Drivers not in the pink

Oct 21 2009 Maurice Glover

Drivers not in the pink

PINK may well F.A.B for Thunderbird's Lady Penelope and 'hot' for Paris Hilton, but drivers in Britain have voted it their least desirable car colour.

It has come top of the list of undesirable paint finishes in a poll carried out by online retailer, Carsite.co.uk with over 29 per cent of the vote. Next was brown and third in the least-liked stakes was gold.

And even though retro white is enjoying a surge in popularity and currently used on one in 12 cars, the poll findings reveal it is still disliked by many motorists.

'Choosing your car colour wisely can pay dividends when it comes to trading in your vehicle. Conservatively toned models will traditionally achieve a higher resale value than their more vibrantly coloured counterparts,' said spokesman Alistair Jeff.

'Even so, those who have invested in pink versions of small and funky cars like the Nissan Figaro, Ford Streetka or MINI should have no problem attracting buyers in what is a niche but popular corner of the market.'

In the UK, silver, blue and black are the most common car colours, collectively responsible for 65% of the market. But nationally, more than 150 pink, 250 brown and 1,000 purple-hued cars are currently on sale, according to Carsite.

'While pink may not be the colour of choice for the driving majority, it is a firm favourite with celebrity drivers. Paris Hilton has been regularly snapped with her $200,000 lurid pink Bentley Continental GT and a pink and white 1989 Rolls Royce Phantom V, previously owned by Elton John, is currently for sale for 125,000,' said Mr Jeff.

UK's Ten Most Undesirable Car Colours

1. Pink 29.4%

2. Brown 16%

3. Gold 13.7%

4. Lilac 9.3%

5. Lime 9.1%

6. White 6.5%

7. Orange 5.5%

8. Purple 4%

9. Beige 4%

10. Cherry red 2.5%