly unique look. A blend of three heliochrome colours is available exclusively for the Phaeton. The fifth variant likewise exclusive to the Phaeton is Shiny Black, with a special polish, combined with an extra coat of clear lacquer, creating a spectacularly reflective surface.

There has even been a two-tone finish available ex-works, namely for the New Beetle Domingo, which sported a combination of Solid Black and Pearlescent Winter Red. Since the autumn of 2004, 247 of these rare special-edition models have been registered in Germany. A rarer sight still is the special-edition Golf Speed, with its exclusive finish in Arancio Borealis or Giallo Midas normally used by Lamborghini, a VW Group subsidiary. A strictly limited number of only 100 of these vehicles was produced in each of the two finishes.