From nanotechnology to diamond dust.
The most expensive car paint costs $2,000 per gallon. It was developed by Lexus and copied the beautiful and vivid blue of the American Morpho butterfly. In addition, it is not actually blue because there is no blue pigment in the wings of the American Morpho butterfly. This is a technique of light, Lexus spares no effort to reconstruct the chemical structure that produces this effect, and can only be done with 40 separate layers of paint.
It took several years to develop and a team to apply, but Lexus painted a blue paint, you can put your hand on your heart to tell people that it is not actually blue. However, you can only do this if you can get one of the 40 Lexus LC Special Editions with this hue. If Lexus offered it as a color option, it would be very expensive. This idea makes us wonder what is the most expensive paint option to order from the factory.
"The paint is designed with mica, metal flakes and ultra-high transparency nano-pigments, and is painted in multiple primers using PMC's advanced robotic coating system to enhance color strength. Then there are two layers of varnish to increase the gloss of the paint," Acura said that the two most expensive paint options available for NSX in the near world. Mica is a crystalline mineral that can produce multicolored pearlescent effects. Nanopigments provide coatings with many positive properties, including color strength and the ability to obtain a uniform finish. On the NSX, it costs US$6,000, and you can see the vividness of the colors and saturation in the photos. Personally, you can see the depth and sparkle of the paint.
In 2012, BMW launched 40 BMW M3 Frozen Black Edition, as well as gray, silver and blue versions. The special edition celebrates the 40th anniversary of the founding of the BMW M division. It is priced at US$81,060, which is approximately US$10,000 higher than models of similar specifications. Frozen Edition models are equipped with a competition package to match a 414-horsepower V8 and dual-clutch transmission, and are equipped with 19-inch M3 GTS-style black wheels. The paint is a delicate matte coating that can be easily damaged. BMW asked the customer to sign a waiver. If they did not maintain the paint properly, the warranty is invalid. The Frozen Edition M3 has a pretty good value retention rate. Last year we saw a product priced at $40,000.
According to legend, the reason why the metal bodies of Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union Silver Arrow cars are exposed and polished rather than painted with white lead paint is to reduce weight. Whether it is true or not, the mirror finish looks incredible. Obtaining any kind of true mirror effect from paint is expensive; therefore, it rarely appears in cars. However, Mercedes provided Alubeam coatings to SLS AMG customers at a cost of US$12,750. This is on top of the basic car price of approximately US$200,000.
In order for the blue and silver mirror effect of the paint to be correct, the vehicle must be carefully prepared. The aluminum body was very smooth before applying seven layers of deep and smooth paint. In the entire production cycle of SLS AMG, only three vehicles are produced per week, but the paint does not require special care. Since then, other Mercedes vehicles can also use this color. However, if paint correction is required for scratches or wear, it will be very expensive.
This is not a comprehensive list, because when you start talking about real high-end cars, prices are not discussed publicly. However, one of the 125 people on the list to purchase Koenigsegg Jesko glanced at the configurator option. To say the least, the price is crazy. The cost of a bare carbon fiber body is 292,000 US dollars, and the cost of colored carbon fiber is as high as 346,100 US dollars. However, it becomes even more absurd, with the bare carbon fiber body option priced at $443,000. However, these do not count as paint options. Metal finishes are priced at US$13,900, and pearlescent paints are priced at US$24,800, but if you want candy color, apple red or sweet orange, you will add 63,300 US dollars to the base price of 2,800,000 US dollars. Considering the other options and the cost of the car, a paint job of $63,300 sounds almost reasonable.
You can now pick a custom color from Porsche for $12,380, but if you want to spend a lot of money on paint, you will need one of the Chromaflair finishes available through Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur. Chromaflair, the specific finish below is Urban Bamboo, and the color will change according to the viewing angle and lighting. The reason it is so expensive is that the pigment contains a multilayer interference film, which is ground into micron-sized flakes. The flake has an aluminum central core and a glass-like layer around it, so the change in the size of the paint layer will affect the change in color. In order to obtain the correct surface treatment, the tolerance of the layer is measured in atomic units. To say that applying paint is hard is an understatement.
Unfortunately, the appearance of Chromaflair is stunning, but it is a photographer's nightmare. You really have to see a painted car to see how amazing it looks.
McLaren sees its Speedtail as a functional jewel, just like a perfectly designed vehicle for transportation. Indeed, a supercar is a work of art, and McLaren is pleased to be able to specify all 106 vehicles according to the wishes of the customer. Among them was a client who wanted her Speedtail to match the hue of the sunset scene she liked. However, the most expensive paint we saw at the McLaren factory was infused with diamond flakes. It is priced at US$130,000. Although the price is too high, it is not as ridiculous as the pure gold tool set you can choose or the platinum badge worth US$56,000.
The cost of this paint has never been officially confirmed. However, given the complexity of the "geometric pattern composed of diamond shapes with unique color contrast" and Bugatti publicly admits that it has almost abandoned the customer's request, we do not doubt the million-dollar estimate. The problem arises when the diamond pattern is scattered on the outline and edges of the Divo. Bugatti must apply the 2D graphics to the 3D model before drawing. Each of the 1,600 diamond shapes must be modified, even if a diamond is one millimeter away from it, it will ruin the effect. Bugatti had to plan carefully on the test car, then try it out on the customer's vehicle, and then spent another two weeks painting it by hand before the graphite and clear coating passed the top.
When it comes to factory paint, Rolls-Royce’s customization department is very willing (if you can afford it) to accept the challenge and realize your dream. In this case, a kind of paint is infused with the dust of a thousand diamonds. Rolls Royce will not disclose the cost of the paint job, but we believe it is in the double-digit millions. To be conservative, a decent 2-carat diamond will cost about $16,000. However, these were ethically sourced in Namibia by an expert who assesses the transmission and reflection of each diamond's light. They were then ground into dust and poured into paint to help create the first Rolls-Royce Ghost Elegance model.