Color Actually Matters: Which Color Automobiles Hold Their Value Best?

When you buy a car, there's a lot to consider. You need to know your rights under consumer protection laws such as the California lemon law and you need to do your research carefully on the car you're looking at to find out if it's a reliable make and model. You may also want to consider whether the car will hold its value or not.

There are a lot of factors that can affect whether a car holds its value or not. One  of those factors is the color of the vehicle, according to Auto Blog.

Which Color Vehicles Hold Their Value Best?

According to Auto Blog, many people think that cars in muted colors such as silver or black will tend to hold their value better because there are more car buyers who will want neutral cars compared with buyers who will want a vehicle that's in a unique color.

The reality, however, is that this may not necessarily be the case. A used car search engine analyzed a total of 2.1 million sales of used 2014 vehicles and found that the color of the paint made a big difference in how much a vehicle depreciated – and it wasn't the boring colored cars that  did the best. 

The research revealed that buying a yellow car could end up being your best bet because yellow cars tended to hold their value more compared with other vehicles. Yellow cars depreciated around 27 percent in the first three years of owning a car, compared with the average depreciation rate for all vehicles which is 33.1 percent.  Green and orange cars also faced below-average depreciation. Orange cars depreciated at around 30.6 percent and green cars saw a 30.9 percent depreciation rates.

The research also revealed which colored cars tended to have bigger depreciation and which were the worst at holding their value. Beige cars, purple cars, and gold cars also had big depreciation rates, outpacing average depreciation by at least 10 percent.  Gold cars experienced a surprising change in depreciation rates compared with the 2014 study, when their depreciation rates were slightly below average. In this most recent study, gold cars were among the worst vehicles at holding their value across all different car body styles, including SUVs and smaller cars.

Typical colored cars, on the other hand, experienced depreciation rates at around the average percentage rate. This included white cars, black cars, and grey cars.

There are a number of possible reasons why unusually colored vehicles, such as yellow cars and orange cars, tend to hold their value better. One possible explanation is that there are fewer yellow, orange, and green cars sold so this may help to increase demand for used vehicle models in these colors.

Of course, no vehicle will hold its value – no matter what color – if the car has endless problems and does not function properly. If you find yourself with a car that has serious issues, a San Diego lemon law attorney could potentially help to protect you so you can avoid substantial financial loss. You should contact an experienced attorney for help if you are experiencing problems with your vehicle.