Color fade paint: Bentley joins Ferrari, McLaren, and Lamborghini in the luxury car trend

Bentley Continental GT Speed – The first Ombré showcase

The Continental GT Speed was the first vehicle to feature Bentley’s Ombré by Mulliner finish, presented at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering during Monterey Car Week. The exterior fades from Topaz Blue at the front to the darker Windsor Blue at the rear, with the most noticeable transition along the center section following the curve of the rear haunch line.

Key Features:

• Hand-painted by two technicians over 56 hours.
• 22-inch ten-spoke swept wheels matched to the gradient: Topaz front → Windsor rear.
• Interior fade mirrored the exterior: Topaz leather front seats, steering wheel, and instrument panel, flowing into Beluga hide at the rear, accented with Dragonfly piping and stitching.

Bentley Flying Spur – Extending the fade to a sedan

Bentley soon extended the Ombré by Mulliner finish to a Flying Spur, marking their first four-door sedan with a full-body gradient. Painted by hand in Crewe, England, the Flying Spur fades from the same Topaz Blue at the front to Windsor Blue at the rear, applied across the doors, sills, and roof.

Key Features:

• Nearly 60 hours of craftsmanship for two skilled paint technicians.
• Other available fades include Sunburst Gold → Orange Flame and Tungsten → Onyx with more color combinations to follow.
• Only specific color combinations are approved to ensure a smooth transition and avoid unexpected third tones.
• Each car remains unique, with slight variations in the blend depending on how the paint reacts during application.
• Price: around £48,000 / $68,000 for the option.

Lamborghini Ad Personam paint finishes

Through Lamborghini’s Ad Personam program, virtually anything is possible, and the Italian brand was (perhaps unsurprisingly) among the first to experiment with color-fade paintwork.

Most notably in October 2017, to celebrate 50 years of Lamborghini in Japan, the automaker released a limited run of five Aventador S Roadsters, each a one-off paying tribute to the five natural elements in Japanese culture: earth, wind, fire, sky, and water.

• The specs featured two-tone fades, with each accent color blending into Nero Pegaso (black) across the bodywork.
• All five cars had an exposed carbon fiber roof.
• Interiors carried the same accent color, including a carbon fiber plate between the seats engraved with the Japanese symbol for that element.

All five examples are documented on our website, you can see them in more detail here.

But it's not only the special editions that carry the color fade, as recently we've seen a noticeable increase in customer specced cars with this trend. Here are some examples:

• Verde Alceo / Nero Nemesis - Revuelto
• Rosso Bia / Nero Granatus - Sterrato

McLaren’s Spectrum Theme

While Bentley emphasizes subtle, seamless transitions, McLaren Special Operations (MSO) also offers another take on the color fade with its Spectrum Theme on the 750S and 750S Spider.

They have offered the more traditional fade before with the earlier MSO “Velocity” themes for the 720S and Verdant Theme on the GT. But instead of one continuous fade, the Spectrum finish shifts across seven tonal variations of a single color. Resulting in a layered, almost digital effect that highlights McLaren’s futuristic design language.

Launch examples included Spectrum Grey → Metallic Meteorite Grey, Spectrum Blue → Metallic Aurora Blue, and Spectrum Orange → Gamma Red. But your own custom Spectrum color way is also possible.

And like Lamborghini there's also some customer specced examples:

• Fistral Blue / Atlantic Blue - 765LT Spider
• Ludus Blue / Burton Blue - 765LT Spider

Ferrari Tailor Made: Client-Driven Creativity

Ferrari is typically cautious with bold new trends, but when client demand is high, the marque delivers. Their Tailor Made Atelier has delivered a few color-fade effects cars, as one-off commissions crafted for individual customers.

• SF90 Spider: Painted in Nero Daytona → Rosso Magma.
• Custom Japanese commission: Blended Blu Corsa → Canna di Fucile.
• F8 Tributo: The first Tailor Made fade delivered in 2021, transitioning from Silver → Black.

Rather than offering pre-set themes, Ferrari focuses on client creativity, allowing customers to dream up unique fades.

Beyond luxury: more brands exploring fades

While the trend is most widely available on high-end supercars, non-luxury manufacturers are also experimenting.

MINI for example offered a Multitone Roof option in 2021. It was the first time an innovative wet-on-wet painting process is being used at the MINI plant in Oxford, UK, to create a three-color design for the vehicle roof.
From the dark San Marino Blue in the front section of the vehicle's roof, the color scheme gently transitions to the lighter shade of Pearly Aqua, then just as smoothly to Jet Black in the rear section.
Due to slight deviations in the color pattern each MINI with a Multitone Roof is unique.

This shows that painted fades are slowly spreading beyond ultra-exclusive marques, hinting at wider availability in future mainstream cars.

Conclusion

The popularity of color-fade paintwork has grown significantly, driven largely by owners seeking to stand out in an era where a custom paint to sample color is no longer enough to convey exclusivity. From Bentley’s Ombré process to McLaren’s layered Spectrum tones, these gradient finishes have become a statement of individuality and craftsmanship.

However, despite this rise in attention, a broader breakthrough is unlikely. The primary barriers remain the high cost of execution and the practical challenges of maintenance. Any damage to the bodywork would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to repair seamlessly due to the complex color transitions, making these fades a true luxury for those willing to accept the trade-offs.

In short, color-fade paintwork is visually striking and highly exclusive, but its practicality ensures it will remain a niche offering for the foreseeable future.