These Are The Best Paint Colors That We Saw In 2017

Manufacturers finally decided to get a bit different in 2017.

Last year, we came up with a list of our favorite car colors that were available in 2016. Now that 2017 is almost over we wanted to look back on the interesting paint colors that wowed us over the year. Only one car from last year's list made it onto this year's. The rest of the paint colors were found on brand-new models that weren't even available last year. We like to see the turnover because it shows that the industry isn't just content to do the same thing over and over.

When McLaren first revealed the configurator for the new 720S, it showed off a bespoke model from McLaren Special Operations. This bespoke model was called the 720S Velocity, and it blended Nerello Red carbon fiber bodywork at the front with Volcano Red at the back and sides. This combination creates a truly unique looks that really makes the 720S pop. The 720S comes in a variety of amazing colors that could have made our list, but sadly we could only choose one.

Our second color also comes from a British automaker that could easily have had more than one color appear on this list. Aston Martin made headlines this year by releasing the new Vantage in a blinding shade called Lime Essence. While this color certainly grabbed our attention, it wouldn't be our first choice for a gentleman's sports car. That is why we decided on Ocellus Teal, a lovely shade of blue on the DB11. We think that this color is very vibrant, but it doesn't stick out too much on what is meant to be a low key grand tourer.

The Dodge Challenger/Charger is the only model on this list that carries over from 2016. Dodge has been known to offer some of the most badass colors on the market that go well with badass models like the Hellcat. For 2017, Dodge offered a new color on the Charger and Challenger called Destroyer Grey. This is a flat grey color that is very much like Ford's Avalanche Grey or Audi's Nardo Grey. Flat grey is a very popular color right now, because it stays clean, looks cool, but isn't too outlandish. Of course, Dodge also gave its color an awesome name to go along with some of its best color names like Plum Crazy Purple.

In almost every press photo that we saw for the Alfa Romeo Giulia, it was painted red. This quickly became the signature color for the car. When the company revealed the Giulia Veloce, it showed it off in a lovely color called Misano Blue. This color has quickly become one of our favorites this year. Misano Blue is now available on the standard Giulia as well as the Quadrifoglio for just $600 extra. This lovely hue can also be ordered on the Stelvio, so even your SUV can look gorgeous.

The final color on our list is called Sonoma Green, and it comes on the new Audi RS5. Audi has come up with dozens of cool colors over the years, many of which can be special ordered for a cost. Many automakers have been making cool shades of red, blue and grey, but hardly any companies have been focusing on green. A few supercar companies like to use bright greens, but Audi has created a lovely dark green for the RS5. We think that Sonoma Green looks fantastic and we'd order it in a heartbeat. What were your favorite colors of 2017? Did we miss one of your favorites? Let us know in the comments.

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An Aston Martin Valkyrie Will Have Real Moon Dust In Its Paint

This takes car customization to a whole new level.

The Valkyrie currently in development by Aston Martin and Red Bull promises to be a revolutionary hypercar with race-derived technology. Aston Martin also allows customers to extensively customise their Valkyrie to make each car unique. For one future owner, changing the exterior paint color simply wasn’t enough. Instagram user Lamborghiniks, who also owns a Pagani Huayra BC, Lamborghini Veneno, Koenigsegg Agera XS, has placed an order for a Valkyrie and is planning to put real moon dust into the hypercar’s paint. Yes, you read that correctly.

The hypercar’s striking, futuristic design already looks like something out of a science fiction film, but this takes it to another level. Writing on Instagram, the entrepreneur revealed that he has purchased a rock from the moon which will be ground down to dust and used in the hypercar’s Karosserie Lunar Red paint, in what will be the first car feature a paint formula that includes actual ingredients from space. As bragging rights go, it’s certainly a unique attribute. How much this procedure will cost hasn’t been revealed, neither has the cost of his Valkyrie. The starting price for the hypercar is $2.6 million, but this unique example will have no doubt cost a lot more.

Only 150 Aston Martin Valkyrie’s are being produced, so it’s not as if this future owner will have trouble standing out from the crowd. It is, after all, essentially a race car for the road, with a naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12 cosworth engine will delivering over 1,000-hp. Aston Martin even boldly claims the Valkyrie AMR Pro will be capable of setting lap times rivalling Formula One cars. Still, this will no doubt be one of the most unique Valkyrie’s of them all and should look spectacular when the unusual paint finish is completed.

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10 Audis That Show Why Custom Paint Is Always Best

Don't settle for a standard color. Go bold with one of these amazing cars.

