As the MINI Plant in Oxford gets ready to commence large scale production of the new MINI later next year, expect availability of some options to change. Specifically we’ve learned that Black Eye Purple (Purple Haze in the US), Liquid Yellow and Solar Red will be discontinued from April production onward. We should see a few other changes later in the year as well.
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… and for those out there who don’t realize it…
Black Eye Purple = Purple Haze
One of my favs is the Liquid Yellow!
wow…that is a VERY short run for solar red…. I’s a shame, it’s a great color.
Saw a bumble bee sitting at a dealership the other day…
MC Black Cabrio..Blk JCW Wheels with JCW Perf Tires..Very Liquid Yellow Colour…..Cool…..(Bonnet stripes???)
Its gonna make the MINI One Seven special edition very rare if they are stopping its unique colour.
BRING BACK JET BLACK WHILE YOUR AT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WTF?
Wow. A 6-7 month run for both Purple Haze and Solar Red. I’m glad I got my Solar Red when I did.
Given that those colors were just introduced, it makes me wonder how long the silver roof option might be around (just wondering out loud. I haven’t heard any rumors to that effect).
<blockquote>Wow. A 6-7 month run for both Purple Haze and Solar Red. I’m glad I got my Solar Red when I did.</blockquote>
Purple Haze was actually introduced in July of 2004.
i understood the the silver roof to bee a limited edition (end of production run) offering. and the three package colors were supposedly limited, as well. maybe a stronger yelllow is on the way.
Gabe: thanks for the clarification
GMINI: yes, that was my understanding as well. I was just speculating if we might see the silver roof go away prior to the end of ’06 production, since we have heard on other occasions that painting of the roofs is a production bottleneck.
I’m no big fan of the LY, but I’m sad to see another bright color go. I didn’t care much for the solar red, so no loss there. I do kind of like the purple, however. Guess it wasn’t bland enough for them…
Seriously, what’s going on with these colors? Are they trying to diminish demand for ’06 cars, in some twisted ploy to build up demand for the ’07s? They need to bring back the electric blue, indi blue and jet black, and replace the light yellow with something with more swagger, like a nice Corvette yellow.
hmmmm….i wonder if Royal Grey will be phased out as well….
So there will be just two non-metallic colors remaining – Chili Red and Pepper White. It’s odd to see that most of the MINI colors tack an additional $450.
pepper white survives yet again!!!!!!!! cool!!!
I just don’t get it. How many versions of silver does one car need?
I just got my 06 Liquid Yellow Convertible with black bonnet stripes. (Looks awesome) I’m sad to see LY discontinued. I get so many compliments on the color of my car. They do need to keep more bright colors. I guess there’s one good thing, there won’t be many cars like mine.
The MINI color selection looks better suited for the Buick Lacrosse. They must be doing like the politicians and trying to get the senior citizen vote.
Why is MINI getting rid of all the fun colors? Are we gonna end up with the usual colors of black, dark blue, and silver?
Wow, I haven’t even seen Solar Red in person and it’s already gone?
And dropping Liquid Yellow is shameful (unless they introduce another yellow pronto).
Come on MINI, this isn’t a 5-series BMW or a Camry – we need bright colors! The automotive world is too colorless these days.
<blockquote>Why is MINI getting rid of all the fun colors? Are we gonna end up with the usual colors of black, dark blue, and silver?</blockquote>
I think exactly the same… 🙁
Too MANY frik’n same looking blues and silvers. Electric blue and Liquid Yellow were very cool but must not have sold. I’m 59 and don’t particulary like the new muted colours, my friend! maybe it has something to do with all that fog.
There will be a new yellow introduced shortly after to replace Liquid Yellow, which will then be discontinued the next day.
All German car colours are dull due to the fact that there is a lot of left-over paint in the country due to some over-ordering in the 1940’s. Haven’t you noticed that the shades are all variations on Wehrmacht Grey; Desert Khaki; Nightfighter Blue and Gestapo Black?
I’ve a 2003 LY/BLK JCW MINI CS and love it … thought LY was already gone so didn’t bother looking to move up to a 2006 full JCW LY setup … hmmm … April 2006 is final run for LY, perhaps still time.
2007 will or will not have a yellow? If I knew there would be a yellow of sorts … would love to see a yellow on par with the 2002/3 Mazda Protege5 yellow, I’d get a 2nd MINI to have the two yellows in the two engine versions just cause …
Wow! Glad we got our Purple Haze/Slver Cooper ! Guess it will be a rare combo indeed!
Our family theory is that MINI is trying to appeal to the more conservative people who do not think that driving around in a jelly bean fits their idea of what motoring should be.
I can’t believe that they are dropping Solar Red so soon. It is such a great combination with the silver top and stripe. It will make them collectors items among those that know.
I just hope that they start to offer some more lively colors instead of 3 shades of blue and 3 shades of gray/silver. The palette of available colors is getting pretty boreing.
Gabe, what would “traditional” colors be? Do you think they are working in that direction?
I just hope that they keep some “fun” colors.
