8. New Paints

Paints are changing — adding texture, visual effects and variety.

Two-tone paint schemes have reemerged on the Mini and now Ford’s Flex, which will allow buyers to choose a white roof or silver roof. Matte paints, long sought by designers, have proven technically difficult to produce with consistency, but now Dupont claims major progress.

Some examples were shown on the Chevrolet Beat, Groove and Trax concepts at the 2007 New York Auto Show. The orange Trax had fenders in which a new sort of matte paint — an orange hue — was baked into the composite material, giving a new look and reducing costs.

These cars were built on the platform of the Corsa that General Motors sells in Europe. GM design chief Ed Welburn says the trio of small concept cars unveiled in New York could influence the style of the next generation Aveo, the smallest Chevrolet.

At last year’s Specialty Equipment Marketers Association show in Las Vegas, where car customizers show their wares, matte blacks inspired by the hot-rod culture were popular. GM’s paint guru Chris Webb reports that new varieties of richer browns are becoming fashionable, because they suggest coffee and chocolate.

Bruce Campbell, head of Nissan’s La Jolla design studio, chose a metallic brown for the Bevel, his concept of a vehicle for the empty nester, aging boomer — the sort of buyer trend watchers say car companies must attract.

“There are lots of new sorts of paints coming along,” says Ford designer Patrick Schiavone. “Imagine a beautiful velvet or satin finish with a lot of mica in it.”

Read more about new paints coming soon in A Bold and Bright Future for Car Colors.