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For Elisha Jakubowski of Rochester, buying a new car has as much to do with Martha Stewart as Jackie Stewart.

Sure, Jakubowski looks at engine size, performance, styling and gas mileage when picking a new car. But if it's not offered in a color she likes, she is moving on to a new model.

"I'm a woman. Of course, color's important," Jakubowski said while checking out the new cars and colors at the 2006 North American International Auto Show.

Those who track trends in the auto industry agree, noting a recent survey that reported that 34% of car buyers will opt for another model if they can't get their first choice in a color they like.

Color designers say that, after a period in the 1990s dominated by conservative, neutral colors, car buyers are celebrating the new millennium by expressing themselves and their individualism by buying cars with bolder colors.

Christopher Webb, exterior coloring trend designer from General Motors Corp.'s North American operations, said it is not much of a surprise. With the popularity of home decorating and designer television shows, people are painting their home interiors in more daring colors. Therefore, it is not much of a leap, style- and comfort-wise, for someone to go from a blue-walled home to a blue-colored car.

Car colors "follow lifestyle trends," said Webb, who also is a member of the Color Marketing Group, a global color organization the forecasts color directions and trends.

"The average consumer is more design-savvy," he said. "People want something unique."

But it wasn't always that way. Henry Ford was credited with saying that customers could have his Model T in any color they wanted as long as it was black. Over the years more colors were introduced into car lineups.

Webb said the 1980s conspicuous-consumption era featured bolder-colored cars in bright reds and yellows. The 1990s were more conservative, dominated by neutrals such as black and white. In fact, the 1997 list of the most popular car colors includes light brown, dark green, white, black, silver, medium and dark red and dark blue.

"Now we're back to a period of expressing individualism," Webb said.

"Blue is returning as the biggest, most important color," Webb said. "Red is important. Blue is important. You put them together and you get purple. There's a purplish-red Rolls-Royce at the auto show. There's a dark purple on the Chevy Equinox."

Sandy Mathia, color design specialist for BASF's Automotive OEM Coatings Solutions, said tinted grays are a way "to subtly introduce new colors."

She also said that "saturated pastels -- like a soft blue but not a baby blue" will be popular in the next few years. These lush pastels evoke peace and tranquility, Mathia said.

"Silvers will be taking on more color and also popular will be dark colors that are almost black," she said. "It will be colors you look twice at. It might be dark blue or dark red. I call them 'head turners.' "

Webb calls this trend "emerging hue" or "shifting pigment."

"It's almost like a prism," he said. "The color moves as you move around the car."

Bolder, more daring colors, of course, look more at home on certain models compared to others. For instance, it makes sense that a fun, retro car such as the Chevy HHR would come in a color called "sunburst orange." Don't look for that color to be offered on the Cadillac DTS.

"The design of a car lends itself to certain colors," Mathia said. "Sports vehicles have design characteristics that amplify certain colors."

But Webb said bold colors on some luxury brands can work. He said Cadillac offered the Escalade EXT in a bright blue for a short time and it was the top-selling color.

He said this trend toward offering a certain color on a model for a limited time also is emerging. Chevrolet, Webb said, once offered only 99 vehicles in "anniversary red." He said automakers in the future will offer colors for a short run on vehicles.

"People want something that others don't have or can't have," he said.

But Jakubowski, who was perusing a "cypress green" Saturn Vue Green Line hybrid SUV, isn't one of those people. She tends to stick with the safer colors, such as her current black.

"I learned early on that you never buy a car that's not re-sellable," she said.

Eyeing the green Saturn Vue, she said: "It's pretty, but I wouldn't buy it. Not everybody would like it."

Brian Stephens of Detroit is of a different opinion.

"As long as it's not purple, you'll get the same price for it," he said as he looked over some GMC pickup trucks.

But his friend Charlie Paige of Ypsilanti likes to play it safe.

"Silver is my color preference," she said. "I like the classic colors when it comes to cars. Rich blacks and reds and silvers -- those traditional colors."

Talitha Harris of Warren would like a new car just so she can get rid of her gold one. Her husband, Jason, admits she didn't want the car because of the color when he bought it a few years back.

"I like color," Talitha Harris said. "Iridescent colors like a spicy red that make people notice."

Jason Harris said he liked the orange on the Dodge Challenger and the "ice blue" on an Aston Martin. He didn't care for a cranberry-colored Saturn nearby. "Get it out of here," he said.

Nick Martinez and Mohammed Bazzi of Dearborn checked out the Generation Y models at the Scion display. Both said, the brighter and bolder the colors, the better.

"You want your car to make a statement," Martinez said. "You want people to notice you, to say, 'Hey, there goes Nick.'"

Bazzi said your car should reflect your personality.

"People who know me know I'm an outgoing, fun guy," he said. "It wouldn't make sense for me to have a car that is a low-key color. That's not me. The color of my ride has to have sparkle and personality, just like me."

source: http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a...80306/1120/RSS

GeoChevyCobalt

Ya, color is important but No Hot pink cars for me. Anyway I would go for something that was clean but stud out in a pack of cars.

Raiden8816

iTrader: (3)

agreed, i never see any sunburnt orange metallic cobalts on the road. but if i do, it does stand out from the other cars on the road.

BTW: pink was only good on a eldarado cadilliac, not on any new car.....maybe a honda for some laughs, but thats all.

artawesome

i told my salesman that black was my 1st choice ...the yellow..then white, blue and red bring my last choice. well red is all they had that had all of my options that i wanted...as you can see, i had no choise. i wanted a cobalt!!!!!!!!!!

trent_ky

The orange color was the reason I bought my car...I would probably still have a trailblazer (which isnt a bad thing) if there wasnt an orange color for the balt. God bless you Chevy!

CobaltSS422

I had a 2004 Black Trailblazer LS and turned it back into the dealer for my SS/SC. But I only had 15,000 miles on mine.. 100,500 on a 2003. That's a lot of driving

alleycat58

She makes me ashamed to be a woman...way to make us all look shallow and stupid when it comes to cars, lady!

RaineMan

Heheh.... after owning a bright red pickup with custom flame graphics... I didn't want anything that would stand out. I just got good ol' silver... ya' see a million silver cars every day... nobody pays much attention to a silver car.

GT_Desperado

Standing out isn't always a good thing, like when a speeding. Bold colors attract attention from cops more.

silentgarth

speeding is speeding, yeah you might get aalittlle bit more attention if your in a yellow car like mine. But when you go FLYING by a cop he/she is going to pull you over regardless of color.

09G5GT

You know what, I think a special edition pink Cadillac XLR would sell fast. It has pimp written all over it.