Which color is your vehicle? Black? White? According to iSeeCars automotive search engine, the average car loses 22.5% (or $9,674 as an average) of its value after three years. Thanks to pricing analysis of 1.3 million three-year old used vehicles, iSeeCars 2023 reports your car’s paint job can impact its value by thousands of dollars. Let’s take a close look.
Use eTags© to Quickly Complete Your DMV Service. Renewals, Title Transfers and More, All Online!
Yellow color depreciates least
Yellow vehicles retain their value best, depreciating 60% less than the average ride. If your car is in a sunny shade, it’ll lose only 13.5% of its value giving you more profits when it’s time to sell. Why yellow? Because even though not many people drive this car color, there are still more drivers that want it versus how many are produced. Good ol’ supply and demand! Yellow also took the number one spot for least depreciation in last year’s iSeeCars study.
Green is the top color for minivans, losing 19.8% of its value after 36 months
When looking at the type of vehicle, yellow retains most value in the SUV category. The sunny shade is an unpopular color for sports utility vehicles, which is why they’re more valuable for their buyers.
Beige depreciates at 17.8%, a beige truck at 7.9%
Beige, although not as bright, is the second least depreciating vehicle. At just 17.8% or a little over $8,000. iSeeCars’s study found that beige ranked number nine last year, but in 2023 it took the second spot because the color did very well in the truck category. Think Jeep Gladiator Mojave, Toyota Tacoma TRD, and off-road trims. While the combination, a beige truck, depreciates only 7.9% in three years. But beige SUVs depreciate more, at 23.7%
Orange and green paint jobs
A car with an orange paint job depreciates at 18.4% after three years on the road. A little more if your vehicle is an SUV, at 21.1% or over $7,000 and 22.1% if you’re behind the wheel of an orange convertible. But a lot less if you’re trying to resell your used orange truck; just 10.9%
Brown is the second worst color for resale value across all vehicle types except for a 4-door sedan; only gold is worse
A green SUV loses its value at a 20.4% rate after 36 months. But a lot less, if it’s a truck; at 11.6%. A 4-door sedan? At 20.1% or $7,821!
Red, White, and Blue
Red vehicles depreciate 20.6% after three years. That’s about $8,500! 23.3% if it’s an SUV. But a lot less if you’re behind the wheel of a red truck; just 16.1%. Think Ford F-Series or GMC Sierra. Sedans lose 17.4% of their value in 36 months according to iSeeCars.
As far as more mainstream colors but still bright, blue and white depreciate by 22% and 21.9% respectively. That’s over $9,000 in 36 months. Blue and white SUVs also lose value almost equally. 24.8% and 24.5%, respectively. If you want a white vehicle that depreciates less so you can sell for more profit, get a white truck. It only depreciates by 15.1%. But a white convertible loses more value than a white vehicle in general; at 27%
SEE ALSO: THE SUBCOMPACT’S DISAPPEARING ACT-ECONOMY CARS ARE GOING EXTINCT
A red convertible depreciates 25.6% in three years, while a silver one loses 30.1% of its value
Silver and black depreciate plenty
A silver vehicle loses 23.2% of its value after three years, while a black car loses 23.9%. Plenty of those colors on the market, which is why they depreciate more. Again, supply and demand. A silver SUV depreciates at 25.2%, while a black model loses 26% of its value within 36 months. Trucks in both these colors retain at least 10% more than other types of vehicles in these hues.
Coupes and convertibles
2-door cars and roofless vehicles share the top five colors, just in a different order. A yellow paint job as well as an orange one takes the number one spot, depreciating the least. But convertibles lose less of their value in blue versus coupes. A yellow coupe only depreciates by 5.6% after three years, but a yellow convertible loses 15% of its value. A gray convertible depreciates by 27.3% within 36 months, about $19,000, while a green coupe loses 10.9%.
