Autoquake.com Reveals Black As The UK’s Most Popular Car Colour

Released on: July 30, 2009, 8:08 am
Author: Max Peile
Industry: Automotive

Autoquake.com has revealed that black is currently the most popular colour for used cars among shoppers with the online used car retailer. Following usability improvements to the site, visitors have been able to search for used cars by colour for almost a month and of those who used this facility the majority looked for black.

With an average of 1000 cars for sale and 10,000 visitors per day, only slightly less than two thirds (65.9%) of searches were for a black vehicle. That's nearly six times as many who searched for silver (11.5%), usually reckoned to be the most popular colour among second-hand car buyers.

Superstition seems to have played a part in many shoppers’ preferences. Green is often said to be an unlucky colour for a car. Just 0.09% of Autoquake.com’s used car buyers looked for a green machine.

Other colours were way down Autoquake.com buyers' wish list. Red polled just 6.6%, only just ahead of grey on 5.7%. Blue was preferred by just 5.3% of shoppers.

One colour that used car buyers usually avoid is white, but with iPods and other upmarket consumer goods making white more fashionable nearly one in 20 shoppers searched for a white car.

It might seem like a matter of personal taste, but there’s more to choosing the colour of a car than just picking a favourite shade. It pays for buyers to choose wisely if they want to maximise the value of their car. Although second in the eyes of Autoquake.com's website users, silver is usually reckoned to be the safest colour for solid resale values. Perhaps it's not everyone's favourite, but it's smart, understated and won't frighten many buyers off. Just as importantly, it's not a fashionable, up-to-the-minute colour, which might look great on the driveway today but seem naff in three or four years.

Red seems to be the big loser at the moment. The searches made by Autoquake.com users reinforce other recent surveys which have shown that red is less popular than it was in the '80s and '90s.

The trend seems to be to move away from vivid, in-your-face colour choices to something more sober, perhaps reflecting the desire to consume less conspicuously in difficult economic times. This could also help to explain the popularity of grey, the favoured choice of more than 1-in-20 Autoquake.com users.

About Autoquake.com
Autoquake.com is the UK's largest online car retailer. Founded in 2005 with the goal to provide a better used car buying experience, Autoquake.com currently helps around 1000 buyers a month.

Cars for sale in Autoquake.com's virtual showroom are displayed with descriptions including 40 high quality digital pictures. All cars go through a 141 point inspection and come with a 100% money back guarantee. Car finance, warranty, insurance and delivery are supplementary options that buyers can benefit from.

PR Contact:
Max Peile
Winchester House
259-269 Old Marylebone Road
London
NW1 5RA
020 7170 4137
www.autoquake.com