CORVETTE COLORS
Black Rose Corvette: Every Year, Code and How Many Were Built
Black Rose Metallic on the Chevrolet Corvette, 1992–1994, 2017–2018: what the color is, the GM paint code in every year, how many were built and what share of the year that was, the interiors it came with, a picture gallery for each year, the chart of its run and the colors that came before and after it.
Quick Nav: The Story · By Generation · Chart · C4 · C7 · Related · Paint Codes · More Purple · FAQs
The Basics
The Color: Deep purple-maroon metallic, 1992–94 and 2017–18
GM Codes: 73, GGA
Years Offered: 1992–1994, 2017–2018 (5 model years)
Generations: C4 (1984–96), C7 (2014–19)
Built: 5,640 with GM counts
Best Year: 1992, 1,886 cars (9.2% of the year)
Color Family: Purple (every purple Corvette color)
Also Called: Code 73 (1992–94), GGA (2017–18, $495 in 2018)
Extra Cost: $495 (a tintcoat or premium paint in those years)
Paint Codes: 1992–1994: WA9885 / PPG 4464 / DuPont B9218; 2017–2018: WA409B
Pictures: 5 picture posts on the site, one per model year
The Overview
Black Rose Metallic was offered on the Corvette in 1992–1994, 2017–2018: 5 model years across the C4, C7 generations. GM’s color counts put 5,640 Black Rose Corvettes on the road, 1,886 of them in 1992 alone.
Deep purple-maroon metallic, 1992–94 and 2017–18. Its share of a year’s production ran from 2 to 9 percent. It was an extra-cost paint ($495). The interiors most often paired with it were Black. The chart below shows the run year by year; the generation sections carry every year’s code, count, share, interiors and picture.
This page has every year Black Rose was offered with its GM code, how many were built, its share of the year and the interiors it came with, the site’s picture gallery for each year, a chart of the run, the related colors, and the FAQs. It is one of 77 color pages on CorvSport; the Purple Corvettes page lists every purple the factory ever sprayed, and Corvette Colors by Year has the full chart for each model year.
The Story of Black Rose
Black Rose Metallic was the C4’s dark purple-red from 1992 to 1994 — 1,886 cars the first year — a color that reads black in shade and plum in sun. Chevrolet revived the name for the 2017 C7 (1,333 cars) and 2018 ($495, 219 cars in a short year), the only C7 color with a C4 name.
The site tags it as purple in some years and red in others; it is on the Purple family page here, with a note on the Red page.
The Black Rose Cars to Know
1992 Black Rose Metallic C4 (1,886); 2017 Z06 in Black Rose Metallic; 2018 Black Rose Metallic (219).
MORE: THE MOST POPULAR COLORS BY GENERATION / 70 YEARS OF LEAST & MOST POPULAR COLORS / ALL PURPLE CORVETTES
Black Rose by Generation
Black Rose across the 2 generations it was offered on: the years, the GM paint code each generation used, how many were built with GM’s counts, the biggest year and the interiors most often paired with it. Each generation has its own section below with every year.
MORE: THE C4 HUB / THE C7 HUB
| GENERATION | YEARS | CODE(S) | BUILT | BEST YEAR | INTERIORS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C4 Corvette | 1992–1994 | 73 | 4,088 | 1992 (1,886) | Black |
| C7 Corvette | 2017–2018 | GGA | 1,552 | 2017 (1,333) | — |
Black Rose by Year: How Many Were Built
GM’s production counts for Black Rose in every year it was offered. The peak was 1992 at 1,886 cars; the full table for each year, with codes, shares and interiors, is in the generation sections below.
Black Rose on the C4 Corvette (1984–96)
Black Rose on the C4 (1984–96): offered 1992–1994 as code 73. 4,088 cars by GM’s count, the best year 1992 with 1,886. Every year links to its research page (the full color chart, options and prices for that year) and to the site’s picture post for the color.
MORE: THE C4 HUB / THE 1992 RESEARCH PAGE / ALL C4 COLOR POSTS / ALL C4 COLORS
Black Rose on the C7 Corvette (2014–19)
Black Rose on the C7 (2014–19): offered 2017–2018 as code GGA. 1,552 cars by GM’s count, the best year 2017 with 1,333. Every year links to its research page (the full color chart, options and prices for that year) and to the site’s picture post for the color.
