50 Shades of Grey
Discussion
Now showing at a car park near you 
But why are there so many grey cars? To me, and I suspect a lot of others too, grey is a boring, non-descript apology for a colour, yet it it appears to be the most popular colour for new cars, strangely even for Audis, whose drivers have a reputation for a more 'colourful' style of driving 
Black looks more classy (especially on BMWs) white is more striking and the dark metallics cooler, but we still have a sea of grey. It is has even spread to small cars, a neighbour has just bought a grey Jazz; a car which should be red with a black roof by law.
Surely this will depress resale values too, the balance of supply and demand will probably change in three years time? So, would any grey men or women like to defend their choice?
But why are there so many grey cars? To me, and I suspect a lot of others too, grey is a boring, non-descript apology for a colour, yet it it appears to be the most popular colour for new cars, strangely even for Audis, whose drivers have a reputation for a more 'colourful' style of driving Black looks more classy (especially on BMWs) white is more striking and the dark metallics cooler, but we still have a sea of grey. It is has even spread to small cars, a neighbour has just bought a grey Jazz; a car which should be red with a black roof by law. Surely this will depress resale values too, the balance of supply and demand will probably change in three years time? So, would any grey men or women like to defend their choice?
- note all Stromboli Grey Alfas with tan leather are excluded from this discussion as this the only case where it actually works
Justin Case said:
Now showing at a car park near you But why are there so many grey cars? To me, and I suspect a lot of others too, grey is a boring, non-descript apology for a colour, yet it it appears to be the most popular colour for new cars, strangely even for Audis, whose drivers have a reputation for a more 'colourful' style of driving Black looks more classy (especially on BMWs) white is more striking and the dark metallics cooler, but we still have a sea of grey. It is has even spread to small cars, a neighbour has just bought a grey Jazz; a car which should be red with a black roof by law.
Surely this will depress resale values too, the balance of supply and demand will probably change in three years time? So, would any grey men or women like to defend their choice?
I think there are several reasons. But why are there so many grey cars? To me, and I suspect a lot of others too, grey is a boring, non-descript apology for a colour, yet it it appears to be the most popular colour for new cars, strangely even for Audis, whose drivers have a reputation for a more 'colourful' style of driving Black looks more classy (especially on BMWs) white is more striking and the dark metallics cooler, but we still have a sea of grey. It is has even spread to small cars, a neighbour has just bought a grey Jazz; a car which should be red with a black roof by law. Surely this will depress resale values too, the balance of supply and demand will probably change in three years time? So, would any grey men or women like to defend their choice?
- note all Stromboli Grey Alfas with tan leather are excluded from this discussion as this the only case where it actually works
1. In the UK fleet buyers dictate quite a lot in the mass market. And a standard non offensive colour may make them easier to sell.
2. Car makers often only offer one or two colours included in the price. Which limits choice.
3. To compound this, some car makers then offer a very limited colour selection. I remember looking on the Audi website a number of years ago, and while you could pay something silly like £4k for 'any colour'. The offer colour pallet consisted of 6 or 8 choices, but only 3 different colours.
4. Do car buyers really chose the colour of the car? Remember most mass produced cars are not built to order. They are just built and sent to dealers or held in stock. This means when a person buys a new car, they often buy what is available, rather than the colour they may have really wanted.
300bhp/ton said:
4. Do car buyers really chose the colour of the car? Remember most mass produced cars are not built to order. They are just built and sent to dealers or held in stock. This means when a person buys a new car, they often buy what is available, rather than the colour they may have really wanted.
Really? Which manufacturers do this?Ford (a mass manufacturer) only built to order when I worked in dealer ops 20+ years ago.
I call BS.
TooLateForAName said:
Really? Which manufacturers do this?
Ford (a mass manufacturer) only built to order when I worked in dealer ops 20+ years ago.
I call BS.
