Paint it black: Car buyers are increasingly going dark
Henry Ford once remarked that “a customer can have a car painted any colour that he wants, so long as it is black.”
It was a quip about the iconic Model T as it began mass production in the early 1900s, but these seem to be words that Canadian car buyers are taking to heart today.
Apparently, black is the new black when it comes to vehicle colours. Forget racing red or something practical like silver — classic black is the top choice for Canadians looking to buy their next car or truck.
Desrosiers Automotive Consultants recently surveyed more than 1,500 vehicle owners and found that black was the most popular response when asked what colour their next car or truck would be. That was followed by blue, then silver or grey, red and white.
Even the consultants were taken aback by the results. However, they noted that consumer tastes don’t always come to fruition when it’s time to buy and reality sinks in.
Not surprisingly, the Desrosiers survey shows colour preferences varied by age, income and type of vehicle. For example, it states that younger drivers had a stronger esthetic preference for black cars, while higher-income earners tended more toward silver and grey.
The results are relatively consistent with the latest annual Global Automotive 2014 Color Popularity Report, published by Axalta (formerly DuPont Performance Coatings), which shows black is among the top two favourite colours for vehicle buyers.
In the Axalta survey, white was considered the most popular shade for the fourth-straight year, with 29 per cent of the consumer vote. This was followed by black at 19 per cent and silver at 14 per cent. The report says silver has been declining as the colour of choice for global car buyers over the last four years.
While these may seem like frivolous and superficial statistics, car manufacturers pay very close attention to these colour trends because of the basic concept of supply and demand: it helps them to determine how much of certain colours of vehicles to produce, and in which region — which as the Axalta survey shows, can vary.
White has been the most popular colour for eight years in North America, while redcoloured vehicles are on the rise.
The survey shows that car buyers in South America lean toward light colours such as white and silver, while blue rules the road in Europe, especially for buyers of compact sport and multi-purpose vehicles.
In Africa, white is hugely popular, with a 45 per cent popularity ranking, and doubling the second-place choice of silver at 17 per cent. Interestingly enough, silver is the most popular car colour in India, while black is the most popular in China.
The survey also says green is “not catching the eye of the car buyer” in many regions. While that may be true, green vehicles such as electric and hybrid cars and trucks are becoming more popular. The survey doesn’t actually mention this, but as anyone who regularly reads my column knows, I’m a big fan of clean energy vehicles — whatever their paint colour.
AUTO NOTE: The government of B.C. is considering raising the penalties for distracted driving and is turning to British Columbians to offer input through a four-week consultation that runs until July 16.
A website geared toward collecting comments and feedback from British Columbians has been launched in an effort to enhance road safety in B.C.
I encourage you to visit the website — engage.gov.bc.ca/ distracteddriving — and weigh in on the conversation.