BASF Coatings says “non-human intelligence” was a strong driver for the creation of the On Volude collection from Automotive Colour Trends by BASF for 2023-2024.
According to BASF, On Volude provides exciting colours that also adopt an increasing focus on sustainability and functionality. The company said its customers rely on the BASF collection to design automotive colours for their future models, with consumers to see the new direction on the road in the next three to five model years.
“When BASF’s designers looked at what their trend signals were telling them, they realised it’s time for a colour update, as the classic automobile colour wheel has had its day,” said the company. “Non-classic automotive hues emerged, propelling colours through a series of shifts reflecting a positive mood, with a focus on lighter shades and the exploration of new, expressive colour spaces.”
ASIA PACIFIC
For On Volude, BASF said designers in Asia Pacific (APAC) explored and “enriched” the important colour spaces for whites and greys, while adventurous new colour spaces like shimmering green pastel and fluorescent red offer new expressions to meet the growing individuality of car buyers in the region.
The collection shows “realistic” approaches to sustainable materials, sustainable processes, and a diversity of sustainable concepts and effects.
“This palette can create amazing colour harmonies that are futuristic, modern, and playful interactions between colour and effect combinations,” said Chiharu Matsuhara, Head of Automotive Colour Design for APAC. “These sustainable concepts are re-imagined in a more realistic way, boosting BASF’s leadership in sustainability.”
Electronic Citrus, the APAC key colour.
EMEA
BASF said the palette for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) puts a highlight on bright beige colours. Pastels also play an important role, introducing “interesting” non-automotive colour positions into automotive design.
As seen throughout the On Volude collection, colours in EMEA explore features beyond colour position, adding sustainable and recycled raw materials, lidar and radar compatible concepts, and haptic surfaces.
“Expressive colours reflect our will to communicate and speak up,” said Mark Gutjahr, Head of Automotive Colour Design for EMEA. “When we bring non-automotive colours into the mix, we broaden that conversation even further into new and exciting colour spaces.”
Predictor, the EMEA key colour.
AMERICAS
According to BASF, “the Americas palette seeks optimism and divergence that celebrates possibilities in all modes of art and design. The colour spaces are evolving in their functionality while building in excitement.”
The collection features softer hues, minimised textures, and subtle moves that aspire toward future goals near and far. Colours in the Americas contribute to cooling effects in vehicles with solar reflectance, work with sensor-based mobility concepts, and explore more approaches with responsible raw material sourcing.
“In this year’s collection, red-leaning pastels and mid-tones are replaced by restorative yellow and green effects suggesting renewal,” said Liz Hoffman, Head of Automotive Colour Design for the Americas. “The connection complements both grounded colour spaces and other-worldly escapes. It shows evolving mindsets in automotive design.”
Zenomenon, the Americas key colour.