[perryka]

The other day I was going to pick up some large pieces from my 68 wagon's front bumper assembly that I was having media blasted. I live in the Washington DC area, and was on the capital beltway and glanced over at the traffic on the other loop going the other way. At that moment, for some reason I decided to try something. For every silver vehicle I saw, I would say out loud "silver". I was rather astonished how much talking I was doing, just saying that one word. It was a constant stream. Sometimes it was hard to keep up. And the traffic was moving, not standing still. For anybody else in a metropolitan area, or with a heavily traveled road in your area, try it sometime. You'll be amazed. You'll also be amazed how fast you get sick of saying "silver".

Have the car companies lost all imagination? Must EVERY car be silver?? I used to think it was just Honda, but now I think they're all in it together. And I didn't even get into the whole gray thing, which is a whole nuther exercise. It seems like every 3rd or 4th vehicle is either silver or one of the hundred shades of gray. I have no problem with these colors per se, but the sheer numbers are getting on my nerves. They're everywhere! Whatever happened to color??? I like looking at ANY old car now, now matter what kind it is, just to see all the colors that used to be around. And that's just the OUTSIDE, never mind the interiors. Now you get black, gray, or tan.

There's a thread on a station wagon forum I visit about wagons in vintage street scenes, with hundreds of old pics, and I'm fascinated to look at them to see all the colors of the cars from life in the 50's, 60's and 70's. Sure would like to see more of that. Why are silver and gray so common? Nothing against people that have them, but why so many and so little variety?

Alan

[nytrainer]

My Brother In Law has bought 10 cars in the last 15 years...all some variation of silver..guess he thinks it looks "rich" or he's afraid to be different. BTW every room in his house is off white lol.

[HighPlainsDrifter]

I was just talking to my buddy about this the other day. For the last 5-10 years it seems like most all cars are either silver/gray, white, or black. You see a few reds and the occasional blue here and there but not much else.

In the 1990s green was the most popular color and it seemed like every car was green. Now you can't even get green most of the time.

I think there are two factors at play here - One that people are becoming ever more sheep-like and don't want to buy a car with a unique or attention-getting color because it might not have good resale value (same thing with housing subdivisions where every house has to be an HOA approved shade of brown or whatever), and the other factor is it's cheaper for the manufacturers to offer fewer colors.

Green is one of my favorite colors. If I had the money I'd get my daily driver painted Brewster Green!

[The Champ]

Originally Posted by perryka

Must EVERY car be silver??

No - and it's not even the most popular color...

World's most popular car color not shades of gray

No drum roll needed. The most popular car in the world for the 2013 model year was white. Again.

One in four new-car buyers chose white -- and that's up 3% from last year, according to data from PPG Industries, the largest supplier of transportation coatings.

Silver and black tied for second at 18% each, according to the annual date on vehicles built data, followed by gray, red, natural hues, blue and green which stayed the course from 2012.

In North America, white remained the most popular "color" at 21% followed by equally sedate black (19%), gray (17%) and silver (15%).

My company car is white. Our daily driver is gray.

Just this past weekend - my wife and I were talking that it seems 90% of the new cars are White, Black or Silver/Gray. The blues or greens are mostly dull colors.

I painted my racing golf cart '09 Pontiac VooDoo Blue. I'd love to have that available for my next new vehicle purchase:

[Stuart]

I put the silver and grey cars together, since they all seem to be just different shades of the same thing. That brings them up to 32% of the total. Plus, 99% of cars these days have grey mouse fur interiors.

[hurryinhoosier62]

My wife asked the same question this weekend as we looked for her new "work" vehicle. She's looking for something "different" preferably red, but BRIGHT red not maroon. There aren't many red autos out there unless you want a Corvette or Camaro.

[HighPlainsDrifter]

Originally Posted by Stuart

I put the silver and grey cars together, since they all seem to be just different shades of the same thing. That brings them up to 32% of the total. Plus, 99% of cars these days have grey mouse fur interiors.

Ditto. My daily driver is "Crystal Gray Metallic" according to the manufacturer. It could be silver if they called it that.

[400 4spd.]

I have a neighbor who drives a silver car all day long (State Police) and comes home to a driveway with 4 more silver vehicles in it. Same with my sister and her husband, two they got rid of prior and three current cars are silver.
Can't say I know of anyone else with 5 cars the same color.

