Happy St. Patrick’s Day Weekend, Autopians. Yes, it fell on a Friday this year, so we know at least some of you will take this one into your off-days.
While driving to class yesterday, I passed a green Kia Soul, the butt of all “ugly car” jokes. I flinched a little bit. I then passed a brand new Lexus NX in a forest-green color and fell in love.
In our world of silver, gray, black, white, and that new “gray-blue” color I am seeing more and more of, green is an underdog among them. Not super bright, not super dark. Looks great in certain angles, shadows, and light rays. So that got me thinking. What are my favorite green-colored cars?
British Racing Green
British Racing Green is by far my favorite shade of paint on any car, let alone just green. As a self-proclaimed Land Rover enthusiast, I fall in love with any JLR product painted in this gorgeous color. Over at Mini, they’ve done a great job keeping this national tradition alive too.
British Racing Green has a deep and lively history, as Mini USA writes:
Ask someone what colour they would choose if they won a MINI and the immediate response is often “British Racing Green”. Why is it that this dark green colour seems to be just as inextricably linked to MINIs as teatime is to England?
Interestingly, there is no one specific green known as British Racing Green. Rather, there are a variety of shades of green that carry the name. British racing stables in particular used variations of this colour. BRG really became well known owing to Formula 1 World Champion Jack Brabham. In 1959 the Australian brought the prestigious title home in a Cooper T51, and then the following year in a Cooper T53. His champion cars sported two white racing stripes down the front, on a green background.
How cool! A beautiful color, or shall I say “colour,” with an extensive history. No wonder why everyone enjoys them. In fact, I should point out my favorite car painted in British Racing Green. It’s a 1997 Land Rover Defender 90 NAS, one of the ultra-exclusive final year Defenders imported to the United States.
A four-wheel drive convertible with room for six? Yes, please! I’d love to sip my tea in one of these tanks. Would anybody like to lend me $100,000? I’ll pay you back… in gratitude.
Rivian’s Earth Tones
I am a fan of Rivian. I think that the R1T and R1S are fantastic models that exhibit a promising future for capable, efficient, and practical vehicles. I am also a big fan of their colors. I am fond of the sharp, but warm yellow, referred to as “Compass Yellow,” but especially fond of the two green colors offered: the more gray-ish “Launch Green” and the deeper “Forest Green.”
On Rivian’s official “Stories” webpage, Aileen Barraza, senior manager for Rivian Colors, Materials, and Finishes, writes:
Our paints were designed to change with the light and reveal new depth as our vehicles bring people on journeys to new places. There isn’t one color where we didn’t push for more iterations, until we knew we got it right. We went outside to find the source material that would lead to Rivian’s dynamic tones: greens from Pacific Northwest forests, reds and oranges from Colorado hills and canyons.
Launch Green was the official color of the first Rivian R1T, and it is actually the undercoating color applied to every Rivian before painting over with another special color. So technically all Rivians are green when you think about it. Good job, Rivian. Save the green!
But by far, my favorite Rivian color is referred to as Forest Green. I can just imagine all the wealthy Portlandites traversing the Pacific Northwest in their Forest Green R1Ts listening to the Lumineers. Wow, that was a very millennial statement.
Subaru Crosstrek
Subaru. The brand that prides itself on outdoor adventure, travel, and living the “granola” lifestyle. Naturally, they have to offer some sort of green, right? Well, they do! Sort of… I’ll let you decide. Let me explain my discrepancy.
I spent a summer working at my local Subaru dealership. For those unfamiliar with the Subaru Crosstrek, there is an available color known as “Plasma Yellow.” Take a look:
It’s yellow, right? Well, not everyone agrees, even though it’s in the name—literally. Back in the summer of 2022, Subaru dropped us off a Crosstrek to use as a loaner in this color. A fully loaded Limited, with all the bells and whistles. In fact, it hardly saw any usage. Why so? Our customers refused to drive it, with one gentleman saying, and I quote, “that green makes me want to throw up and never drive a Subaru ever again.”
Needless to say, he went home in a different-colored loaner. My coworkers and I also took a poll, and if I remember correctly, we were split down the middle in whether or not the “Plasma Yellow” was actually a dark yellow or a light green. There were also about 40 of us who responded. Either way, the green-yellow-puke-colored Crosstrek did not receive a great deal of popularity, which is a shame. I like it! It’s unique.
Anyways, those were a few of my favorite green cars. Now, Autopians, tell me. Do you like green cars? Do you own one? Should the leprechaun take them all and bury them somewhere far, far, away? Tell us!
