Other than personal taste, are there any technical factors to consider when choosing the colour of a car? IDW
There are several other things to consider. Quite a large number. The climate you live in, where you park, whether you want to blend in or stand out in traffic or the car park, personal image, any need or quest for social prestige or professional respect, dirt and cleaning implications, ageing characteristics of fading or staining, aesthetic compatibility with the make and model of car, effect on resale ease and value, colour matching of touch-up repairs…
In many of these aspects, the “tone” (light or dark) is as important as the actual “hue” (colour). And each characteristic can have both positive and negative elements; for example, a really bright and lurid colour might make you awkwardly conspicuous (and too memorable), but for that very reason also act as an anti-theft factor.
Sky blue or pink might tick all your boxes …but not if you ever go to a game park! On Safari, green, brown or beige are de rigeur. Even in those hues, metallic is anomalous. And some colour options on the highway are so under-stated that you need to be extra sure to turn on your lights on a misty day.
Modern paint technologies have largely solved the fading problem (reds used to be particularly vulnerable to UV sunlight). Don’t kid yourself that “white is white” when it comes to touch-ups. There are also different degrees of shiny, from the glistening mirrors of transparent clearcoats to flat matt.
The physical laws of light and dark tones are absolute when it comes to sunlight heat – on the surface and then interior. But then, big black SUVs (with window tints to match), presumably wishing to project an image of Tycoon/FBI probably don’t worry about the fuel bills of muscular air-conditioning. And although fading issues have been largely conquered, surely surface temperature still has some effect on the rate of ageing.
Colours and tones that show the dirt less or more depend on the colour and tone of the dirt. Cold water and a soft cloth are a surer solution than a change of pigment.
