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You may have heard of car brands sharing platforms, engines, technologies and even whole models – with different badges – but the latest Mazda and Toyota tie-up involves a colour.
Toyota has unveiled a new model with a hero colour that will be familiar to customers who shop around before their next vehicle purchase.
The Toyota Corolla Cross small SUV is now available in the US in Soul Red Crystal, the multi-layer 'hero' colour of Mazda's cars for almost a decade.
While there is a long history of collaboration between Toyota and Mazda – from hybrid technology to entire models wearing the other brand's badges – sharing of a colour is rare in the car industry.
It is made possible by a joint-venture factory owned by the Japanese car makers in the US state of Alabama, which produces Toyota Corolla Cross and Mazda CX-50 SUVs for the North American market.
It's for this reason that it is unlikely Australia-bound Corolla Cross SUVs will ever offer Soul Red Crystal paint as an option, as models sold locally are made in Japan.
Similarly, the CX-50 is available in Cypress Green, a colour from the Toyota line-up.
Although the sharing of colours between brands is uncommon, it is not unheard of.
Porsche buyers can access the Paint to Sample program with an extensive range of historical colours – some from other brands such as BMW and Audi – while VW has offered Porsche colours on the Golf in overseas markets.
Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner
