With the popularity of blue as a new car finish very much on the rise, refinish paint specialist Standox has provided some interesting insights into the popular colour.

Blue has the largest colour position of any colour, with 20,000 different variations from pale baby blue to dark midnight blue, and everything in between. The Egyptians first created blue pigments around 2200BC and its popularity persisted throughout the Roman Empire and Greco-Roman period.

Around 430AD, the Church first portrayed the Virgin Mary wearing a blue robe. This shade became known as Navy Blue. It stood for innocence and trustworthiness. Later blue was much sought after by artists. Art historians believe that Michelangelo left a painting unfinished because he was not able to afford the ultramarine blue he wanted, while Cobalt Blue was used extensively by Renoir and Van Gogh, and Picasso favoured Prussian Blue during his Blue Period .

Olaf Adamek, Standox Brand Manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa, says, “Blue pigments have their roots in art, and as a brand that has The Art of Refinish at its heart, we know the diversity of blue all too well in the refinish industry. A car is never just blue. Some blues evoke a calming feeling from nature, but there are other blues, so-called pure blues, that express more dynamism and energy, and this is why you often see these blues on expensive cars.”

Europe is the only region in the world where blue has a double-digit share of new car sales, at 10%. And this popularity is clearly reflected in the Standox global colour database, Standowin iQ: for all passenger cars there are more than 21% colours that are categorised as blue. This compares to 15% for grey and 11% for red.

Dark blues especially are not the easiest colours to match. The Axalta labs ensure all the blue refinish formulas have the tints with the right pigments so that refinishers have the ability to create perfect colour matches for any hue. Adamek says, “We continually bring new blue tints to market so that our refinishers can always deliver quality results. Blue as a car colour is gaining traction in Europe, so refinishers have to ensure they are ready to tackle the full spectrum of those popular yet tricky colours to get right-first-time, high-quality perfection in the spray booth.”