What so you are saying that a dealership will have no new cars in stock ever, and that every customer who wants a new car has to go in and order it?Ford (a mass manufacturer) only built to order when I worked in dealer ops 20+ years ago.
I call BS.
Is it not more of a case that dealerships order cars to hold in stock, rather than the end customer in most cases. Therefore many customers buy from stock rather than as a built to their order?
300bhp/ton said:
TooLateForAName said:
Really? Which manufacturers do this?
Ford (a mass manufacturer) only built to order when I worked in dealer ops 20+ years ago.
I call BS.
What so you are saying that a dealership will have no new cars in stock ever, and that every customer who wants a new car has to go in and order it?Ford (a mass manufacturer) only built to order when I worked in dealer ops 20+ years ago.
I call BS.
Is it not more of a case that dealerships order cars to hold in stock, rather than the end customer in most cases. Therefore many customers buy from stock rather than as a built to their order?
300bhp/ton said:
4. Do car buyers really chose the colour of the car? Remember most mass produced cars are not built to order. They are just built and sent to dealers or held in stock. This means when a person buys a new car, they often buy what is available, rather than the colour they may have really wanted.
Cars are not 'just built and sent to dealers'. Dealers do order cars and specify the spec/colour of those cars which are then built to those orders.On the whole dealers do not keep lots of new cars in stock on the off chance that someone will walk in and buy them.
People buying new cars usually want their own choice of spec and colour and tend to know in advance that they will want a new car. They tend to then order the car to their spec.
Very few people walk into dealerships wanting and expecting to drive out the same day with a brand new car.
Some people will look for a bargain and try to pick up a high spec dealer demo at a good price - in this case yes they will take what is available, but they are the minority.
So yes, I dispute your claim that most cars are not built to order.
I think we are sort of saying the same thing tbh.
My original post was meaning end customer ordering, not someone else doing so first.
And it can't always be the case that you can order a car, as some car makers who import car rather than build them in the UK will give allocations, of which I'm sure many are pre-defined in their colour/spec before actual customers get to visit a dealership. Hence why you can't/couldn't buy a Jeep Wrangler in some colours, as they simply weren't part of the UK/Europe allocation.
My original post was meaning end customer ordering, not someone else doing so first.
And it can't always be the case that you can order a car, as some car makers who import car rather than build them in the UK will give allocations, of which I'm sure many are pre-defined in their colour/spec before actual customers get to visit a dealership. Hence why you can't/couldn't buy a Jeep Wrangler in some colours, as they simply weren't part of the UK/Europe allocation.
Actually, it is frequently the case that you get a very limited choice of colour from a dealer if you want a car in reasonable time. They check their stock and they are usually "popular colours and specs". Many will be the free basic colours so many people will cave in and accept a second or third choice colour just to get a car more quickly. These cars also have the biggest discounts - order one and you pay full price.
As for the colour palette, many manufacturers have a disproportionate number of silver and grey choices so often dictate what is going to be a limited choice anyway. Orders for wild colours are also probably going to require a large deposit in case they get landed with an unsaleable combination.
Lately, I have seen reds making their way back onto the roads and burnt orange and purples are coming back. I think it is largely a fashion thing but the company car mentality of the UK also tends to go neutral to get optimum resale to the largest audience.
As for the colour palette, many manufacturers have a disproportionate number of silver and grey choices so often dictate what is going to be a limited choice anyway. Orders for wild colours are also probably going to require a large deposit in case they get landed with an unsaleable combination.
Lately, I have seen reds making their way back onto the roads and burnt orange and purples are coming back. I think it is largely a fashion thing but the company car mentality of the UK also tends to go neutral to get optimum resale to the largest audience.
Edited by LuS1fer on Thursday 10th October 11:49
300bhp/ton said:
I think we are sort of saying the same thing tbh.
No you weren't.You were saying that most private buyers don't get to choose the colour because the cars are built in advance. He was saying that most cars were built to order based on buyer specifications.
