Most efficient color car

[SickMPGs]

Whats the fastest color? I know from being a sailor a white sail is better because wind hits the sail and not the heat radiating from a dark sail. Maybe with cars it may be better to have heat surronding the car. (Free wind deflector) Not looking to go fast just get better MPGs.

[MetroMPG]

I think light colours' main advantage on cars would be reduced A/C use more than anything else. Interesting thought though.

If we were going to take a page from aircraft building, we wouldn't paint the cars at all - to save weight!

OT: I recently saw a program about a large, water jet-drive catamaran built in Australia, and if I recall correctly they saved thousands of pounds by not painting everything. (Yes, I realize cars aren't as big as ferry boats.)

[elhigh]

White up front, black toward the rear.

[azraelswrd]

I suspect there's not much difference at conventional road speeds for cars. When I look at a NASCAR track and see the entire spectrum of colors on everything -- makes me think that since they're not all just a few colors, there is probably no edge to just a few colors.

But in theory darker colors should absorb more energy, translate that into heat, transferring part of that energy back to the air and decreasing the air density... sounds pretty small though.

[cfg83]

Hello -

I was thinking a black hood might help keep the engine hotter, especially in more northern climates.

I prefer white overall.

CarloSW2

[getnpsi]

i would say a white car with a dark hood, along with illegal tint on the windsheild would be marginally better. White car absorbs less overall heat, windsheild has a large surface area that people generally do not tint. The dark hood would make the car warm up slightly faster to get to operating temps.

yeah what he said.

[99metro]

Originally Posted by elhigh

White up front, black toward the rear.

Interesting thought. The black would heat up and act to push the car. Maybe installing a clear kammelback would help direct this heat exhaust (thrust) out the back...

[Katana]

I do remember Mythbusters doing some tests on how hot different colour cars get, some colours did seem to trap the heat more from what i remember, i looked on the site and it seems they did in episode 38, but i can't find a site to tell me the outcome of the experiment.

[tasdrouille]

For me around here it's any dark color, but preferably black. They dry up faster under the sun, so they are less prone to rust than a white car for example.

[lunarhighway]

you could have a white engine bay with a black hood, that would promote faster warmups in summer, the hood absorbing heat and the walls of the bay radiating it back inwards.
or a black engine bay and a white hood to promote better heat transfer out of the engine bay and therefore allow more grillblock in summer...

far fetched perhaps though