How the visible colour of everyday things has changed, measured where measurement exists: cars, consumer objects, interiors and products. The evidence for a 'great desaturation' is real in some domains, weak in others and absent in several, and this section keeps those apart.
Only published observations are charted. Where no dataset exists for a domain, the section says so rather than drawing a line through isolated points. Forecasts and colour-of-the-year announcements live in Colour Trends.
7 topics · 31 evidence-labelled claims · 30 sources
White, black, grey and silver together, as a share of new cars worldwide, in every report edition that publishes all four (or its own total). Beyond cars, the evidence is 2 findings pointing towards neutral, 4 pointing towards colour, and 4 places where no dataset exists at all.
| Year | Neutral share | Report |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 77% (sum of parts) | DuPont 2009 report |
| 2010 | 82% (sum of parts) | DuPont 2010 report |
| 2011 | 77% (sum of parts) | DuPont 2011 report |
| 2012 | 76% (sum of parts) | DuPont 2012 report |
| 2019 | 80% | Axalta 2019 report |
| 2019 | 78% (sum of parts) | BASF 2019 report |
| 2021 | 77% (sum of parts) | BASF 2021 report |
| 2022 | 82% | Axalta 2022 report |
| 2022 | 81% (sum of parts) | BASF 2022 report |
| 2023 | 81% (sum of parts) | Axalta 2023 report |
| 2024 | 84% (sum of parts) | Axalta 2024 report |
| 2024 | 81% (sum of parts) | BASF 2024 report |
| 2025 | 81% (sum of parts) | Axalta 2025 report |
| 2025 | 83% (sum of parts) | BASF 2025 report |
What has actually been measured, domain by domain.
Proposed drivers, labelled as interpretation where they are.
Where colour is coming back, and how strong that evidence is.