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Red & Biscuit vs. Yellow & Black

2667 Views 26 Replies 11 Participants Last post by  CAErven, 
smoseley
Anyone who's seen the two at the show...

What are your opinions of the colors side by side?

Thanks!
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zvezdah1
Steve,
Both are great color combos, I ordered red/biscuit which is my personal fav. I'd be happy with either one, just like the neutral interior color better.
Chris
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I
I keep going back and forth between red and yellow myself. Right now I am favoring red because, in the pics at least, the reflectors are much less conspicuous....
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smoseley
How about the biscuit leather? I've only ever had black leather, but I recall old Mercedes of my dad's that had nasty stains on the tan interior. I assume this is common with tan leather?
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I
That is why I am going for black. I have had beige before, in a 77 black vette among other cars and it doesn't wear as well...
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I
the only negative is that if you leave the car parked in the sun for a while with the top off the black seats will get hot....
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jml1952
The yellow/black combo looks great and that's what I'm getting.

However, red and biscuit would look great too; the green/biscuit combo at the show is spectacular. But silver/red looks sharp also.

My wife's 1988 560 SL is charcoal with tan interior. It's a little darker shade than biscuit, but we haven't had any problems with discoloration.

I might be tempted by biscuit, because a light interior would have some benefits over black during the summer, but of course it doesn't come with Saffron Yellow. However, my Miata has a black interior (cloth seats, though) and it hasn't been much of a problem, although when you first get into the car, the seats can be hot on those 100 degree days. Putting a shower cap on if the top is off would solve that problem.
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smoseley
The BRG/Biscuit was my first choice. I eliminated it because in every photo I've seen, it looks a little TOO refined (drab, even).

I have some more color questions for you guys:
  1. Yellow and Red are much sportier looking than the other colors from what I can see from photos. Is this incorrect?
  2. How does the BRG look in person? Is it overly refined or "old" looking?
  3. Ardent Red seems a little orangy in photos (brick red). Is this correct?
  4. Is Ardent Red too "candy" in person, or is it closer to Ferrari red than I assume?
  5. Saffron Yellow seems to border on ochre yellow (from photos). How close is this assessment?
  6. Is Saffron Yellow "mustardy" in person, or is it "lemony" or somewhere in between?
  7. Does the brightness of either Saffron Yellow or Ardent Red take away from the lines of the car?
Please, anyone, answer these questions for me. Your assistance is GREATLY appreciated, as I cannot make it to LA to see them in person.
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zvezdah1
HI Steve,
I really think I'd have been happy with any of the five car colors on the show cars. I went with red, it's extremely close to Ferrari red (Rosso Corsa) and has a good depth to it.

The saffron is midway between Norfolk Mustard and Lightning yellow. (it's very close to the yellow in the Lotus nose badge but slightly brighter)

Personally I just like the higher gloss/depth of the solid non-metallic colors but they all looked spectacular at the show!
Chris
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Lotus F1
IS this not the same red that was on the 111s Elise that was touring the US? It seams that everyone is talking about it as if It's a new color.

I am struggling bewteen Red and Yellow myself. How hard is it to keep a Yellow car clean. I am assuming the Red car dosen't show dirt like yellow but instead scratches are more noticable and vice-versa.
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D
1FASTMX5 said:
IS this not the same red that was on the 111s Elise that was touring the US? It seams that everyone is talking about it as if It's a new color.

I am struggling bewteen Red and Yellow myself. How hard is it to keep a Yellow car clean. I am assuming the Red car dosen't show dirt like yellow but instead scratches are more noticable and vice-versa.
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Yellow doesn't show dirt that bad and it looks bright even when dirty. When clean it stands out really great.

On the downside it does attract a lot of flying insects that want to go for a spin. Only thing is they usually take offense to the human that is sitting in their giant flower car. This problem is particularly bad with open top cars.

Don't know much about red as I've never had a red car.
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P
Having owned 3 red sports cars, I'd say red does show dirt/dust fairly easily. Perhaps I am very critical. I don't know about yellow.
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jml1952
I'm with Chris - any of the colors that we saw in person at the show would be great, including the Bordeaux Red Pearl outside. It's hard to judge based on interior lighting, especially since the Lotus guys mentioned that some of the colors that appear dark will really sparkle in sunlight (e.g., purple, nightfall blue, British racing green).

In my opinion, yellow and red are much flashier colors than the silver, green, blue and Bordeaux red pearl. Based on the mini-model, lime green (Krypton??) probably is pretty flashy as well.

British racing green is darker and a little more subdued than yellow or red, but I can't really say if you would feel that it's old looking. I'm guessing that it will lighten up and sparkle in sunlight, and it did look amazing with the biscuit interior.

I would not characterize Ardent red as being orangey in any respect. As Chris said, Ferrari red seems like a fair comparison.

Saffron Yellow is too bright to be considered mustardy or lemony, in my opinion.

I don't think any of the colors took away from the lines of the car, when you see them in person.

Tough to decide without actually seeing the cars (and even tougher, perhaps, after seeing them). You probably will just have to trust your gut feeling and make a choice.
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ex-M3
The red 111S I drove looked great. It is definitely a "Ferrari" type red and is not orangy. Definitely has a lot of "pop" (like, -pop- you've been busted for going around a 30 mph curve at 90).

If you think the green is to refined, it will be. I looked at a green Esprit the other day (and M100 Elan) and it is definitely a beautiful color. I think BRG, bordeaux and other darker colors look too "sophisticated" for this car.

Every car I have owned has been drab (silver, black, gray, dark blue) so this time I will go half way between boring and extrovert - magnetic blue.
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smoseley
Magnetic Blue.... LOL... Not a bad looking color, but it just reminds me too much of my first car.... a blue Geo Storm hatchback :)
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Lumn8r
transio said:
Magnetic Blue.... LOL... Not a bad looking color, but it just reminds me too much of my first car.... a blue Geo Storm hatchback :)
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It is a great color, but since it is somewhere between the electric blue of my Neon R/T and the patriot blue of my Ram diesel, I had to opt for a different color, and I the racing green is beautiful on the Elise without being too flashy for my tastes (or lack thereof, as I've said before:D )
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ex-M3
transio said:
Magnetic Blue.... LOL... Not a bad looking color, but it just reminds me too much of my first car.... a blue Geo Storm hatchback :)
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Colors must be like names. When you name your kid, you see a name and associate it with someone you knew or a notable person and that influences your decision.

My first car was a white Toyota Corolla (early 70's vintage). It had NO options and was the cheapest car sold in US when it was new. AM radio, NO carpets... - hey this is starting to sound like an Elise, barebones and a Toyota engine. Fortunately that car is not clouding my decision and I will be getting my Elise though not in white. I am not a fan of white cars, but it is interesting that one is not offered because it is traditionally one of the most popular colors.
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CAErven
transio - those pesky stains on the tan leather can't happen in the Elise - I think it would be physically impossible to make whoopie in this car.

Just my opinion - I could be wrong LOL
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smoseley
cerven said:
transio - those pesky stains on the tan leather can't happen in the Elise - I think it would be physically impossible to make whoopie in this car.

Just my opinion - I could be wrong LOL
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I was thinking more like if you have a passenger who's had too much to drink and you take a turn too fast, they might pee themselves (and your beautiful leather!)
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Lumn8r
transio said:
I was thinking more like if you have a passenger who's had too much to drink and you take a turn too fast, they might pee themselves (and your beautiful leather!)
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Then get this for a vanity plate. PB4URID

:)
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