Gabe, any word on the new colors that will be introduced for 07? Something to sooth the ‘no bright colors’ worries? Specifically something bright and cheery for the S?
I hope they add hot orange to the S lineup…
Hot Orange is dying as well.
Expect 2 new yellows, and 2 new blues. And…
<blockquote>Expect 2 new yellows, and 2 new blues. And…</blockquote>
Actually that sounds fairly close to what I’ve heard. New yellow, new blues, and the elimination of all sorts of first generation MINI colors. What I posted here is what I’ve personally had verified for 2006 production. If anyone has a definitive list of color changes for late 2006 based around the intro of the 2007 MINI, feel free to anonymously send it via the contact link above 😉
Hey, I liked liquid yellow. Also if the silver roof were available at the time I bought my car, I would’ve got my MCS in Black-eye Purple/silver roof. I think I’ve only seen one MINI in solar red so far.
Is the discontinuing of the colors only until they ramp up production of the new model? The first sentence seems to imply this is regarding the 2006 model only. Or did I misunderstand?
From MINI2, word has it that two of the names being bounced around are Laser Blue and Mellow Yellow.
So, I wonder what Laser Blue will actually look like? Maybe a brighter Hyper Blue? Will Mellow Yellow be a deeper yellow?
In name alone, Mellow Yellow isn’t giving me much hope for something deeper than Liquid Yellow, although I’ll hold out hope that it’s closer to Porsche’s Speed Yellow.
The demise of Solar Red is really disappointing, especially since it has never even been available on the Cooper S. The Solar Red / Silver combination looks great.
I have to admit that I happen to like the classyness of my Liquid Silver and black MC. My wifes MC which is in transit is Royal Grey and we were upset that they wouldn’t do a black top for her. I guess they figure not enough contrast.
I would love to see a light baby blue non-metallic. That would be sweet with white roof and mirror caps. Another nice color is Mack Truck Yellow. Think French’s Mustard that would work with both black or white tops.
Personally, the Purple wasn’t that great IMHO and the Orange is well not my cup of tea.
Tim
Wonder how close the Laser Blue will be to the Lazer Blue from the Lotus Elise?
Hot Orange on the hardtop with a silver roof and silver bonnet stripes would have been nice.
What’s it going to take for MINI to actually listen to owners that are looking for brighter colors (on the Cooper and the S)?
Bring back Velvet Red!
MINI is listening to what colors potential buyers would like the most for their cars. Unfortunately, there is huge demand for darker and dull colors. That is why MINI has been dropping all of these great colors. Since I love bright colors, I am upset that I can no longer buy a LY MINI. On the other hand, if I was in charge of MINI, I would chose colors that create the largest potential buying market. This is the same reason I’m repainting my condo from Lime and Orange to Grey and White.
Must have been those Woofcast fellows who killed the Liquid Yellow! 🙂 Change I guess change is inevitable. I’m thinking the British Racing Green and Chili Red will probably stick around though, huh?
<blockquote>
Tom said…
Bring back Velvet Red!
</blockquote>
AMEN! Maybe on the MCS this time too.
Good thing I got mine when I did 😉 Would be nice to get again when I go to upgrade tho
As long as I can still have my space blue/silver Checkmate cooper S
I love my Electric Blue! I am almost glad they cancelled it last year, so now my car is that much more unique now…
I’ve always thought Liquid Yellow was too pale; not saturated and/or dark enough. I look forward to a new yellow, one that will hopefully be a bit more vibrant.
glad i got mysolar red mini last week (well ordered in september, but actually got last week), and didnt wait until spring like i was thinking of doing!
I hope they replace Liquid Yellow with a REAL yellow finally! I wanted yellow, but LY is just too pastel looking. A non-metallic Yellow will look great sitting next to my Chili Red.
I never understood VR. It’s really pretty up close but a few feet back and it’s just sort of brown, but TEHO. A neighbor of mine has one and I asked him why that colour and he said saw it in bright sunlight but now he hates it but was waiting for the 2007 model to come out.
I really liked that blue there was a pic of in the article: Future MINI design: Evolution or revolution, a few weeks back.
So that leaves us with Siver, Siver, Grey, Blue, Blue, Blue, Red, Red, green, orange, White and a black that looks like blue. Way to go MINI. Good move to get rid of Gold and Purple, and maybe even electric blue… but yellow and black? MINI should bring back Silk green and give it a silver roof.
Lightning Blue.
Laser Blue.
Mellow Yellow.
I personally wanted the yellow.
MINI’s stand out better in the bright colors. I’m always on the alert for MINI sightings and the more subdued colors are harder to spot – they just blend into all the other boring cars.
I seem to see a lot of [new] VW beetles because they have bright colors. It would seem to be better marketing to have brighter colors on the street for eye catching marque recognition.
Well, I guess I’ll just have to wait to see what colors are actually available when I can finally order mine. There’s no way to know… :o)
Silk Green?
If a color is to be revived, it is Indi Blue and Kill Hyper Blue!
