January 2019
that is when it comes to choosing a car colour…although not if you live in Scotland where white is the new white.
Research published today shows that the popularity of grey has increased and surpassed the colour black for the first time. So if things are looking a bit grey around you when you are sitting in a traffic jam…it’s probably because they really are! By contrast silver…not unlike grey, a strong performer over several years, has now slipped out of its top 5 position.
According to Auto Car, of the 118 car colours available, English drivers registered 116 of them while Northern Irish consumers ordered only 53.
Another change in preferences happened with orange – up 37% year on year.
As a colour, orange is often used to draw attention to potential danger. Orange is used in traffic lights, as the second highest threat level in the USA and the black boxes on aircraft are in fact orange.
Orange has a high contrast on roads against blue grey asphalt, even in low light – so perhaps that is why people are choosing it – to be seen on the road.
There are so many interesting fact ot be discovered about colour and Kassia St Clair’s book “The Secret lives of Colour” is a lovely book to dip into and find out more about the origins and history of 75 shades, dyes and hues.
Last Updated on 23rd August 2022 by Helen Tobias