Not sure how you think this is the same.
I hate this too and I would loath to live somewhere like Aberdeen. Friend lives there and he bought a new car. In silver. So, the ground is grey, the buildings are grey, his car is sort of grey and the sky too is grey. Its a sea of grey, a monochrome world.
Still, makes spotting if my local ford dealer has an Orange ST I might like to buy in very easy. I can see from the road as I pass if there is something of interest there. Their second hand lot is rather large but on any normal day you'd think you'd lost all ability to see colours.
I must confess my car too is metallic grey. I am not proud of this, but as a second hand buy, it was the best car for the money available. If I had the chance to have bought new, I'd have gone for the electric blue. Next car will likely be an Orange ST or a Liquid yellow Clio RS.
Still, makes spotting if my local ford dealer has an Orange ST I might like to buy in very easy. I can see from the road as I pass if there is something of interest there. Their second hand lot is rather large but on any normal day you'd think you'd lost all ability to see colours.
I must confess my car too is metallic grey. I am not proud of this, but as a second hand buy, it was the best car for the money available. If I had the chance to have bought new, I'd have gone for the electric blue. Next car will likely be an Orange ST or a Liquid yellow Clio RS.
I love grey. Perfect compromise between a colour that struggles to hide swirls and needs correcting every year like black and a more immune colour that doesn't shine like silver or white. I am not sure grey will suffer as much as white from an oversupply POV.
I never had any problems selling privately any shade of grey. Private punters like me look at condition first and usually don't mind any colour providing it's neutral.
I can't really see the colour when I am driving anyway.
I never had any problems selling privately any shade of grey. Private punters like me look at condition first and usually don't mind any colour providing it's neutral.
I can't really see the colour when I am driving anyway.
Devil2575 said:
No you weren't.
You were saying that most private buyers don't get to choose the colour because the cars are built in advance. He was saying that most cars were built to order based on buyer specifications.
Not sure how you think this is the same.
Because he was also saying dealer order many cars, so it is the dealer that chooses the colour and spec. Which means the end customer isn't really choosing, they are choosing from a selection of limit choice being offered to them and chosen by other parties.You were saying that most private buyers don't get to choose the colour because the cars are built in advance. He was saying that most cars were built to order based on buyer specifications.
Not sure how you think this is the same.
For example, if you went into a LR dealership today, I'm sure you could drive a brand new Evoque out within 2 weeks. But it won't be a factory built order for you. If you want something built to order it'll be March or something next year (at least a poster in the LR section was claiming this).
However this means, if you are buying something that isn't being factory built for you, then you may be having a much more limited choice on colour, spec and options.
I know when I was looking at buying a new Fiat 500, the dealer honestly said they could have done most colours by next week and they were 'in stock'. The colour combo I wanted would be a factory order and 6-8 months at best guess.
Grey is the safest colour to spec a car in to ensure it will sell second hand. It holds money better than others ( white is king at the moment but is trendy,so likely to drop away in time (remember when Police forces stopped buying white patrol cars cos they couldn't sell them on ),whilst orange is the kiss of death come resale time.Bright and daring colours are for the brave only as they make cars harder to sell. Grey is popular because it's safe.
My 350 is gunmetal, quite like it but preffered the bright blue, I suggested it to the wife and she told me I was too old for that colour, I walked off and then realised it was pretty much the exact same shade as her car, and she is older than me, but apparently it is fine on little cars, woman logic eh !
I love metallic grey (not that awful flat Audi grey) I've been looking to buy a 3 series in grey but the vast majority are silver.
Most cars look good in grey IMO.
I hate white and most greens I'd rather not have silver as it's for people who couldn't make their minds up IMO.
Black looks good when clean - but it isn't 99% of the time.
Most cars look good in grey IMO.
I hate white and most greens I'd rather not have silver as it's for people who couldn't make their minds up IMO.
Black looks good when clean - but it isn't 99% of the time.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff