Published December 10, 2020, 1:01 PM Just this week, Pantone announced the colors of the year, being Ultimate Gray and Illuminating (yellow). It may seem like a trivial bit of information, perhaps even odd that some institute should dictate the year’s colors to be used. Yet this seemingly innocuous announcement has wide-reaching effects, not only for the fashion world, but nearly every consumer product you can think of. Including cars. How does it affect the cars we buy? Pantone Colors of the Year from 2000-2020. Just like any consumer product, a vehicle’s design is influenced by a lot of other factors, especially fashion, global consumer trends, and advances in technology.