[Chris65LeMans]

Pretty much every car looks good in silver or grey. I own 2 grey cars, a Teal turquoise LeMans, and a gold Camry. You can't tell me that Teal Turquoise with Parchment interior would look good on a 2004 Acura TL, but it looks great on the Indian.

The gold Camry is a beater that was given to me by a family member. I don't think gold looks good on any modern cars.

When we bought my wife's Toyota, she wanted to keep her streak (3 - every car she's ever owned) of silver cars alive, but the Grey one was $500 cheaper. I had a silver car a few cars ago - it was one of my favorites.

So - people buy colors that they like. Silver and Grey are in style now. Just drive what you like, and screw what everyone else thinks.

[Ollie]

Could it be the cost of the pigment in the paint. Ypu all know how the bean counters have taken over.

[mechanickeith]

Probably 75% here in my town are white. I wonder why??

[hurryinhoosier62]

Originally Posted by mechanickeith

Probably 75% here in my town are white. I wonder why??

The heat thing? It's the same over here, Keith. BTW....all of ours are red.

[kate`s67gto]

Just bought a new vehicle Blue in color Honda Ridgeline.
When I was looking I said to the salespeople no Gray Silver or Black color. They looked at me as if I was from another planet. So sick of those colors every other car on the road is one of those colors. The 67 is suppose to be Silver Glaze. Since it is not numbers matching painted red.

[mslcar]

When I looked for my newest car I wanted red but no dealer within 500 miles had a red one with the options I wanted on it so it was either go with white or wait months for them to build and deliver it. God I'm sooo bored with all the non colors on new cars these days. Seems like they just blend into the background.

[428PHIL]

Originally Posted by Ollie

Could it be the cost of the pigment in the paint. Ypu all know how the bean counters have taken over.

Don't think it's the cost of paint. I purchased a CTS coupe with red paint, was a optional paint, cost 1K to the price of the car. I think most people choose light colors because they don't show the dirt as much as darker cars.

[bird72]

Not just color but shape. They only allow 3 variations on one shape. 2 interior colors. 4 outside colors, two of which are different variations of gray / silver, the other two black and white, so technically NO colors. I think it is great, our vintage cars stand out like a neon where's Waldo.

I may offend some here (sorry), but I can't stand any of the new full size pick ups with the gigantic cartoon size grilles. How did they evolve into a giant flat non aerodynamic front ends? I love trucks, gimme the old style late 60's early 70's F250, F350, gimme 68-72 GMC / Chevy cab design, etc......

[69 DAYTONA]

...I currently own almost 40 cars, none are blue, one is half silver(78 Pace Vette)

...2 Panther Pink
...2 Plum Crazy
...5 1/2 Black (1 Judge)
...2 Yello
...3 Candy Red
...5 Red
...5 Orange (3 are Judges)
...1 Charcoal Gray
...1/2 silver
...3 Green (1 GTO)
...8 white, some with various colors of stripes

...rarely own a blue car, have had very few silver cars

[NBF823]

My current car is silver.

I had a car that was red, then powder blue - Then painted it gunmetal

My firebird is gold - I'm thinking about painting it silver.

It's not that I don't like colors, it's that I don't want to be noticed.

I can tell you that it works. When I talk to people about my powder blue car - they remember it, when I mention the grey car - they don't remember. It was the same car in the same town, with the same people. The car was modded heavily. I got stopped frequently with the "colors", never once with the gunmetal. I choose it specifically as road camouflage .

[Alvin]

Many of the daily drivers here are various colors including a Lamborghini that was a Mirror Gold Plated body on my drive home today...passed by it too quick to grab a "Parking Lot Paparazzi" pic...

Seeing more and more - Metallic Apple Greens, Bumble Bee Yellows, Arrest Me Reds, Shocking (insert your fave name here) colors...

And too those gray & silver cars...

[unruhjonny]

I had read that for the last number of years the top three "colours" (and I use the term loosely) are:
- silver
- black
- white

The funny thing, is that by definition none are actually colours!?
lol

I like colours;
Maybe it has to do with the fact that my first car as purchased (bought for what it was, and not the crappy paint) was yellow - but originally orange...
My first actual new car was also yellow (but this time it was intentional);
I love colours, especially the ones that stand out.

If I was going to buy a new car, it would be "Header Orange"