What is in the color of a car? The industry depends upon fashion, architecture, furniture and any number of other influences to determine the colors for their vehicles every year. They also look to their demographics-who will be buying that particular car and what their likes and dislikes may be.

The most popular car color in North America is white, and it has been for the last three years. Globally the picture is a bit different, with black gaining popularity, especially when metallic or pearl-coat finishes are applied. Orange and purple are also seeing a rise in interest in the global market and don’t be surprised to see rosy car color palettes in the near future as India and China start to influence North America’s car colors.

Who thinks that insurance companies charge higher rates for brighter colors? This belief probably stems from the fact that people think that red cars are “cop magnets”. In the past, that may have been truer than now because the technological advances of radar and laser detectors has made it less a matter of “sight” and more a matter of “actual speed” according to the gun. But, studies have shown that brighter colors, especially reds, may be hard-wired into our brains as being powerful, strong, and therefore, fast. The same is true of women wearing red suits and men wearing red ties. These are magnets for the eyes, so even though police officers will tell you that is not the case when it comes to red cars, he or she may be genetically programmed to respond viscerally to the color red. When it comes to insurance companies though, they have NEVER charged more in insurance rates for one color of car over another.

But, when it comes to resale, it may be a different story. Most of us will not hold on to our vehicles until they reach “classic” status, which is when color really becomes important. Red is always popular with buyers, whereas the same can definitely not be said of green. But, since most of us will only have our vehicles only 5 or 6 years, often trading them in as soon as they are paid for, color is not so much an economical choice as it is an emotional and personal choice. The color of a car can really make or break a design when it comes to the manufacturing end, because colors DO sell cars. Read the rest of this entry »