Why Your Car’s Exterior and Interior Color Affects its Longevity

Posted on in Automotive Repair

So… picture this: It’s one of those recent 95-degree Pennsylvania afternoons where the air feels like soup, and just walking across a parking lot makes you question every life choice that led to owning a car without remote start.

Nate—our trusty Service Manager and all-around good sport—was wrapping up one of our standard Quality Control Check-Overs (because yes, we really do check every car before sending it home). He walks over to shut the hood on a customer’s dark blue car… and BAM.

Sizzle.

Like a bad infomercial, Nate’s hand instantly became Exhibit A in “Why Vehicle Color Matters More Than You Thought.” Curious, Nate grabbed our thermal imager to investigate.

The Results? Science. And Pain.

  • Dark Blue Car Hood: 193 degrees Fahrenheit. (That’s not a typo. That’s basically steak-searing temp.)
  • White Car Hood parked next to it: 130 degrees Fahrenheit. (Still hot, but not third-degree burn hot.)

That’s a 60+ degree difference just from paint color. Let that sink in.

But Wait… It Gets Worse (For Black Leather Seat Owners)

It’s not just the exterior. The inside of your car takes the heat party to the next level.

According to testing by Consumer Reports and various physics departments that like to torture car interiors for science:

  • Cars with dark interiors (black leather, we’re looking at you) can get 25–30 degrees hotter inside than those with lighter interiors.
  • Black surfaces (dashboards, seats, steering wheels) absorb and radiate heat like crazy, pushing cabin temps well over 150°F on a sunny day.

For reference:

  • 150°F = Enough to bake cookies on your dashboard.
  • 130°F = Your steering wheel feels like a branding iron.
  • 190°F+ (like Nate’s hood) = Pretty much sidewalk fry-an-egg territory.

So… What Colors Are Actually Best (and Worst)?

Exterior Color & Heat Retention:

  • Coolest Colors:White, Silver, Light Gray, Beige → Reflect sunlight better, keep surface temps lower.
  • Hottest Colors: Black, Dark Blue, Dark Green → Absorb more UV and infrared radiation. Basically heat magnets.

    • Interior Material & Color Impact:

  • Light interiors (cream, beige, light gray): Stay cooler. Fade less dramatically over time.
  • Dark interiors (black, dark gray): Hotter, more prone to fading and cracking from sun damage.
  • (Dashboard sun-fade and leather seat cracks at 100k miles.)

Does This Really Affect Long-Term Wear?

Absolutely.

  • Paint Damage: Constant heat cycling speeds up oxidation and clear coat failure on dark colors (especially if you don’t wax or ceramic coat it regularly).
  • Interior Cracking: Leather and vinyl shrink and crack faster with high heat exposure.
  • Electronics and Plastics: Dashboard electronics hate heat. Dark cars left baking in the sun? Recipe for failed infotainment screens and cracked dash trim.

What Can You Do About It (Besides Moving to Minnesota)?

  • Window Tinting: Helps block UV and infrared rays. Totally worth it.
  • Sunshades: Cheap. Effective. A must.
  • Garage Parking or Shade: Obvious but effective.
  • Ceramic Coating: Helps protect paint and reduce heat absorption a little.
  • Seat Covers: Especially for dark interiors.

And of course… don’t touch your hood after it’s been roasting all day. (Nate’s fine, by the way. Slightly sunburnt ego, but otherwise alive and thriving.)

If you’re curious about the long-term effects of heat on YOUR specific car—whether it’s about paint protection, interior care, or just wondering if your A/C is strong enough to compete with the Sahara—let us know. We’ll happily check it out (without burning ourselves this time).

Stay cool out there, Your slightly toasted friends at Joe Davis Autosport

Written by Joe Davis Autosport