Abstract Novel bis (azo) dyes were successfully prepared from the coupling of either natural cardanol or its hydrogenated derivative with a series of diazotized aromatic amines and diamines. These new dyes were fully characterized by NMR, infrared and UV–visible spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. The dyes are highly soluble in a variety of common organic solvents and gasoline as a consequence of the cardanol unit. The physical ...