Here’s a detailed look at the paint palette available on the Renault Arkana 5-seater coupe-style SUV, which we hope will help you choose your perfect new car colour. You can also read our in-depth Renault Arkana review for more details about Renault's sleek new SUV.
There are 7 main paint options for the Arkana range, comprising 1 solid paint and then 6 metallic paints. Alongside the exterior finishes, we also outline the interior colours that Renault provides to go with these paint choices.
Paint Types
Solid = a simple body colour with no additives in the paint. Usually comprises 3 coats, these being a primer, then the paint, then a clear, protective lacquer. Solid paints aren’t particularly shiny and are normally the only standard/no-cost colours offered by manufacturers.
Metallic = same application process as above but the paint now has powdered metal mixed into it, which reflects more light to give the car a shinier appearance. Metallic finishes usually cost more than solid paints.
Pearlescent/Mica = as above, only instead of metal, ceramic crystals (known as ‘mica’) are added to the paint. These not only reflect light but refract it too, giving one colour different appearances in different levels of light. They’re normally as expensive as or pricier than metallic paints.
Matte = uses special ‘flattening’ agents in the paint/layering make-up to give the car a non-reflective appearance, and sometimes an unusual texture too. These are normally the most expensive and rarest of paint options, and are not offered on many new car models.
Exterior
Glacier White
Type: Solid
Cost: No cost (standard colour for Evolution and Techno cars)
Available On: Evolution, Techno
Renault starts with the usual no-cost offering of Glacier White, the only solid paint in the palette. It’s quite a flat, greyish white so it won’t particularly pop in bright light, but on the flipside it may – as a result – need less washing in the winter months than other whites would. Glacier White is not available on the top 2 specifications of the Arkana’s 2 drivetrains – so R.S. Line for the TCe 140 Mild Hybrid or E-Tech Engineered for the E-Tech 145 Hybrid.
Zanzibar Blue
Type: Metallic
Cost: No cost (standard colour for R.S. Line and E-Tech Engineered cars) or £650 (on Evolution and Techno cars)
Available On: All models
As Glacier White is not available for the 2 flagship specifications, the tasteful shade of Zanzibar Blue steps in as the standard paint finish for R.S. Line and E-Tech Engineered cars. Otherwise, it is – like 2 of the other metallics – a £650 option on the Evolution and Techno models. Zanzibar is a lovely shade of blue, however, so is worth the outlay if you’ve got to spend money to have it, as it has a sort of denim-look to it in certain lights. It should also manage to carry off a few caked-on layers of road filth and still look decent. Zanzibar is 1 of 4 colours that is available on all 4 specifications of the Arkana, no matter what their drivetrain configuration.
Metallic Grey
Type: Metallic
Cost: £650
Available On: All models
Renault gets a bit ‘Ronseal’ for the next 2 paints in the Arkana palette, calling this metallic grey, er… Metallic Grey, with capitals. This is a darker, gunmetal-type grey and so will be the best paint choice of all 7 available for those people who don’t want to wash their car on all 52 Sundays of the year. It is also a nice, classy, restrained colour, so will find favour with those who want their Renault coupe-SUV to look discreet rather than obvious. Metallic Grey is 1 of 4 colours that is available on all 4 specifications of the Arkana, no matter what their drivetrain configuration.
Metallic Black
Type: Metallic
Cost: £650
Available On: All models
As with Metallic Grey, this is Metallic Black. It’s the 1 colour in the palette which hides much of the Arkana’s black exterior trim detailing, so this is the most monotone choice available. It does look good, however, with a deep and lustrous shine when it’s spotlessly clean. The problem with that statement is that Metallic Black, like all automotive blacks, doesn’t actually hide dirt as well as you think it might – especially bird deposits and accumulated winter road salts. So expect to be washing it a lot in the colder months if you want it looking its best. Metallic Black is 1 of 4 colours that is available on all 4 specifications of the Arkana, no matter what their drivetrain configuration.