Hi!
Mr. Pedantic checking in!
British Racing Green goes back to the Gordon Bennett Cup races which originated in 1900. The concept behind these (city to city) races was to pit the cars of different countries against each other with entries required to consist entirely of components manufactured in their home country.
To make identifying the cars from each country easy, national colors were chosen. Over the following decades , the colors changed around some but eventually settled on
Italy – Red
France- Blue
Germany- Originally White but changing to Silver in the 30’s
Great Britain- Green
USA- White with blue stripes
Japan- White with a red circle
Other countries have their own national paint schemes, of course, but the above are the majors
^ see username
Naturally, as the first car I truly sought out to get in a specific color, it’s had more dings or scrapes than any other car I’ve owned. But it still gets regular compliments from friends, coworkers, random people in parking lots, even when it’s dirty (which it is more than I should allow it to be).
I always liked blues and greens, my dad’s first Saturn was a dark green ’96 SL2, my first car years later was a ’94 SC2 in blue-green.
In our neighborhood growing up, there was a woman with a dark green 94-95 Accord EX(-L?) with a spoiler that I always liked as a kid. By coincidence I would have a similar combo for my third car, although not as neat looking as older Accords – a 2001 EX-L, green on tan with a spoiler. Technically it was repainted at some point before I got it, so the paint was in better shape than most ~10 year old Hondas and a bit deeper than the original Deep Emerald Pearl. Honda’s Deep Green Pearl on the 2004-05 Accord was one I really liked as well, the pearl effect looked really good in the light.
A highschool friend of mine had a ’91 (I think) accord coupe in that dark green, with tan leather interior. It was a really pretty car. It had the spoiler, too.
How has no one mentioned the 7Up special edition Mustang?
https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2020/11/rare-rides-the-1990-ford-mustang-7up-edition-get-you-a-cold-pop/
I have two green cars, a 1978 and a 1980 KV Mini 1. The ’78 is a parts car for the ’80, because parts aren’t that easy to find otherwise. I don’t have a good photo of both at hand but they are visible here at left, with the ’78 mostly hidden behind the ’80:
https://live.staticflickr.com/7560/15716476087_8f5d6a84f9_c.jpg
You need some of that two-tone Kermit the Frog/Shamrock Shake action:
https://www.grautogallery.com/vehicles/5521/1976-chevrolet-k-10-scottsdale
No isle of man green from the g8x m cars? Incredible color
I tend to go the other way on this, Rob.
How about Plymouth FJ6 Sassy Grass Green.
http://www.ipernity.com/doc/289455/45632984
My first car was a ’71 Fiat 128 sedan, while is was a green color, the name was Artic Gray. My second Prius was a 2007 in green. Otherwise most of my vehicles have been blue.
My first car was a green 1980 Honda Civic wagon. Now I have a 1999 Miata that’s a very nice, albeit not British Racing, green.
We daily a 2019 Mini Cooper S, 60th Anniversary Edition in British Racing Green IV. White Roof, black 60th Anniversary racing stripes. It’s an AMAZING color. Love it. Quite the contrast next to our other car, a BMW in Thundernight Metallic (purple), but hey we like to be different. I think Green and Purple were ranked the least favorite two car colors last year (or were at the very bottom of the list).
I dream of a python green Cayman GTS. Someday, someday…
Re: BRG: one of the earliest uses of that color was by William Grover-Williams when he drove a Bugatti to win the first Monaco Grand Prix in 1929; his mother was French, partly the reason for driving a Bugatti, and his father was British, partly the reason for changing the Bugatti’s traditional French blue color to green to signify the driver’s paternal nationality. When WWII started Grover-Williams joined the British military and fought in the underground French Resistance (as befitting both his paternal ancestry and his maternal ancestry); eventually he and another British racecar driver turned fellow underground fighter were betrayed and captured by the Nazis and then executed. Perhaps needless to say, Grover-Williams deserves to be better known today. So, perhaps needless to say, BRG has some very particular historical significance.
My first car, (purchased in 1987) a 72 Dodge Dart in sparkly metallic green, an excellent color
http://davidsclassiccars.com/images/full/1972-dodge-dart-custom-2.jpg
Since we don’t have image attachments in this fine website’s comment system, I’ll have to ask folks to Google “Absinthe Green Renault Scénic”
I dont know the names but both my xj, (with gold pinstripe!) and my r1200c are beautiful shades of deep green.