>Lightning Blue.
>Laser Blue.
>Mellow Yellow.
I’m assuming those are the names for the new blues and the new yellow. By name only, the blues actually sound promising. The yellow… [i]not so much.[/i] :\
<blockquote>Lightning Blue. Laser Blue. Mellow Yellow.</blockquote>
Yeah that’s basically what I’ve heard as well. Again nothing from my end confirmed yet.
<blockquote>Lightning Blue. Laser Blue. Mellow Yellow.
Yeah that’s basically what I’ve heard as well.
</blockquote>
if that is the case … I say good riddance to these old ones and bring on the new!
pretty soon we wont be discussing colors… we’ll only have tones to talk about.
nice!
lol makes my BEP more special……..BEP MCS since not much of it
usually MC BEP…….:p
I too am not a great fan of Liquid Yellow. With a white top it’s OK, just too pastel-looking. With a black top, I think it looks “dirty” somehow. Sorry if you do like it, tastes are a personal thing. I was also hoping for a more lively yellow, but if they intend to call it Mellow Yellow, I’m not getting my hopes hope.
corvette nassau blue!
Eelke, that is why I have black and white checkers on my LY. 😉
OK, I will not be too critical of MINI if they actually add some similar colors to replace what they are deleting, unlike this year on the MCS (LY was only available on the MC this year) which was just too plain.
When I was buying my MCS the dealer had a LY/LY MCS which I really liked. My wife “advised” me that “it was bit too young for me” (I’m north of 50). I think she was trying to make me feel better!?! I ended up with a DS/DS, which is great. I would like to see a Chrome Yellow introduced.
Was never too keen on BEP, looks cheap especially with a white roof IMO. Mini’s have a personality and their colours need to reflect that personality.
Hopefully sites like this and MINI2 have enough influence on BMW.
Solar red is somewhat of a surprise, purple haze was a given, and yellow has been a slow seller lately. So that begs the question… whats next???
I suspect the next color to go will be British Racing Green and quite possibly the new Royal Grey.
Too bad about Solar Red. Really liked that color. For some reason, metallic reds never seems to survive for more than a few months in production… Velvet Red anyone?
I would rather have Royal Grey over Dark Silver any day. If I could have ordered Royal Grey on my MCSc, I would have done it in a heartbeat. I’m also a big fan of Solar Red. My MCS is BEP.
They should have made Solar Red available for all the models without any package stipulations.
Personally, I’m getting tired of selling the silver and blue cars. And why did we have to get rid of Jet Black!?!
I think for the new colors that they really need to consider brighter and unique colors. I saw this really cool looking paint job the other day, and the color was a intense dark teal. I think that would look wicked on a MINI!
At least on the bright side, we don’t have a hot pink color option available. I may be a girl, but the last thing you want in a color is for it to be labeled a pure chick car. Uhhhhg!
I imagine 2007 will see a new yellow, probably a sportier, less milky yellow than LY was. I also hope they get rid of the current “British Racing Green”, and replace it with a true BRG. The current BRG color is nothing like the beautiful green of the 1960s era.
A few years ago, someone in Hawaii painted a new Cooper in hot pink metallic. I saw the pics and the car looked fantastic. You would never catch me behind the wheel of a “Barbie” themed car, but the aftermarket paint job looked great and factory quality. The car had a white roof. Not bad at all.
MINI refuses to offer any other color aside from Chili Red in the MCS. I would have loved a Solar Red/Silver MCS, but no dice.
To me personally, MINIs look much better in bright colors, hence my second MCS was ordered in Chili Red/White.
What’s BEP??
I wonder when my Hot Orange will be cut out?
-alpinamike
Bummer. Wife wanted a Purple Haze Cooper. Will there be anything that’s remotely purple? Personally, I’d like to see an orange like what they had on the original prototype that did the auto show circuit way back in 01…
C’mon, who cares? Everyone knows the only real MINI is Chili Red with a white roof!
🙂
What’s BEP??
<a href="http://www.blackeyedpeas.com/" rel="nofollow ugc">http://www.blackeyedpeas.com/</a>
🙂
Fishbulb: BEP is Black Eye Purple in UK and Purple Haze in some other markets inc US.
Long live BRG!
i am sad that i could not get my MINI in the electric blue i love so much — so i will again hold out another year and see what the new batch of colors bring…but i agree with you all — how many silver/black/dark color cars can you have ???
I really don’t understand why they killed Jet Black honestly. Black is one of the most basic colors for a car and they kill it?! (Yes I love my JB/B mini, he just looks so slick and classy) I’m not sure who they have making these decisions but I’d suggest they look into “re-educating” them. Lets take some of the BEST colors and kill them, lets make some of the coolest colors that can only be found on Minis and make them available only on certain models and not others. Kinda makes you wonder about the customer service aspect. Now don’t get me wrong – I LOVE my car and I actually really love my dealer too, but I really don’t like some of the restrictions they (MINI) put on us. I WANT a HO hardtop S for crying out loud – If I want to give you my money, why wont you take it??!