Pearl White
Type: Metallic
Cost: £750
Available On: All models
As an alternative to flat Glacier White, or indeed as the only white available to the R.S. Line and E-Tech Engineering models of the Arkana, Pearl White is perhaps only slightly misleading in the sense that it is not a pearlescent paint, as its naming convention plus Renault’s own forthright approach to metallic grey and black finishes might have you think, but a metallic. However, it is 1 of 3 more expensive metallic paints, costing £750 a go – and it is the only 1 of these most-expensive coatings which is available on all 4 specifications of the Arkana, no matter what their drivetrain configuration. With a glossier, crisper and brighter finish to it than Glacier, Pearl will take some washing throughout autumn and winter, but the pay-off is that it should really ‘zing’ in bright sunlight when it has just been cleaned.
Flame Red
Type: Metallic
Cost: £750
Available On: All models bar E-Tech Engineered
The final 2 colours for the Arkana are the brightest, most daring finishes available for the car – so if you’ve picked this coupe-SUV for its distinctive exterior aesthetic and you therefore want it to stand out in a crowded car park as much as possible, then 1 of these 2 paints is for you. The first is a widespread colour in all of Renault’s product ranges, so it’s no surprise to see it on an Arkana. Flame Red is a rich, warm, deep shade that’ll look almost as good when it’s dirty as it will do when it’s spotlessly clean. Bad news for buyers of the top-grade E-Tech Hybrid model, though – Flame Red is not available with the E-Tech Engineered specification.
Valencia Orange
Type: Metallic
Cost: £750
Available On: R.S. Line
The last colour in the Arkana palette is exclusive to the R.S. Line TCe 140 models only. It’s called Valencia Orange and it pays homage to that very fruit from the Spanish city as it is a searing shade of orange – therefore, it won’t be to all tastes. However, it should look incredible in bright sunlight when it’s spotlessly clean and, while it won’t hide the build-up of daily-driving winter road dirt, it should still draw attention even when it hasn’t been washed for a few weeks.
Interior
Evolution
Type: Cloth
Cost: No cost (standard interior for Evolution cars)
Available On: Evolution
Available With All Body Colours?: Yes
Renault adopts a simple interior policy of 1 cabin finish per trim grade – with no upgrades or switching of these interiors possible. Therefore, every Evolution-spec car will have this passenger compartment, which sees black-and-grey fabric seats with a lateral pinstripe pattern on the centres, plus a light-coloured roof lining, a leather gearknob and a synthetic leather steering wheel.
Techno
Type: Cloth and synthetic leather
Cost: No cost (standard interior for Techno cars)
Available On: Techno
Available With All Body Colours?: Yes
Techno cars build upon the Evolution cabin with mixed synthetic leather and fabric for the seat upholstery, plus improved ambient lighting in the interior. There is a clustered, repeated pattern of diamonds on the seat centres in the Techno cars.
R.S. Line
Type: Suede and leather
Cost: No cost (standard interior for R.S. Line cars)
Available On: R.S. Line
Available With All Body Colours?: Yes
R.S. Line is the sportiest specification of all, so the cabin of these TCe 140 cars – as you cannot specify R.S. Line trim and the E-Tech Hybrid powertrain together in the Arkana range any longer – is distinguished by a red theme. The upholstery is switched to genuine leather, along with suede, while there are red R.S. Line highlights on the steering wheel and dashboard. These accents are teamed to red top-stitching for the door cards, the seats (it’s actually red-and-grey stitching on these) and the centre armrest, while a carbon-look trim strip in the door panels and on the dashboard further heightens the ambience. The headlining in the cabin is switched to black, aluminium pedals are equipped in the driver’s footwell, the leather on the red-stitched and ‘R.S. Line’-logoed steering wheel is perforated, the leather gearknob now has top-stitching as well, and even the seatbelts sport little red strips on them to complete the comprehensive interior aesthetic of the Renault Arkana R.S. Line.
E-Tech Engineered
Type: Suede and leather
Cost: No cost (standard interior for E-Tech Engineered cars)
Available On: E-Tech Engineered
Available With All Body Colours?: Yes
Like the R.S. Line, the E-Tech Engineered builds upon the Techno cabin. In many ways, this interior is the same as the R.S. Line, as it has the same headlining, carbon-look dash trim, aluminium pedals and much in the way of exposed top-stitching, plus a suede-and-leather upholstery finish. However, the overriding colour in here is gold, rather than red, and the colour is used for the threads on the door cards, the centre armrest and the seats.
Check out our latest Renault Arkana lease deals here.
