The North American 968 was offered in 33 factory exterior colors over the 4 year production run, however, 65% of the coupes and 61% of the cabriolets were produced in the “more common” Black/Red/White hues reflecting the conservative times of the market. That said, a few of the “more unusual” exterior color 968s were produced as well as 18 rare “color to sample” cars.
The pricing of the exterior color depended on the selection and the model year it was produced in. Referring to the Exterior Paint Color Reference chart below (and also provided for you in PDF format here: Porsche 968 Exterior Color Reference Chart), the pricing works out as follows:
STD = Standard – These are solid paint color selections that were offered at no-cost for the corresponding year. 2,715 of the 4,242 NA 968 were painted in the solid category exterior colors (64%).
MET = Metallic – These are metallic paint color selections. For the 1992 Model year the cost was $803. For model years 1993 – 1995 the cost was $823. 1,475 of the 4,242 NA 968s were painted in metallic category exterior colors (35%).
SPL MET = Special Metallic – These “special” metallic colors were offered in the 1992 model year only (with the exception of code 57 Violet blue metallic, which carried over to the 1993 model year and was re-categorized as a metallic color offering). Many of these “special” colors had been used previously by Porsche during the late eighties or early nineties. The cost for special metallic paint was $1,600 and NA 968s painted in these colors are quite rare with only 34 being produced out of 4,242 cars.
C2S = Color to sample – Still offered for your new Porsche today, a buyer could request a “color to sample” exterior paint color. Available in both solid and metallic, the color to sample request would have to be accepted by Porsche and then it would add months to the delivery time of your new 968 due to the special production handling. It also added $2,498 to the cost. Despite those negatives 18 North American 968s of the 4,242 were produced and painted under the color to sample program. See the dedicated page elsewhere on the site for more details on these special cars.
You will also note in the chart that certain colors have multiple paint codes. That is due to Porsche changing to “water-based” paint formulas during the 968’s production run and utilizing a different paint code.
The production statistical breakdown of the North American 968 coupes and cabriolets by exterior color offering and in order of popularity can be found elsewhere on the site.
Early model year 1994 “R” 968s were produced from March 1993 – June 1993 and have option code 718
Late model year 1994 “R” 968s were produced from July 1993 -Feb 1994 and do NOT have option code 718
* Violet Blue Metallic (Code 57) was a Special Metallic color in 1992 and then became a Metallic offering for 1993 The colors used for illustration are representatives of the listed color and not accurate.
The above information was compiled by the PCA 968 Register. Please credit appropriately.