Actually, there's frequently a reason for that besides marketing. Some paint finishes simply cost more than others. One thing you'll typically see on Euro car

Actually, there's frequently a reason for that besides marketing. Some paint finishes simply cost more than others. One thing you'll typically see on Euro cars is that the "pearl" finishes cost more than the standard black and white ones; that's because the pearls are a metallic paint that costs a lot more. Another one on my new Mazda is the "Soul Red" color they're selling, which costs $300 more. There's a good reason for this: unlike the regular pearls, this is a special 3-layer paint (basecoat, tinted clear, top clear), which costs more in materials and requires a special set-up to apply. That's just factory paint; if you want to see really crazy and expensive stuff, just visit a high-end body shop and ask them about color-shifting paints (so-called "chameleon colors") which completely change color depending on what angle you view it at.