MORE: THE C7 HUB / THE 2017 RESEARCH PAGE / ALL C7 COLOR POSTS / ALL C7 COLORS
| YEAR | CODE | BUILT | SHARE | INTERIORS | PICTURES | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | GGA | 1,333 | 4.1%, #9 of 10 | — | Pictures | Stingray coupe 448; Stingray convertible 96; GS coupe 345; GS convertible 120; Z06 coupe 261; Z06 convertible 63; new that year |
| 2018 | GGA | 219 | 2.3%, #10 of 11 | — | Pictures | Stingray coupe 75; Stingray convertible 17; GS coupe 53; GS convertible 25; Z06 coupe 37; Z06 convertible 12; $495 |
Colors Related to Black Rose
The colors that came before and after Black Rose, the ones it is confused with and the ones that shared its slot on the chart. Each has its own page or a line on its family page.
MORE: EVERY PURPLE CORVETTE COLOR / ALL CORVETTE COLORS / COLORS BY YEAR
| COLOR | YEARS | BUILT | FAMILY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Purple | 1995–1996 | 1,896 | Purple | On the Purple Corvettes page |
| Dark Claret | 1980–1982 | 4,645 | Red | See the Dark Claret page |
| Magnetic Red | 1999–2002, 2004–2005 | 19,294 | Red | See the Magnetic Red page |
| Hysteria Purple | 2025–2026 | 1,707 | Purple | On the Purple Corvettes page |
Black Rose Paint Codes: GM, WA, PPG and DuPont
The codes a body shop or a judge needs for Black Rose: the GM order code on the trim tag or service parts label, GM’s WA formula number and the PPG / Ditzler and DuPont mixing codes where they are documented. Where a code is blank the sources did not list one; the notes say where a source disagreed.
MORE: THE RPO CODES LIBRARY / THE VIN DECODER
| YEARS | GM CODE | WA | PPG / DITZLER | DUPONT | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992–1994 | 73U | WA9885 | 4464 | B9218 | Dark purplish-red metallic (C4). |
| 2017–2018 | GGA | WA409B | — | — | Very dark red/black metallic; no-cost. GM sales name 'Edible Berries Metallic'. |
FAQs
What years was the Corvette offered in Black Rose?
1992–1994, 2017–2018: 5 model years on the C4, C7. Black Rose Metallic was the C4’s dark purple-red from 1992 to 1994 — 1,886 cars the first year — a color that reads black in shade and plum in sun.
What is the GM paint code for Black Rose?
GM used 73, GGA across the years; the code changed when GM changed its coding system, not the paint. The paint-shop codes are 1992–1994: WA9885 / PPG 4464 / DuPont B9218; 2017–2018: WA409B.
How many Black Rose Corvettes were built?
5,640 by GM’s counts (1,886 in 1992, the biggest year).
Which Corvette models and editions came in Black Rose?
1992 Black Rose Metallic C4 (1,886); 2017 Z06 in Black Rose Metallic; 2018 Black Rose Metallic (219). In its years it was available on every body style and model unless the year’s note says otherwise; the year tables above say which.
Is Black Rose a metallic, a tintcoat or a solid color?
Deep purple-maroon metallic, 1992–94 and 2017–18. It was an extra-cost paint in some years ($495), which is what the tintcoat or tri-coat label means: a base coat under a tinted clear and a clear, deeper to look at and harder to touch up.
What was the most popular year for Black Rose?
1992, with 1,886 cars, 9.2% of that year’s production.
What colors are similar to Black Rose?
Dark Purple, Dark Claret, Magnetic Red, Hysteria Purple. The Purple Corvettes page has every purple the factory offered, with the years and counts side by side.
Where can I see pictures of Black Rose Corvettes?
The site has a picture post for each year Black Rose was offered — real cars photographed in the real color — linked from the year tables above and in the picture grids on this page; the Purple Corvettes page and the wallpaper collection have more.
How does the Black Rose page fit with the rest of the Corvette colors research?
Every model year has a research page with the full color chart (codes, counts, interiors and soft tops), the Colors by Year page indexes them, every color with three or more years has a page like this one, and the twelve family pages (Red, Blue, Black, White, Silver, Yellow, Gray, Green, Orange, Purple, Gold, Brown) list every shade ever offered.
