Why Are All Cars Grey? Car Colours and Resale Values Explained | Simon Shield Cars
Why Are All Cars Grey? The Truth About Car Colours and Resale Values
I was on the radio this week. (Caroline Shield)
Suffolk Sound radio, Rob Dunger's breakfast show, and the topic was one I apparently have a lot of opinions about: car colours. Specifically, why there aren't many of them left. Here's the link for the show if you want to hear it: https://listenagain.suffolksound.com/player/player.php?file=SuffolkSunriseWithRobDungerTuesday.mp3&t=0
If you've walked through a car park recently - really looked at it - you'll know exactly what I mean. Row after row of grey. Silver. Black. The occasional white. The odd navy blue if you're lucky. It's like the automotive world collectively decided that colour was a risk not worth taking.
So what happened? And should it actually change what you buy?
The Great Colour Retreat
It wasn't always like this. Cast your mind back to the 90s and early 2000s and you'll remember cars that actually had personality. Greens, purples, burnt oranges, proper reds. Manufacturers offered wide, adventurous palettes and people used them.
Then, gradually, things changed.
Fleet buyers - companies purchasing cars in bulk for employees - became an increasingly powerful force in the new car market. And fleet buyers don't want terracotta. They want something neutral, inoffensive, and easy to remarket when the lease is up. Grey ticks every box.
Manufacturers noticed. Why produce 12 colour options when 80% of buyers choose from three? Palette rationalisation followed. Fewer colours, lower production complexity, lower cost. And so the rainbow quietly retreated.
Today, grey, black, silver and white consistently account for around three quarters of all new car sales in the UK. The numbers are pretty stark once you see them.
The Awkward Truth About Resale Values
Here's where it gets interesting and slightly frustrating if you love colour.
Grey, silver and black cars genuinely do hold their value better on the used car market. This isn't opinion. It's a consistent pattern in the data, and it's something we see reflected in the cars we buy and sell here at Simon Shield Cars.
Why? Simple supply and demand. There are more buyers for neutral colours because more people feel comfortable with them. A bright yellow car is someone's dream and someone else's nightmare. A silver car is almost nobody's dream but almost nobody's dealbreaker either.
So if you're buying with one eye on resale and most people should be, the safe, boring, pragmatic choice is the sensible one. Much as it pains me to say it.
But Colour Makes You Feel Something
Here's the counterargument. And it's a good one.
You spend a lot of time in your car. You see it every morning when you leave the house. You walk towards it in car parks. It is, for most of us, one of the most expensive things we own. Shouldn't it bring you at least a little joy?
I drive a dark blue Volkswagen Golf. Practical, reliable, does exactly what I need it to do, and the colour is, if I'm honest, sensible to the point of invisibility.
My husband Simon drives a yellow Lexus.
Every single time he pulls up somewhere, people notice it. People smile at it. It makes him happy every time he gets in it.
Is the yellow a pragmatic resale choice? Probably not. Is it the right car for someone who genuinely loves cars and wanted something that reflects that? Absolutely.
So What Should YOU Do?
There's no one-size-fits-all answer, but here's how we'd think about it:
Buy grey if: You're likely to sell within three to five years, you're buying on finance and want to protect against depreciation, or you simply don't have strong feelings either way. You'll lose nothing and probably gain something at resale.
Buy colour if: You're planning to keep the car long-term (the resale premium matters less the longer you hold it), you've found a colour you genuinely love, or you're buying a car that's already a niche or enthusiast model where the colour is part of the appeal.
Buy what makes you happy if: You've weighed it up, you understand the trade-off, and you're at peace with it. Life is too short for a car you feel nothing about.
A Word on Hybrids and EVs
We also chatted on air about the shift towards hybrid and electric cars and it's relevant here too, because colour choice on EVs is often even more limited than on traditional cars. Many EV manufacturers launch with a stripped-back palette, sometimes as few as five or six options. As the market matures, that'll change. But for now, if you're buying electric, colour may be lower down your list of decisions.
We're Here to Help You Choose
At Simon Shield Cars, we've been helping Suffolk families and individuals find the right used car since 1996. Not the trendiest car, not the most expensive car but the right car for your life, your budget, and yes, if it matters to you, your preferred colour.
Every car we sell is handpicked. We buy from private owners, main dealers and part exchanges - not auctions. We take time to understand the history of every vehicle before it comes anywhere near our forecourt.
If you've got a question about a specific car, a colour you're hunting for, or just want an honest conversation about what to buy next, we're here.
📞 Give us a call or drop us a message - details below.
And if you missed the Suffolk Sounds chat, you can listen again on their website. I'd love to know whether you're a grey pragmatist or a colour rebel. I suspect I already know which camp most of you fall into.
Simon Shield Cars — Family-run, Great Bricett, Suffolk, since 1996. Handpicked used cars. Honest advice. No hard sell.
Buying Advice, Used Cars, Car Colours, Resale Values, Hybrids, Suffolk