[GTO]

Choice of colour is subjective; personally, I LOVE beige interiors, right from the one in the i10 to the Fortuner. Equally, I love black interiors too, but what I really hate is the all-grey look that some cars (mostly budget) come with.

On the matter of chrome, it can be tastefully done up. Like on the E-Class; wears a lot of chrome, yet it's so subtly applied, you'd never feel that the chrome effect is excessive:







BTW, yes, the mass market does love chrome.

[vivekanand005]

Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post one-liners that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the overall quality of this forum.

Please read our rules before proceeding any further.

[ra'ul M]

I can understand the part about chrome. Its probably a quick fix to break the monotony, but what is so wrong with beige interiors? And I can recall cars like Swift, Punto, Civic, Cruze which do not use beige. IMO beige is better at hiding dirt and also lightens the cabin.

You are spot on with your observation about chrome. The Verito was boring to look at, but now its become quite laughable.

[dot]

I feel that any car can have tastefully done inside and outside. Well done amounts of beige or black, brushed aluminium or chrome makes a good statement. Only when it gets carried away to the point of no return, it becomes an eyesore.

Take the Zen Estillo, for instance. Bright beige dashboard. Try driving the car during a sunny day.

I had 07 Ikon Flair. The car came with a dark beige dash and light beige interiors. Very nicely done, dash had no reflection on the windshield. Soothing on the eyes.

Even grey can be done nicely, take the Fabia for example. So elegant.

Excess of chrome and beige results in visual trauma. And yes, it is being overdone in many cars these days.

[sethirs]

Lovely passion on the posts above.

What surprises me the most is that manufacturers (and they are no kids on the block) have a total disconnect with the colours of the car itself when they fit in the interiors. To assume that a particular colour scheme will look good irrespective of the exterior colours is a bit naive. They should offer better coordinated colour schemes--- considering they have hordes of proffesssionals to look into all aspects of designing and production.

[dhanushs]

Beige gives a feeling of roominess, and a tinge of luxury(Only in India?). Hence, No wonder car companies are going the beige way.

About chrome, I HATE oodles of chrome in cars. Is it even durable?

Manufacturers must be targeting rural areas with cars covered in chrome, as it should be intended to give a false sense of expensiveness.

[entropy]

I think lighter color interiors like beige is more suited for a hot country like ours. Also IMHO it seems easier to blend with the sand/dust which otherwise would be very apparent in dark shade interiors. I think the love affair with beige scheme is more from natural affinity given our climate. For colder countries the same logic would say a darker color scheme would be preferred. Just my 2 paise about the way I see it.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by sethirs

What surprises me the most is that manufacturers (and they are no kids on the block) have a total disconnect with the colours of the car itself when they fit in the interiors. To assume that a particular colour scheme will look good irrespective of the exterior colours is a bit naive. They should offer better coordinated colour schemes--- considering they have hordes of proffesssionals to look into all aspects of designing and production.

It’s not that they don’t know about it. The very same manufacturers outside India provide interior options based on the external colour. But for us, they decided that only beige will suffice. Refer to my earlier post on this.

When I bought my Ikon in 2003, I wanted to put beige leathers, and the sensible SA mentioned to me “Sir, your car is Silver, and I think black seats will look better”. He really knew what works for the car.

[nilanjanray]

Give me good quality black leather any day. Gives you a different feeling when you sit on a black leather seat. I had thought of changing the leather seats on the Fortuner to better quality black leather, but then junked the plans because my Fortuner gets dirty a lot (mud, kid etc.), and I don't want to be extra careful about seat cleanliness.

I feel the the Fortuner interiors would have looked significantly better with black trim with perhaps black or darker tan leather, and no faux wood.

Chrome is an eyesore.

[nileshch]

The fact that people like us are discussing this on a forum shows that we like or don't like beige & chrome for their real value and not that they look upmarket. But finally the manufacturers want to cater to the masses on the aspirational value.

Please tell me we all don't peep into luxury cars and get awestruck by the expanse of chrome, veneer and beige in them!

[CoolFire]

Originally Posted by vb-san

It’s not that they don’t know about it. The very same manufacturers outside India provide interior options based on the external colour. But for us, they decided that only beige will suffice. Refer to my earlier post on this.

They are aware of this in Indian markets as do they know the costs involved. Customisation is costly in any product, any market. Even offering too many variants can be costly in terms of production optimisation, logistical problems, inventory etc.

[anachronix]

Talking about Chrome & Beige on cars, these are the 2 things that I hate the most! Its a personal choice, yes! But the market loves chrome so the manufacturers offer them in lots since it costs them peanuts.

But the chrome overdose on the Verito & the Liva looks YUK! Nothing new for a Mahindra, but for a Toyota...

[Turbocharged-KC]

I think most of us would agree to a point that we not completely against beige but we certainly don't want to be sitting inside 'egg yolks'(no offence to anyone).

I personally think that a smart combination of beige with black is definitely welcome. I wouldn't like to have beige leather on my armrests(in the door pads as well) because I do think that they would get messed up soon.

The dashboard being completely beige is a absolute no for me. The top has to be a darker shade for the sake of my driving convenience.

Also, I used to have Ford fiesta earlier and a major issue I faced is that the foot-wells being of a lighter shade used to catch up stains pretty easily.

Everything else apart, from pure aesthetic point of view I would love to have the interiors of my car to be in a combination of black and beige with maybe some brushed aluminium in the dash.

As far as chrome is concerned, thank you but no thank you. I don't like cars that makes me wear glares in the night..!!

[deetjohn]

Yes, the preference for chrome and beige is very personal and subjective.

And sure, chrome convey a sense of luxury. But why cannot chrome be done tastefully and with some much needed restraint? And it looks like Toyota is leading the charge with chrome. Toyota gives a lot of emphasis for the chrome bits in websites and brochures. For Innova they state, "Large chrome emblem in front enhances luxury". Come on, there are multiple other things in that MPV that deserves a mention.

And what I am worried about is, how others are just waiting to follow suit. It is not far away when Toyota captures a good share in the Indian market. And soon after, some 'wise' bloke in another company's board room will be thinking. "I know what we are lacking in our products. We don't have enough chrome in our cars like the Indian Toyotas. Next time, We will put in a chrome horn pad in our steering."

Jokes and drama apart, I seriously think this will happen, if not already.

And chrome can look graceful as well as gaudy, its all in the application. Some examples.

VW needs the Vento to look different from the Polo. But the application here is rather neat. And, I am sure many here can live with that.


The new Fiesta again.


Do I need to say which WagonR looks tacky?


The Nissan X-Trail X-Pecial. For once, I am glad that I cannot find a high resolution picture.

picture courtesy: thehindubusinessline

And tell me, who wouldn't prefer the D4-D' look over the other Corollas



* next up, beige

[Skyline GT-R]

Honda used to offer combination interior exterior colours for Civic & CRV in GCC.

Silver & Grey Civic/CRV were available only with Jet black+Smoke grey interiors whereas white/beige/black used to come with dark brown+light beige interiors.