Grey has become the UK’s favourite colour for new car sales in 2018, with nearly half a million registered in the colour last year.
Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show that 21 per cent of new cars sold last year were grey, while 20.2 per cent were black and white was chosen 18.3 per cent of the time. These three colours made up 59.4 per cent of new car sales.
Grey and black both saw a decrease in registrations, however, with black vehicle sales decreasing by 7.3 per cent, compared to 1.1 per cent for grey models – hence why black lost out to grey last year.
Primary colours such as blue and red rarely reach the top three in colour popularity anymore. Blue, made the top three back in 2010 – the last year a primary colour made the top three. Since 2011, grey, black and white have been the most popular with UK car buyers.
Of the top ten cars in the UK, five out of 10 were specced in grey most, including the Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Golf, Vauxhall Corsa, Mini and Ford Kuga. Three were black – the Nissan Qashqai, Volkswagen Polo and Mercedes A-Class – and one was white, which was the Kia Sportage.
The colour cream saw the biggest drop in registrations, with only 559 drivers choosing the colour in 2018. Yellow matched cream as the popularity of both colours were down by 34 per cent.
The colour white has been dropping in registrations over the last few years, with 132,000 fewer cars registered in white last year compared to 2015.