One of our favorite options that we love to recommend on expensive cars is a custom paint job. Manufacturers sometimes have a different name for this option. For example, Porsche's is called paint-to-sample and Audi's is called Audi Exclusive Paint. We have shown off some of our favorite Audi colors over the years, but thanks to the exclusive paint option, all of them are still available for a cost. We did some digging and we found 10 brand new Audi models that have all been optioned with an amazing shade of Audi Exclusive Paint.

Our first car is a 2017 R8 V10 that has been painted in a lovely shade of Solar Orange. Even though Audi does offer the R8 in several bold colors such as Dynamite Red and Vegas Yellow, we love the way that the orange really pops on this car. This car is currently for sale for $198,400 at Audi Valencia in California.

Next we have a pair of 2018 Audi RS7 Performance models, both painted in unique shades of blue. The first car is painted in a famous Porsche color known as Mexico Blue. The car is currently for sale at Audi Central Houston for $141,832. The second car is painted in a darker shade of Mercato Blue and is currently for sale at Sloane Porsche Audi in Warrington, Pennsylvania for $146,725.

The second set of RS cars that we found was a pair of RS3 sedans, which are both painted in very different shades of green. This first RS3 is painted in a bright shade of Viper Green and is currently for sale at Audi of Tampa in Florida for $74,225. The second car is painted in a darker shade of Deep Green Pearl Effect and is currently for sale for $70,825 at VW Audi of Naples.

The final RS model on our list is a 2018 TT RS that is painted in a Merlin Purple. The car is currently for sale for $77,025 at Audi North Miami in Florida. The TT RS is currently the most rare RS model in the US, so finding one with an Audi Exclusive color like this one will not be easy.

The hardcore RS models are not the only cars that can be ordered with Audi Exclusive paint. We found several S models, including this 2018 S4 sedan, with some interesting paint options. This 2018 S4 is painted in the same Solar Orange that was found on the R8. The car is currently for sale for $72,025 at Audi Morton Grove in Illinois.

Finally, we managed to find a trio of 2018 Audi S5 models with Audi Exclusive Paint options. The first two are S5 Sportback models, which means that they have two rear doors and a fastback hatch design. The first car is painted in Nardo Grey, a popular Audi RS color that is not normally available on the S5. The car is currently for sale at Mentor Audi in Ohio for $72,800. The second Sportback is painted in Sprint Blue and is currently for sale at Audi West Palm Beach in Florida for $72,275. Finally, we also found an S5 Coupe painted in Alpine Green at Audi Escondido in California for $70,475.

Audi's New Paint Tech Allows You To Go Completely Custom

A special edition version of the Audi Q2 crossover will debut this awesome new paint.

Audi has announced it’s become the first car manufacturer to put partial matting into mass production. While Audi already allows customers to extensively customize their cars to their specification, the new innovative paint process will allow practically limitless personalization. Now, you can make your Audi truly unique. The first model to benefit from this innovative paint process will be a new special edition version of the Q2 crossover dubbed the Q2 #2. This is how it works.

A fine beam minimally roughens the top layer of paint to create a matt image. As a result, lettering, logos or photos can be displayed on the painted sheet metal “with pixel accuracy and abrasion resistance”. Audi is the first car manufacturer to offer its customers this kind of individualization.

The process was developed by a team in the Technology Development division at Audi’s Ingolstadt plant. Here’s how it works. In the first step, an employee sticks a template made of thin plastic film onto the painted component such as the side blade of the Audi Q2 shown in photos. A specially developed system sprays the component under vacuum with a fine powder of crushed glass.

This removes a few thousandths of a millimeter from the top layer of clear lacquer and roughens it slightly at the same time. Thanks to the difference in surface structure, the motif stands out clearly after the template is removed. Each painted surface in the interior or exterior of the car can be individualized in this way, which Audi says gives the automaker an advantage over its competitors.

To showcase this new process, the Audi Q2 #2 special edition features a large pattern of crosses. It’s been available to order in Germany since October, with other markets to follow. While the Q2 is the first series production car to use partial matting, it isn’t the first Audi to benefit from the paint process - that would be the Audi R8 Coupe V10 plus “selection 24h” special edition that commemorated the success of the Audi R8 LMS racing car. The car featured matted “R8” lettering on the CFRP sideblades, but the partial matting was mostly done by hand at the time.

10 Audis That Show Why Custom Paint Is Always Best

Don't settle for a standard color. Go bold with one of these amazing cars.

One of our favorite options that we love to recommend on expensive cars is a custom paint job. Manufacturers sometimes have a different name for this option. For example, Porsche's is called paint-to-sample and Audi's is called Audi Exclusive Paint. We have shown off some of our favorite Audi colors over the years, but thanks to the exclusive paint option, all of them are still available for a cost. We did some digging and we found 10 brand new Audi models that have all been optioned with an amazing shade of Audi Exclusive Paint.

