Is the paint color of your next car a purely aesthetic choice, or can it have a real impact on your comfort?
Color, in fact, changes much more than just appearances. It affects the rate at which heat and light are absorbed and emitted.
In this video, Autotrader's Eric Lanford conducts an experiment. He takes two identical Toyota vehicles, one white and one black, and parks them in the sun for an identical amount of time, on the same 95 degree afternoon.
The black Toyota reaches an interior temperature of 131 degrees, while the white SUV remains at a relatively mild 113 degrees.
Then, he tests how quickly they cool down by running the A/C for 10 minutes. Naturally, given the much higher starting temperature, the black SUV is still warmer than the white one (91 degrees and 84 degrees respectively) -- however, it is notable that the black vehicle lost 11 degrees more than the white car.
Remember, color doesn't just impact how quickly heat can be absorbed -- it also affects how quickly heat is emitted. A black car both absorbs (gains) heat faster than a white car, and emits that heat back out to the environment faster, too.
What does that mean?
Well, if you always stay in the shade, you'll find a black car can be easier to cool than a white one. Likewise, in the winter, when black cars are thought to be warmer, you'll find a white car retains heat better when the sun is down, or lost behind dense clouds.
Is one better than the other?
That is such a confusing question, we think maybe you ought to just pick a color you like the best. Fortunately, Wedekind Motors has many colors to choose from, so visit us to test drive a pre-owned vehicle near Albany.