“Operation No Gray”
Fiat removes gray cars from the range – and teases against Germany
Italy stands for joy, optimism and passion – the color gray has nothing to do with that, says Fiat CEO Olivier Francois.
© Sebastian Geisler / Imago Images
Because the color gray does not fit the Italian lifestyle, carmaker Fiat wants to do without it in the future. In contrast to Germany, Japan or France, Italy is colourful.
The Italian car company Fiat does not want to be gray in the future sell more cars. This was announced by Fiat CEO and Stellantis marketing chief Olivier Francois in a promotional video on YouTube. The reason for this is that gray does not fit Italian values. The colors black and white will continue to exist.
Gray is one of the most popular colors among German, Japanese and French car manufacturers. After all, the cars always sold well. But “we’re not talking about Germany, Japan or France. We’re talking about Italy,” says Francois. The Italian lifestyle stands for joy, optimism and passion. The world doesn’t need another gray car.
“From today there will be no more gray Fiats”
The CEO follows up his big words with deeds and lets himself be dipped into an oversized paint pot in a gray Fiat 600. The car comes out with orange paintwork. The video was recorded in the coastal town of Lerici in Liguria, where the houses are also brightly painted. “Italy, the land of colors – Fiat, the brand of colors” continues in the video. The “Operation No Grey”, as Fiat calls it, stands in contrast to current color trends in the automotive industry: in 2022 around 30 percent of newly registered cars in Germany were gray. At Fiat, around 15 percent were new gray cars.
The response to the video has been largely positive. A user writes under the YouTube video: “Finally! Years ago I was bored and disgusted by all these gray, and only gray, cars everywhere. Back to the colors!” Others are critical of Fiat’s decision: “What about the freedom of choice and the ability to let the customer choose the color? Denigrating people who like gray cars doesn’t seem like a good move to me,” comments another user.
Sources: “Repubblica”, “Auto Motor and Sports”