October 11, 2012, 16:06 Cars

White like an iPhone

Apple fans buy white cars

Automakers produce the most white cars. American experts attribute this to the popularity of Apple gadgets, which come in white. According to experts, the leadership of white in the car market will last until next year at best.

The international leader in the production of paints and varnishes, PPG Industries Inc., published statistics on automakers' preferences for choosing colors for new cars. According to the company, the most popular color for new cars is white.

22% of cars and trucks are painted white, silver comes in second place with a lag of 2%, and black rounds out the top three. Gray and red colors also made it into the top five in popularity.

PPG Industries Inc. is a company that supplies paint to General Motors Co, Ford Motor Co , BMW AG and other companies. White color was already experiencing its peak of popularity in the 80s of the last century, but it was quickly replaced by shades of red. According to the top manager of PPG Industries Inc. Jane Harrington, white has become fashionable again thanks to Apple Inc., which paints its gadgets glossy white. And fans of the brand strive to match the car to the color of their iPhone or iPad. After the head of the company, Steve Jobs , chose white as the main color for the company's products, it ceased to be associated with refrigerators, microwaves and other household appliances.

At PPG Industries Inc. They produce more than 100 types of white paint, including for phones and computers. For minibuses and inexpensive cars, “flat” colors are used. Luxury SUVs and premium cars are painted pearl white. White remains among the leaders in preference for the second year in a row, after silver lost its position in 2011.

According to the company, white commercial vehicles are also popular, but this is primarily due to practicality: the logo and advertising of the company that uses the vehicle are better visible on white.

Harrington explained the popularity of silver by the fact that the color looks great on any design and emphasizes the lines of the body.

PPG Industries believes that white will cease to be popular and will be replaced by brown or orange next year. According to Harrington, brown is associated with luxury and coziness.

In 2015 and 2016, according to company forecasts, exotic colors will come into fashion: light purple and silver with a green tint.

Meanwhile, drivers of white cars can be described as aesthetes who strive through life for purity and impeccability of relationships, company experts say. However, in Russian weather conditions, the white color is too easily soiled, and in order for the car to retain its whiteness, it will have to be washed daily from September to May. In Russia, white color is most popular in the southern regions, where it saves from the heat, since a white car heats up less.

In addition, white cars are better visible on the road and are less likely to get into accidents. Australian scientists from Monash University spent 20 years figuring out which color cars are more likely to get into accidents than others.

In total, experts studied 850 thousand different accidents, reports mignews . As a result, scientists came to the conclusion that black cars were more often involved in road accidents. During the day, such cars were involved in accidents 12% more often than others, and at night – 47% more often.

The second and third places in terms of accidents were taken by cars of gray and silver colors. Red and blue cars are in fourth and fifth places. At the same time, orange and white colors are recognized as the safest. Scientists have proven that overly colorful and flashy cars are also unsafe. Such cars distract other road users, which also leads to an increase in accidents on the roads. Researchers have found that the color of a car affects the assessment of its speed and distance to it. The speed of a brightly colored car appears faster, making it appear as if the car is closer than it actually is.