Car Buyers Crave Color, Study Says

TROY, MI – Auto makers continue to offer the newest gadgets and flashy designs to lure customers, but when it comes right down to it, nothing appears more important to closing a sale than color.

Automotive coating supplier PPG Industries recently surveyed 1,300 prospective buyers on the importance of color, with 77% of respondents indicating it was a key factor in their purchase decisions.

Coatings supplier PPG Industries shows off new colors.

That’s no surprise to Jane Harrington, PPG manager-color styling, who for 28 years has been studying which colors the world’s vehicle buyers find most attractive.

And even though most auto makers offer eight to 10 different colors on each individual model, “40% of consumers would like more choices,” she tells WardsAuto, “and 31% said they would pay extra for a color to express their personality.”

Color, Harrington says, is one of the most basic forms of human expression. But for all the talk about offering consumers more opportunity to personalize their vehicles, most auto makers have stayed with the tried and true when building their color palettes.

That’s why silver, white and black regularly are the most popular vehicle colors. This year, white tops PPG’s rankings, having taken over the top position from silver.

Rarely does a new color land among the leaders, and the most popular colors usually are within a few percentage points of each other.

That’s because consumers tend to be conservative when it comes to spending money on a big-ticket item they will keep around for many years, Harrington says. Black, white and silver, unlikely to fall out of fashion, are the safe bet.

But availability could have something to do with color popularity, as well.

“Some people…have seen a certain color in an ad and want it, but (the dealer) has black, silver and white on the lot and they can get it today,” Harrington says. “But there is a group of people that want more colors and would pay more for a color that says more about their personality.”

Preferences don’t vary much by region. Black, silver and white rank among the most popular colors around the world.

In North America, white is the most popular color this year at 20%, followed by silver (19%) and black (18%). Red and blue are tied for fifth (9%) and naturals such as browns, tans, golds, oranges and yellows are sixth (7%). Green ranks seventh (2%).

In Europe, black is No.1 with 26% of vehicles sold, followed by white (19%), silver (16%), gray (15%), blue (9%), red (7%), naturals (5%) and green (2%).

In the Asia/Pacific region, silver (25%) holds the top spot, trailed by white (23%), black (17%), gray (8%), red (10%), blue (7%), naturals (7%) and green (2%).

But there are signs of a popularity shift in some markets. In China, red is trending upward.

“We’re told it has to do with women consumers becoming stronger,” Harrington says. “Also, the colors we categorize under natural are also increasing in China.”

In North America, hues exclusive to individual auto makers are showing some growth. The take rate for Chrysler’s Mango Tango, offered on the Jeep Wrangler and other models, is on the rise. General Motors has a particular shade of red that is drawing buyers and represents a new type of coating.

“GM has crystal-clear red paint on the Chevy Cruze,” Harrington says. “It has a red metallic base coat with red pigment in clearcoat, so in sunshine it looks very intense.”

Color preferences vary by segment, although here, too, the three most popular colors overall reign.

An sizable 36% of luxury buyers choose black, which Harrington says represents exclusivity, while the majority of midsize sedan buyers opt for silver or gray.

Compact car buyers like silver, while light-truck customers tend to choose solid white. Gray and silver are favorites among minivan purchasers.

Those who buy electrified vehicles, such as the hybrid Toyota Prius, are attracted to light greens and blues.

“If you look at ways a lot of eco-friendly products are advertised, they use light blue or green in ads,” Harrington says. “I think the consumer thinks it’s good for them.”

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