Drivers stunned to learn car color ‘kills’ resale value – getting flashy ride can mean $13,667 loss

DRIVERS have been cautioned about which cars to purchase to maintain their value over time.

A new study revealed that certain colors can significantly depreciate the car’s worth.

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A new study revealed that yellow, orange, and green cars maintain their value[/caption]

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The study also showed that black, white, and gold cars depreciate the most[/caption]

A color analysis study by iSeeCars proved that not all cars hold their value.

There’s one deciding factor that can drastically change how much your car is worth over time — color.

Drivers who know they will sell their vehicle later on or simply want to maintain its value should consider purchasing bright or flashy colors, per the study.

Yellow and orange cars are also on the “yes” list, according to iSeeCars.

The study revealed that yellow and orange vehicles depreciated by 24% and 24.4%, respectively, over a three-year period.

The study measured the car’s depreciation, which is a method used to recognize the decline in value of a tangible asset over time.

It’s the process of allocating an asset’s cost over the periods it’s used to generate revenue, rather than expensing the full cost in the year of purchase.

This helps businesses accurately reflect their assets’ worth and their profitability.

Yellow, orange, and green cars generally held their value over three years.

Whereas, black, white, and gold cars depreciated the most across the three years.

The study notes that black cars depreciated by 31.9%, white cars depreciated by 32.1%, and gold cars depreciated the most by 34.4%.

Gold car owners would be looking at a $16,679 difference compared to the suggested retail price.

Brighter-colored vehicles only differed by $9,000 to $13,000 from their suggested retail price.

iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer explained that “those colors provide zero distinction in the used market, reducing their value and making it easy for buyers to shop around for the lowest-priced model in these shades.”

“Yellow and orange have been among the best colors for retained value since iSeeCars began tracking depreciation by color,” said Brauer.

 “These are not widely popular colors, but they have more demand than supply, and that translates to higher value on the used market,” he added.

However, the study showed that the type of car also impacts how much it’s worth over time.

Orange, green, and gray trucks depreciated the least compared to red trucks, which depreciated by nearly 29%.

Drivers have been curious about whether color can impact how easily they’re able to resell their vehicles later on.

On a public Reddit thread, one driver asked, “Have you noticed if there are any colors that are harder or easier to sell than others and how those trends have changed over time? Does it ever really affect the price?”

Drivers and dealership owners agreed that buying trends often correlate to location and geography.

“I can tell you after owning over 10 vehicles in 110° Texas heat…white exterior and tan interior is superior to dark colors in terms of temperature,” one person commented.