Need some inspiration for your build? Here are some of the top car wrap trends that are popular in the modified scene today.
There are all sorts of modifications that you can make to your car to alter its appearance, but a full-body paint job or vinyl wrap is arguably the biggest game changer of them all. It’s not just about color swapping, it’s about changing the whole persona of the car. As a result, it’s important that you pick a style that speaks to you – after all, you can always change it again, but these things aren’t exactly cheap.
So, to help you brainstorm some ideas for your own ride, we’ve collated some of the most popular car wrap trends of 2023.
Most Popular Car Wrap Trends
Bright & Bold
A little while ago, matte black and nardo grey ruled the modified car scene, and while those darker tones are certainly cool on certain cars and in limited quantities, that trend got rather tiresome real quick. Because let’s be real, ‘colorless’ colors are boring.
Thankfully, the car shows that we’ve been to this year have gotten a lot more visually engaging. In a world which has become otherwise quite grey and somber in mood, it seems as though people are starting to rediscover the value of color. Which is great! There’s a whole color wheel out there just waiting to be used…
Motorsport-inspired
If you’re looking for inspiration, then the world of motorsport is a great place to start. There are loads of iconic sponsor designs and color palettes from the race track that you can refer to when coming up with your own ideas. In fact, most manufacturers even have particular sporting ‘house colors’ that you can incorporate.
But you’re not confined to certain boxes with this style, either. You could create something entirely new, using old ideas or cues from the racing scene. Becky Evans’ new S15 drift livery is a great example of both of our first two points, incorporating bold colors and traditional motorsport ideas to create something fresh.
Less is More
For some people, less is more – especially if you daily drive your project car. Fortunately, there are subtle things you can do with wraps and decals which inject a bit of personality into your car, without attracting too much attention.
This Mini Clubman Cooper S is a great example. Notice how the use of red is fleeting but consistent. It runs down the hood and the tailgate, and there are also dashes of the same hue on the rims and brake calipers. So, while the primary white base color and black trim gives the car subtle definition, the red accents (and gold wheels) make it pop without the risk of being considered “too much”. Neat.
Circa 2000s
You could argue that this style never went away, but it certainly has risen and fallen in popularity. The big, bold graphic designs that were so synonymous with The Fast & The Furious and Need for Speed are a core pillar of the 21st Century modified car scene.
However, for it to work, you’ve got to do it well. The reason why it looks so good on this 8-Series is because not only is the print a high-quality design, it’s also cohesive. By that, I mean it makes good use of the car’s body lines and the colors blend well together rather than clash jarringly. If you fall foul of those criteria, you risk ending up with a car that looks dated or tacky.
Pastel
While most of us are in agreement that more color is a good thing, it’s also worth pointing out that you don’t need to burn people’s retinas out in the process. As such, if you like the idea of having a more vibrant looking car, but want it to rest easy on the eye, you might prefer the more muted tones that you get from pastel colors.
This is generally quite a calming option, and allows your car to gain personality without becoming too visually ‘shouty’ or striking.
Full livery
This one’s more for the show cars or track builds, but I guess there’s nothing stopping you from doing to it your daily driver, either. If you’ve got a favorite livery – whether it be from motorsport, or possibly even a film – then you might want to recreate that livery on your own car.
It doesn’t even need to be totally ‘accurate’ to the original – I mean, we’re pretty sure HKS never tuned a Skoda Octavia, but their legendary oil spill livery works great on this Czech wagon!
Floral
For those of you who want something a bit more intricate, perhaps a floral design is what you’re after. These seem to have taken the place of the old tribal decals we used to see, as they serve a similar visual purpose but these days seem more fashionable.
We’ve seen everything from engraved flowers to the classic Japanese sakura (cherry blossom) decals. Whatever your style or personality, there’s probably a plant out there that reflects you well.
If you know, you know
There are some cool wrap ideas that require a certain level of background understanding to fully appreciate. Take this Caddy van for example. You or I will know that it’s referencing the rare Harlequin cars that Volkswagen used to make, but to Average Joe it doesn’t really make much sense. A little while ago, I even saw a Honda E dressed up to replicate the Takumi Fujiwara’s AE86 Trueno – but unless you’ve watched Initial D, that would also probably go over most people’s heads.
These sorts of liveries can be a real winner, because it’ll likely be something quite niche to your interests (and therefore will provide plenty of ownership gratification), but could also serve as a great conversation starter at car meets.
Itasha
In Japanese, the word ‘itasha’ translates to ‘painful (as in, painfully embarrassing) car’. And you don’t need me to explain why that is. Originally that term came from people looking down upon this style of design, but these days the sub-culture seems to happily own it. You’ll mostly find this type of car wrap in native Japan, but they do exist abroad as well.
The idea behind them is that your car is an extension of you, and therefore it’s reasonable to create a design based on your favorite character or characters from an anime, manga, or video game. Often, the attention to detail in these wraps is phenomenal, while the characters in focus range from widely championed to downright lewd. As such, it takes a certain kind of person to go down the itasha route. But if you’re one of those people, then fair play, go for it! Just prepare to get *a lot* of public attention.
Anyway, now that you’ve got some ideas about what design you’d like for your car, the next thing to consider is the the different types of wrap finish. Read about that, or other top car modification trends next.
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