There’s Ferrari Red, of course. Bruce Springsteen sings the praises of a pink Cadillac. But those colors are the exceptions to the rule. Most car buyers opt for silver or black, with the two uninspired colors battling closely for the most popular vehicle color globally.
According to the yearly survey by DuPont, only two percentage points separate silver from black as the leading vehicle color globally. White and gray are third and fourth among car colors choice. Red is the only non-neutral color in the top five.
The top 10 global vehicle colors:
1. Silver, 26 percent
2. Black/black effect, 24 percent
3 (tie). White/white pearl and gray, 16 percent each
5. Red, 6 perecent
6. Blue, 5 percent
7. Brown/beige, 3 percent
8. Green, two percent
9. Yellow/gold, one percent
10. Other colors, less than 1 percent (combined).
Article Last Updated: December 8, 2010.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.
The psychology of this list is fascinating. I have a silver car myself and find the color hides dirt well. Maybe it also means I don't want to be noticed. Red car drivers on the other hand, may have a need to be noticed. Any surveys on the types of cars that are most common among the red cars?