The Lexus dark forest green metallic is ridiculously good. I saw a new NX in it the other day and had to do a double take…that’s right, it’s such a good shade of green that it made me look twice at an NPC mobile.
A classic that still looks fantastic is Jeep’s Sarge Green. The best color for Wranglers and Gladiators. https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9c/5e/3e/9c5e3ed21b8e58a35c0ca1752e634fad.jpg
“Best” is highly dubious given the plethora of wonderful colors Jeep offers, but Sarge did make my list despite being much more restrained than my usual favorites.
https://opposite-lock.com/topic/29641/wrangler-colors-a-deep-dive-updated-march-2023
I think Renault does good use of green color, from one very purple-ish vibrant green to a deep metallic kombu tones
I had a 99 Explorer in green. I’d love something in that green again.
I think I had that green too! I think mine was a 97. Was it the weird kind of metallic dark green that almost looked blue-ish at certain angles? Mine had that and the dark tan leather interior. My parents bought it for cheap as hell off a friend of theirs for my sisters and I to learn how to drive on in 05 or 06.
I had no idea how good I had it. I absolutely abused that damn thing as a senior in high school. The interior was like a hoarder’s den and I drove it like I stole it every damn day. Finally in the spring of 09 my idiot buddy and I skipped out on our afternoon classes and drove it way out to a local all girls school to show off for the ladies. I got it up to about 90 and the transmission went kaput.
My dad cash for clunkers’d it, used that money as a down payment on a new car for my mom, and told me to have fun taking public transportation all summer. God I was an imbecile back then. The car only had 50k on it and I probably could’ve taken it to college with me. The silver lining was that I got to date one of the girls we drove it out to all summer, so I did have that going for me.
My ex-wife had a 1999 Mountaineer in that green. I did like that color. I did not like it when the engine ate it’s timing chain guides.
Really love the way Rivian’s look in green.
My Triumph GT6 EV conversion will be getting a Dark British Racing Green paint job. And it will be green not just in appearance, but in the metaphorical sense as well, especially when I get the aerodynamic mods functioning to increase its efficiency to something akin to an Aptera.
I love that color. And I love my vehicles to be “green” regarding ecological footprint as well.
Two of the very best shades of green ever sprayed on an American car belonged to Pontiac Firebirds in the 1970s:
1) Brewster Green, available 1973-74. My absolute, top of the heap, anything-else-is-a-very-distant-second grail car is a 1973 Trans Am SD-455 in Brewster Green, exactly like this one – https://cdn1.mecum.com/auctions/da0914/da0914-193722/images/da0914-193722_1.jpg?1409703203000 – except that it gaveled at Mecum for more than I paid for my house, and that was a decade ago.
2) The one-year-only Berkshire Green in 1978, which was only available on the Firebird or Formula, but strangely, bit the Trans Am. Which is a shame – look at this video and picture how handsome a Trans Am would look in this shade, with the gold SE “German script” decals like on the Bandit’s car: https://youtu.be/O8weyjA6CUQ
I had for a time in the early aughts a ’78 Firebird Esprit that had been repainted in Berkshire Green. Wasn’t original, sadly, but was absolutely gorgeous – it was almost black, but in sunlight shone a deep, sensual green.
Not generally a fan of that color, but it is PERFECT for that car!
My Honda AZ600 “Coupe” was green. Don’t remember what it was called but I thought of it as Gloss O.D., and I liked it.
I’m partial to Federal Standard 595, color chip 14260 – formerly known as Forest Service Green.
https://opposite-lock.com/assets/uploads/files/1645984141784-img_20211031_131654923_hdr-resized.jpg
Argh, I keep forgetting photo links don’t work…
https://opposite-lock.com/topic/38846/three-years-with-the-old-green-truck
When the article mentioned green, this was a close second to BRG that came to mind. In the 80s there were multiple AMC sedans in our area in Forrest Service Green-including our Driver’s Ed cars. A buddy’s family had a Hornet and a Concord-on which I learned it is possible to pull-start certain old automatic cars. I say pull rather than push because it took several attempts, and iirc, he was pulling me at around 30mph on the successful run
A Great Falls Green Alltrack with manual transmission is on top of my short list of potential next vehicles.
Me too! Find one without the sunroof. Heard they have major issues with leakage
Alltrack – Check
Great Falls Green – Check
Manual Transmission – Check
No sunroof – Check
Can confirm. Good car, especially after a tune/intake/exhaust.