Check out our gallery of eye-catching colors seen at the 2019 Chicago Auto Show.
Traditional auto shows are facing plenty of challenges these days, as manufacturer priorities shift and the new-vehicle marketplace evolves. One thing has stayed the same, though: an auto show offers an unparalleled opportunity to compare competitive cars back-to-back, and to “tire-kick” a broad range of vehicles in a short amount of time. For an auto journalist, these shows are also a great way to spot industry trends large and small.
One of our favorite Chicago Auto Show traditions is to walk the show floor with an eye out for out-of-the-ordinary factory colors, and we did just that once again this year. (You can check out last year’s batch here.) This is not a comprehensive list… it’s simply a gallery of quick snapshots of colors that stood out from the norm and made us look twice. Several of these hues are extra-cost options, and a couple are special limited-production models (and at least one—the MX-5 Miata 30th Anniversary—is already sold out). We’ve arranged the photos below in roughly “rainbow” order, with a couple of muted-but-interesting outliers at the end. Can you pick a favorite?
Local Color: Unusual Paint Hues at the 2018 Chicago Auto Show
Local Color: Unusual Paint Hues at the 2017 Chicago Auto Show
2019 Car Colors
Molten Lava Pearl
2019 Honda Civic sedan in Molten Lava Pearl
Soul Red Crystal Metallic
2019 Mazda CX-5 in Soul Red Crystal Metallic
Infrared
2019 Lexus RC in Infrared
Chili Red
2019 Volkswagen Arteon in Chili Red
Hot Pepper Red
2019 Ford Ranger in Hot Pepper Red
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Sedona Orange Metallic
2019 Ford Escape in Sedona Orange Metallic
Cadmium Orange
2019 Lexus UX in Cadmium Orange
Crush
2019 Chevrolet Camaro in Crush
Orange Spice Metallic
2019 Ford Fiesta ST in Orange Spice Metallic
Racing Orange
2019 Mazda MX-5 Miata 30th Anniversary in Racing Orange (color is unique to the 30th Anniversary edition)
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Orange Fury Metallic Tri-Coat
2019 Ford Mustang GT in Orange Fury Metallic Tri-Coat
Flare Yellow
2019 Lexus LC 500 in Flare Yellow (color is restricted to a limited edition of 100 “Inspiration Series” models)
Tonic Yellow Pearl
2019 Honda Civic coupe in Tonic Yellow Pearl
Sublime
2019 Dodge Challenger in Sublime
Cliff Green
2019 Volkswagen Golf R in Cliff Green
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Olive Green
2019 Jeep Compass in Olive Green
Undercover Green
2020 Kia Soul in Undercover Green
Great Falls Green Metallic
2019 Volkswagen Golf Alltrack in Great Falls Green Metallic
Dark Moss Green Metallic
2019 Volkswagen Tiguan in Dark Moss Green Metallic
Blue Flame
2019 Toyota C-HR in Blue Flame
Caribbean Blue Metallic
2019 Chevrolet Spark in Caribbean Blue Metallic
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Ultra Blue
2019 Jaguar F-Pace in Ultra Blue
Caesium Blue
2019 Jaguar I-Pace in Caesium Blue
Night Blue Metallic
2019 Volkswagen Golf SportWagen in Night Blue Metallic
Plum Crazy
2019 Dodge Charger in Plum Crazy
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Silver Spruce Metallic
2019 Ford Expedition in Silver Spruce Metallic
Sonic Gray
2019 Honda Civic Type R in Sonic Gray
Quicksand
2019 Toyota Tundra in Quicksand
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2019 Car Colors
Local Color: Unusual Paint Hues at the 2018 Chicago Auto Show
