If you recall some time ago, Chevrolet->ke199 came out with a paint color contest to name the official color of the Chevrolet Volt->ke2721. And now, after what has seemed like an inordinate amount of time, the winning color has finally been announced.

Viridian Joule.

Yes, apparently, that is a legitimate color, or to be more specific, a legitimate hue. It turns out that ‘Viridian’ is a real word, which means ‘a long-lasting bluish-green pigment made from hydrated oxide of chromium. As far as ‘Joule’ is concerned, we do remember from our Home-Ec classes that it’s a unit meant to describe some sort of electric energy.

The contest was one by David Thomas from Sanford, Florida, whose ‘Viridian Joule’ name beat out notable contenders the ‘EV-ergreen’ and the ‘environMINT’. In hindsight, ‘Viridian Joule’ isn’t all that bad of a name, especially since ‘EV-ergreen’ and ‘environMINT’ didn’t really get any overwhelming thumbs up from us. But we did wonder for the life of us why Chevy had to have such a contest. Couldn’t they have come up with something themselves?

We’re guessing that it’s their way to keep the public involved in whatever they do, which, at the end of the day, isn’t bad idea to drum up interest for the Volt.

Press release after the jump.

PRESS RELEASE

Florida Man Wins Chevrolet Volt Paint Color ContestConsumers choose 'Viridian Joule' as winning color name

2009-12-01

o Consumers determined the winner

o Nearly 3,000 consumers voted for their favorite name

o 'Viridian Joule' led all finalists in consumer voting since Nov. 16

o Winning name announced today in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES – David Thomas, 40, of Sanford, Fla., has won Chevrolet's national contest to name the Volt's lead paint color and the opportunity to be the first consumer to test-drive a pre-production Volt. Nearly 3,000 people cast their votes at chevroletvoltage.com for Thomas' "Viridian Joule." Voting ended at 8 a.m. ET and Chevrolet announced the winner in Los Angeles.

"I looked at the photo of the Volt on the contest web site and thought it looked emerald in color, which led to jewel and then to an alternate yet appropriate play on that word – joule (a unit of electrical energy)," said Thomas.

Although it was a close race among the three finalists throughout the contest, "Viridian Joule" led throughout the Nov. 16 to Dec. 1 voting period. Chevrolet also selected "EV-ergreen," offered by Devin McQuarrie, 30, of San Jose, Calif., and "environMINT," entered by Matthew Valbuena, 30, of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., as finalists. About 300 votes separated "Viridian Joule" from the second-place entry, "environMINT."

Thomas traveled to L.A. and joined the two California-based finalists for the announcement.

"This was a fun way to engage Chevrolet and Volt enthusiasts by inviting them into the process and naming our lead color, and the name reflects the innovation of the Volt's extended-range technology," said Maria Rohrer, Global Volt and Global Marketing Director at Chevrolet. "When our Volt marketing materials arrive in dealerships, you'll see "Viridian Joule" as the official name of the silver exterior with an emerald hue."

Chevrolet narrowed down nearly 13,000 name entries to the three finalists, judging them on originality, creativity and the ability to capture the innovation and spirit of the Volt. About 27,000 people – or half of all visitors to www.chevroletvoltage.com during the Oct. 22 to Nov. 4 entry period – submitted a color name.

A sales representative for an awards and promotions company in the Orlando area, Thomas is originally from Southeast Michigan and has family ties to the auto industry. He submitted several color names, but "Viridian Joule" wasn't his first entry.

The Chevy Volt is an electric vehicle with extended-range capability. It is designed to drive up to 40 miles on electricity without using gasoline or producing tailpipe emissions. When the Volt's lithium-ion battery is depleted of energy, an engine/generator seamlessly operates to extend the total driving range to about 300 miles before refueling or stopping to recharge the battery.

Production for the Volt is expected to begin in late 2010. Pricing has not been announced.