There’s a reason we don’t see the world in black and white
There’s a reason we don’t see the world in black and white
Look across any car park and what do you see? Likely a sea of grey and black interspersed with daring splashes of white. Are we really so dreary? Are we forever trapped in a monochrome world? Or might we one day return to the colourful cars of yesteryear?
We set out to find out. We talked with 842 British new car buyers and sought their views.
And yes, right now we’re a truly monochrome motoring nation. More than two thirds bought a monochrome car – 1 in 5 black, another 1in 5 in one of the many shades of grey, 1 in 7 white and 1 in 10silver.
But is there anywhere to find a little colour in this dull automotive landscape? Head for the small towns and villages of Britain where 4 in 10 have a colourful car. Or take a road trip with a few silver surfers; 1 in 3 of them will bring colour to your life (it seems that the psychologists are right when they say it’s the young who cling to conformity). And definitely, ditch those posh friends – 4 in 5 of them bought monochrome motors.
Is there any chance of a colour revival?
The chances look slim as, last year, grey retained its position as the top selling new car colour for the seventh year in a row.
Yet there may be hope. Monochrome car owners who will consider other colours for their next car, outnumber the smaller pool of colourful car owners thinking of switching back to monochrome by 2 to 1.
And if we take drivers at their word about the most likely colour of their next car monochrome sales will fall from 69% to 50% with white the main loser dropping from 15% to 10%. Blue will be the big beneficiary of this move to colour, its share increasing from 16% to 22%.
But there’s a cloud on the horizon for this colourful comeback. Only half of new car buyers choose a colour because it’s the one they really want. For most of the rest their colour choice depends on availability, special offers and deals, and being able to see the colour on a model in the showroom. And you can’t blame car dealers for filling their showrooms with the monochrome cars they sell so many of.
So come on dealers of Britain. Give the colour seekers a chance. Stock a few more blue and red cars. And we’ll let you off True Joy, an “uplifting yellow” which is this year’s Dulux colour of the year.
We’ve talked with German car buyers too. If you’d like to know how the two markets compare just get in touch.
