Where have all the Blue Cars Gone? (Austin, Jollyville: real estate, home)

[G Grasshopper]

I was just driving yesterday and noticed that there were almost no blue cars on the road. What used to be a ubiquitous color - that light to medium blue - is seemingly gone from the cars on the road. It seems that most cars fall into one of three color "groups": the white/beige/silver/tan group, the black/dark gray/very dark other color group, and the red and rust group. I have seen a few bright yellow or electric blue cars, but that middle blue car group seems to be gone. When I was younger, I remember thinking of that color as "car-blue", that's how common it was. But trends change, and now the blue is seemingly gone, at least in Austin, as I drive around. I don't really care - just an observation. I wonder if other parts of the country are as void of blues - probably so. I wonder if some of this is due to the overwhelming force toward "neutrals" in home decorating and real estate in recent years.

[suit-n-tie white guy]

Sounds l **** a lame part of toen youre in.

[10scoachrick]

Well...I traded our beautiful Celestial Blue convertible on an Ice White model less than a year ago, so I guess we're part of the trend.

[centralaustinite]

It looks like black and silver are the top colors for cars worldwide!
Silver is the world’s most popular car color for 2010, black comes in second - egmCarTech

Only 5% are blue.

Found another article from 2010 that says that N. American car color preferences have changed dramatically. In 1n 1994, green was the most-popular color and only 8% of buyers chose silver.

[xit2nowhere]

Do black cars get MUCH hotter than silver/white colored cars under that bright Texas sun?
And I guess OP should go to a place that has lots of Subarus. Most of them are blue, from what i see. It's like they are almost synonymous, Subaru and blue color

[calel]

My car is light blue. It's easy to spot in a parking lot.

[atxcio]

Funny, the blue cars always got my attention in the showroom. But I was always too chicken to buy one. Instead we've had: brown, red, black, gold, black, red(current), and white (current) cars.

You don't really see and beige/tan cars anymore either. Seems like that was big for awhile. Too bad, cause they really hid the dirt.

[calel]

Most of the cars I've driven in my life have been blue. Powder Blue, Smurf Blue, Red, Burgundy, Dark Blue, Light Blue. I may have to break the cycle with an orange car next.

[G Grasshopper]

You are right that beige hides the dirt. My current car is beige. I recently almost ran into a car that was completely hidden (to me - from where I was) by the fact that it was exactly the same color as the cement and pavement around it. That made me think about the color of cars (and that I will never buy a medium gray car) and that started me noticing the absence of blues. I have seen some Priuses that are pale blue or blue green. I saw a pink Mary Kay car a week ago, too. So my cars have been white, then rust, then beige, then gray, then beige metalic. Hmmm... what will it be next (I'm almost in the market.) When I was young, I didn't like light blue cars because they were so common, but now I'm starting to give them another look - although I don't buy a car just based on color.

[10scoachrick]

Originally Posted by atxcio

Funny, the blue cars always got my attention in the showroom. But I was always too chicken to buy one. Instead we've had: brown, red, black, gold, black, red(current), and white (current) cars.

You don't really see and beige/tan cars anymore either. Seems like that was big for awhile. Too bad, cause they really hid the dirt.

I don't know...those come out on the weekend(starting Friday)...most notably the GRAND MArquis and the occasional Crown Vic. Cream seems to be a favorite among those. I see plenty of those in the older, closer-in neighborhoods as I bike ride up Shoal Creek, Jollyville Rd., North Loop, Duval...not so many way out here in north-north Austin.


I remember the mid-'90s teal green trend. Same for tennis rackets and bicycles...lots of teal, purple, little bit of brighter blue.

I reckon in the slightly more expensive vehicles, the 'polar' or 'cosmic' metallic off-white may have replaced the beige of olden days. Most marques carry a nice interesting white that isn't really white.

Here's a little something from close to the horse's mouth:
White ousts silver as America's favorite automotive paint color

Looks like blue is under 10% in a lot of markets. Last bright blue vehicle we had was a '91 Mariner Blue Miata...what a fun car! Our recent blue Volvo was silver in some light, a distinctive blue in others.