Our first car is a 2017 R8 V10 that has been painted in a lovely shade of Solar Orange. Even though Audi does offer the R8 in several bold colors such as Dynamite Red and Vegas Yellow, we love the way that the orange really pops on this car. This car is currently for sale for $198,400 at Audi Valencia in California.

Next we have a pair of 2018 Audi RS7 Performance models, both painted in unique shades of blue. The first car is painted in a famous Porsche color known as Mexico Blue. The car is currently for sale at Audi Central Houston for $141,832. The second car is painted in a darker shade of Mercato Blue and is currently for sale at Sloane Porsche Audi in Warrington, Pennsylvania for $146,725.

The second set of RS cars that we found was a pair of RS3 sedans, which are both painted in very different shades of green. This first RS3 is painted in a bright shade of Viper Green and is currently for sale at Audi of Tampa in Florida for $74,225. The second car is painted in a darker shade of Deep Green Pearl Effect and is currently for sale for $70,825 at VW Audi of Naples.

The final RS model on our list is a 2018 TT RS that is painted in a Merlin Purple. The car is currently for sale for $77,025 at Audi North Miami in Florida. The TT RS is currently the most rare RS model in the US, so finding one with an Audi Exclusive color like this one will not be easy.

The hardcore RS models are not the only cars that can be ordered with Audi Exclusive paint. We found several S models, including this 2018 S4 sedan, with some interesting paint options. This 2018 S4 is painted in the same Solar Orange that was found on the R8. The car is currently for sale for $72,025 at Audi Morton Grove in Illinois.

Finally, we managed to find a trio of 2018 Audi S5 models with Audi Exclusive Paint options. The first two are S5 Sportback models, which means that they have two rear doors and a fastback hatch design. The first car is painted in Nardo Grey, a popular Audi RS color that is not normally available on the S5. The car is currently for sale at Mentor Audi in Ohio for $72,800. The second Sportback is painted in Sprint Blue and is currently for sale at Audi West Palm Beach in Florida for $72,275. Finally, we also found an S5 Coupe painted in Alpine Green at Audi Escondido in California for $70,475.

10 Audis That Show Why Custom Paint Is Always Best

Don't settle for a standard color. Go bold with one of these amazing cars.

One of our favorite options that we love to recommend on expensive cars is a custom paint job. Manufacturers sometimes have a different name for this option. For example, Porsche's is called paint-to-sample and Audi's is called Audi Exclusive Paint. We have shown off some of our favorite Audi colors over the years, but thanks to the exclusive paint option, all of them are still available for a cost. We did some digging and we found 10 brand new Audi models that have all been optioned with an amazing shade of Audi Exclusive Paint.

Our first car is a 2017 R8 V10 that has been painted in a lovely shade of Solar Orange. Even though Audi does offer the R8 in several bold colors such as Dynamite Red and Vegas Yellow, we love the way that the orange really pops on this car. This car is currently for sale for $198,400 at Audi Valencia in California.

Next we have a pair of 2018 Audi RS7 Performance models, both painted in unique shades of blue. The first car is painted in a famous Porsche color known as Mexico Blue. The car is currently for sale at Audi Central Houston for $141,832. The second car is painted in a darker shade of Mercato Blue and is currently for sale at Sloane Porsche Audi in Warrington, Pennsylvania for $146,725.

The second set of RS cars that we found was a pair of RS3 sedans, which are both painted in very different shades of green. This first RS3 is painted in a bright shade of Viper Green and is currently for sale at Audi of Tampa in Florida for $74,225. The second car is painted in a darker shade of Deep Green Pearl Effect and is currently for sale for $70,825 at VW Audi of Naples.

The final RS model on our list is a 2018 TT RS that is painted in a Merlin Purple. The car is currently for sale for $77,025 at Audi North Miami in Florida. The TT RS is currently the most rare RS model in the US, so finding one with an Audi Exclusive color like this one will not be easy.

The hardcore RS models are not the only cars that can be ordered with Audi Exclusive paint. We found several S models, including this 2018 S4 sedan, with some interesting paint options. This 2018 S4 is painted in the same Solar Orange that was found on the R8. The car is currently for sale for $72,025 at Audi Morton Grove in Illinois.

Finally, we managed to find a trio of 2018 Audi S5 models with Audi Exclusive Paint options. The first two are S5 Sportback models, which means that they have two rear doors and a fastback hatch design. The first car is painted in Nardo Grey, a popular Audi RS color that is not normally available on the S5. The car is currently for sale at Mentor Audi in Ohio for $72,800. The second Sportback is painted in Sprint Blue and is currently for sale at Audi West Palm Beach in Florida for $72,275. Finally, we also found an S5 Coupe painted in Alpine Green at Audi Escondido in California for $70,475.