Matt look: new colors for the Audi TT, TTS, TT RS, Audi Q3 and RS Q3!

How does Audi determine the color and variant of the paint finish?

When it comes to color suggestions for a new model, the Color & Trim department of Audi Design and Product Marketing work closely together. In the first step, the design colleagues develop new colors based on trends identified by the design studios in Ingolstadt, Beijing and Malibu. Product marketing then ensures that Audi customers can choose from a wide range of colors. Finally, suitable names for the offer are selected.

What role does the designation of the colors play?

The communication names are also important for the acceptance of the colors offered by Audi. “It is particularly important that the color in the name describes the shade as precisely as possible. The leading part of the name is the creative part, but this too should evoke an association that goes with the colour,” explains Susan Nolte. Audi often uses terms from geography and from flora and fauna. Racing tracks also play a role in naming the colors of sporty models. Some colors are used across models, others are model-specific. Audi offers up to twelve different color schemes for one model. In addition, there are the special colors for RS models.

Muted shades dominate

Three out of four new car buyers in Germany currently opt for the colors white, black and grey/silver. At Audi, too, these colors are at the top of the popularity list, followed by blue as the most important color with a share of around ten percent. Matt finishes are in increasing demand. “Matt is a variant of the finish that is particularly in demand for sporty models; In general, RS vehicles are more often ordered in a striking, extroverted color,” reports Nolte. There are also colors with a crystal effect, such as Sebring black. Here, glass flakes in combination with metallic effects create additional glitter spots in the paint. Modern coatings shimmer differently depending on the sunlight and change the color tone, depending, among other things, on the perspective and the color of the sunlight.

How the matt paint gets on the car

Modern coatings are technically complex. Including the phosphate layer, the paintwork consists of five thin layers with cathodic dip painting (KTL), filler, base coat and clear coat, which together are no thicker than a tenth of a millimeter. That's about the thickness of a human hair. In order to meet the high quality requirements in later everyday life, the paints undergo various short and long-term tests, including stone chipping and weathering tests. As part of the approval process, Audi checks the adhesion and corrosion resistance of the paint, among other things.

It takes a total of three to five years from the design to the selection to the technical implementation and the approval of the colors. "High quality takes time, which is why we are already thinking about the day after tomorrow, so to speak," says Nolte. Matt exterior colors are possible for the first time for the Audi TT and Audi Q3 series produced in Győr. The painting process is carried out in the plant in Hungary in a direct flow analogous to series production. After the coat of primer, filler and color comes the matt clear coat, which contains matting agents in the form of silicate particles. This is applied directly to the base coat. As with conventional clear coat, its layer thickness is in the range of 40 to 50 microns, i.e. 40 to 50 thousandths of a millimeter. The matting agents give the surface the typical matt finish. With its surface structure, matt lacquer reflects the light diffusely instead of directed, thus achieving the matt look. Once the body has been painted, automated and manual measurements and quality controls follow – including in the light tunnel.

Where the paint goes on the car: the paint shop in Győr

In the 43.000 square meter paint shop in Győr, the series use of the matt paint in Győr was preceded by thorough preparation: after a test painting, the painted surface was checked in a laboratory test phase. For the introduction of the new technology, the employees of these areas prepared the production infrastructure by adapting the lines from the paint supply rooms to the robot room and the robots. The ten painting robots in the system were programmed and tested according to the special features of the matt painting.

Now the matt finish is available for all model variants of the Audi TT, TTS manufactured in Győr⁵⁶, TT RS Coupe¹ and roadsters⁴, Audi Q3, Audi RS Q3²³ and for their Sportback versions. Series production of the TT RS starts with the matt finishes in Daytona Grey, Floret Silver and Python Yellow. Instead of python yellow, the Audi RS Q3 uses dew silver, which is available exclusively for the Q3.