Americans shun colored cars in favor of white and black rides

Los Angeles Times
By JERRY HIRSCH
10/11/2012

Americans buy more cars in white than any other color, according to automotive paint producer PPG Industries.

When it comes to autos, white is the new white.

Automakers in North America offered more white cars than vehicles in any other color during the just-completed 2012 model year, according to the automotive coating division of PPG Industries.

The paint company said 22% of the 2012 cars painted white. That compares to 21% last year. White stole market share from black, which fell to 19% this year from 20% last year. Silver held steady at 20%.

Americans just don’t seem to be into cars with dynamic colors, according to the 2012 model year build data collected by PPG. Red is 9%, blue 7% and green 2%.

But that hasn’t stopped PPG from offering up some interesting colors for consideration by the industry for the 2014 model year and beyond.

PPG is pitching Al Fresco, a silver metallic with fresh green tint; Victoria Grey, a classic gray with an iridescent highlight of gold metal; Opulence, a refined red pearl with intense jewel tone; Glacier, an icy graphite gray with a slight violet blue tone; Sunshine, a bright high-sparkle intense yellow; and Elixir, a metallic mixture of silver and magenta.

When it comes to luxury cars, 33% were painted gray. Red was the most common color for sports cars, at 19%. Orange gets almost no love. It did best in the compact car and light truck segments, but even then tallied just 2%.

Despite their affinity for white, American car buyers aren’t as conservative as their counterparts abroad. In Europe 23% of the cars built during the last model year were white and 21% black. In Asia, 23% were white and another 23% were silver.

 

White just makes sense here in the hot Florida sun. I did look for a white Jag but ended up with platinum.

 

Wow! Black or white are the two colors I least like on a car. I notice that parking lots are pretty bland these days. I tend to go for bright colors. My S Type is Carnival Red, my Geo Tracker is bright yellow, My Dodge Grand Caravan is Caribbean Blue and my Celica convertible is red!

On the other hand both of my daughters got new cars within the last year (Fiat 500 and Ford Fusion). Both white by choice!

 

I prefer the color of my '96 Jag XJS, but have a '01 BMW 740il that is a beautiful black. A "Quality" clear coat is a must on any color.

 

Seems like a chicken/egg thing to me. Most models come in a wide array of white-black-silver-grey shades with one or two token hues thrown in. Most people in North America buy a car that is already on a lot somewhere, and aren't really given a choice of colour. SOMEONE is deciding to order all those greys and whites but it isn't the consumer.

 

My XJ8 is white. I bought it as a used car and so maintenance records and condition were more important than color. Still, I think it looks good in white. Some cars just can't pull off white without looking like a fleet vehicle (which is why white has always been a large percentage of sales).

I don't really understand the popularity of black as it shows every spec of dirt, dent, scratch, etc. and under ordinary ownership and care, looks hideous after only a few years. You have to have OCD if you're going to own a black car. By contrast, I see a lot of cars in metallic earthtone colors like champaign beige which you couldn't tell it was dirty if it just went through a flood. Silver has been popular for years for the simple fact that it too has to get really dirty before its obvious.

I tend to like blues. My Corvette is LeMans Blue, my Mustang is Diamond Blue. I've owned two Toyota Supras and a Mercury Capri RS in metallic blue. My brother's Corvette is one of my favorite named Bryar Blue in Corvette tradition for the Bryar Motorsports Park, today know as New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Blues always seem to be rare colors for cars.

People advertise particularly Corvettes because the numbers are readily available, that their car for sale is more valuable because its a rare color. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. A rare color means that few people liked it when it was new. It is possible that fashions change and a color can become more popular in a future time, but as these studies prove, prospective buyers probably won't like your rare color any more today than they did when the car was new.

 

Before this Jaguar, I had a black Lexus LS400. I was wandering around the lot looking at the new models while waiting on getting a new remote key programmed in the service department when the salesman comes out to greet me. He asked if I had any questions and I said "Yes, do they come in any color other than silver?" He looked around the lot and suddenly noticed that every last Lexus on their lot that day was silver.

 

Voila. Though I have noticed that the smallest cars, mostly hatchbacks, come in a greater array of colours, some that I'm sure would look good on bigger sedans. I wonder if there's a supposed fun-factor at play by the marketing guys.

Any marketing professionals on this forum with some input?

 

You guys are absolutely right. When I buy cars the choices available on dealer forecourts are white, grey, silver, and black. All monochrome, from light to dark.

Dealers tell me that 'real' colors are hard to sell but my red and blue cars sell in a heartbeat. Never owned a white car and never will.

 

...not all...

 

I had one (mostly) white car, a long time ago, and one was enough.

I never had a black car, as I figured that one out before I spent money.

Silver seems to be the best dirt color, since I don't have a chauffeur, and I am too old to wash cars.

I think selecting a car color involves more than picking a color that you like.

You also have to consider how that color makes that particular shape look, Does it bring out the lines, the creases and curves, or does that color hide them and make the car just a blob of color?

I guess it's an individual thing.

 

The color selection at new car lots is consumer driven indeed. Most dealers have 60 days to sell a unit before it becomes aged inventory. Therefore dealers track what sells including exterior and interior color combinations as well as options. They order mainly what sells, i.e. what consumer prefers. If you don't see what you want on the lot, the dealer will do a locate to see if anyone has the car you are looking for. The other option is to order the car in exact color and content you want. In California you can always decline an ordered vehicle if for some reason you don't like it.

 

Yeah, is sorta like carpeting for your house. If you ever intend to sell you can't go wrong with a beige color.....nobody really likes it but, more importantly, nobody actually hates it. Same thing with silver cars.

Black cars? You don't own a black car. It owns you. I've owned two and never, never again! A black car is always just on the verge of being clean

I like white on cars if it's a nice bright white. Some are a creamy white or antique white.....seems like they look a bit boring even on a good day.

Cheers
DD

 

I've had a lot of different color cars but my XF I have now is the best color I've owned. Never looks dirty oh, vapor grey, and really looked great after I blacked all the chrome and wheels. My XK8 in black drives me insane! Love it when it's clean but that lasts about .05 seconds!! Lol

 

I just bought my Polaris White F Type Coupe. I felt that white was a car that accents the curves and lines of the car while offering some contrast with the tail lights and head lights.

 

I own a number of colours - but the black Morgan, red leather and gleaming chrome is by far the most spectacular. However, you have to work at it - luckily waxing is my form of relaxation, so it is a win, win situation

 

My current Jag is Quartz which the first non-blue Jag I've had. My first choice would have been either Indigo Blue or Jaguar Racing Green but none were available at the time.


When I bought my S-Type, I told the dealer "no black, white or silver cars". You should have seen his face.