German car maker Porsche has named a colour after one of its customers.
It’s a very bright Seventies green that will join the palette after it was mixed for long-standing Porsche officiando, Michael Essmann.
As far back as 1992, Michael Essmann had a 911 Carrera RS 3.6 (964) painted in the colour of his company Elektro Essmann – the first Porsche model to wear Essmanngreen.
Other cars followed, including a 911 GT3 RS 4.0 (997) and most recently a 911 GT3 Touring (992).
Sons Mike and Stefan Essmann compete successfully in the Porsche Sports Cup, in cars that naturally display Essmanngreen accents.
“My very first Porsche was a 911 SC in 1978 with which I also graduated from the Sport Driving School,” Essmann said.
“It was painted Opal Metallic. It was only later that I had the idea of using the colour of our family business for my private cars too.
“But every time I pick up a new Porsche in this very special colour it’s a great feeling. And to know that I’m the originator of this colour named after me.”
Essmann’s 911 GT3 Touring (992) has also had a Porsche logo added to the side based on the Heritage Design models.
Inside the seats have been customised, with seat centres that have a graduated colour design in Slate Grey and Crayon.
Trim made of carbon enhances the dashboards.
The “touring” logo is stitched into the headrests of the full bucket seats in red thread.
A new colour-mixing bench has been put into operation at Porsche’s main plant in Zuffenhausen.
Here paint specialists blend several dozen ingredients down to the last milligram to achieve the desired shade.
When the binding agents and additives are included, the recipe for Essmanngreen contains more than 100 ingredients.
Each batch is divided into two paint pots for bodywork and add-on parts.
The areas to be painted on the vehicle consist largely of aluminium, plastics and carbon-fibre composites.
This mix of materials and the different application methods and drying temperatures require slightly different paint compositions, depending on the component.
A test body and so-called batch comparison plates are painted and used as a colour reference for the final acceptance of the car.
These completely new processes are required for the re-development, testing and approval of all colours, some of which had already been used successfully in the past in the old paint shop.
This is why it was necessary to develop a paint recipe for Essmanngreen on Type 992 because it was last used successfully in the old paint shop for Type 997.
The overall range of Porsche colours available is very large.
For the 911 and 718 model series, there are currently 115 additional paint colours to choose from.
For the Taycan there are currently 108 such options, while for the Panamera and the Macan the number is 59, with the Cayenne offering a choice of 52 different colours.
Taking into account a number of overlaps, there are 170 additional colours for all model series combined.
As part of the model year R Paint to Sample range, starting this month the exterior colour Essmanngreen, colour code 24C, will also be available through the Car Configurator for customers of the 911, 718 and Taycan model lines.
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