ROME – Cyclical in its aesthetic and transient emanations due to a necessary choice of existential, fashion is not only about the perpetual seasonal alternation of clothing, but also the design of the car and the two-tone finishes for the interior that according to the company PPG specialized in chromatic applications on different surfaces, they have never been like this in aweek.
The double-color fabrics for the interiors experienced the first golden age at the turn of the 50s and 60s when the experimentation of new paths and solutions in each discipline were considered exciting evolutionary developments towards a new way of understanding normality. In the decades following the fabulous sixties however, the two-tone fashion has lost relevance both because of the different individual aesthetic preferences, and because of the application processes that are less and less practicable in mass productions. The paradigm changes again with the arrival of the new millennium in which models such as Mini Cooper, Fiat 500 and some Citroens, successfully re-propose imaginative contrasting textures for bodywork, fabrics, dashboard and interior trim.
Driven by the growing demand from the public, the last two decades have sanctioned the constant proliferation of two-tone finishes and customizations in the cockpits of small cars, flagships, agile super sports cars and monolithic SUVs. The desire to stand out is certainly a central factor of the trend but equally important, they explain in PPG, is the advent of a “precise, revolutionary and linear application technology that does not require the use of masking, thus speeding up operations, and at the same time reducing the ‘environmental impact”. In recent years, the Pittsburgh-based US firm has partnered globally with many auto manufacturers to drive two-tone interiors. The report on colors for cars also highlights how consumer choices are influenced by social changes, the search for a holistic style and sustainable technologies.
“We are a company that looks more and more to the past and it is normal that two-tone is coming back into fashion – explained Misty Yeomans, PPG color styling manager – and together with special colors, colored transparencies, triple-layer colors and opaque finishes. , the dual color theme seems to better reflect the owners’ tastes and personalities “.
Specifically, the research underlines the rise of grays, blues, greens and purples, explaining how bright colors, for example, are more likely to be used on sports models, rather than on Sport utility and Pick-up. Green in particular enjoys increasing admirers because it evokes the link with nature, sustainability, inclusiveness and has two color variants in addition. “One shade – says the report – is sporty, fresh and lively and the second is organic, darker, and with deep and elegant tones.” The fashion of two-tone textures now seems to also affect wheels that can thus integrate even more harmonious, with bodywork and vehicle design. The study also indicates that in the last two years white (35% of vehicles produced) and black (18%) remain predominant over the rest. The two-year period just ended has seen an increase in the demand for grays (plus 2%) with blue stable at 8% while red lost 7 percentage points.
Finally, as regards the ecological footprint, PPG has announced that its application process can reduce painting times to about 50 minutes for each two-tone vehicle, thus minimizing carbon dioxide emissions and eliminating the need for paint systems. high energy consumption air filtration. The American company uses internally developed color technologies that “can coat a wide range of materials and surfaces, shortening development cycles and introducing increasingly beautiful and desirable products to the market”.