What Color Paint Shows Dirt the Most?

August 30, 2022

What Color Paint Shows Dirt the Most?

Who doesn’t love a clean car? But why is it that some seem to remain looking fabulous, no matter what the weather or driving conditions, and others seem to be a magnet for dirt? One reason is the color. But which are the biggest culprits? While white might seem the obvious answer, the reality might surprise you. 

Read on to get the lowdown on color issues and the steps you can take to ensure even the worst offenders remain looking great for longer.

Everything You Need to Know about Color Paint issues

  • Color paint issues: black, white, and everything in between
  • The simple answer to color paint issues

Color paint issues: black, white, and everything in between

When it comes to colors that hide the dirt, there are some definite winners and those that come firmly at the bottom of the pile. Considering that this article is about the shades that show the grime the most, let’s look at these first.

In short, there are 3 main culprits:

  • Black: Without a doubt, black cars show the dirt more than any other. It doesn’t matter what the contaminant is—bird droppings, mud, dust, sand, rain spots… They all stand out like the proverbial sore thumb.
  • Dark blue: Another popular shade. But while it might exude regal good looks, once again any speck of dirt will be highlighted on the paintwork.
  • Red: Dust stands out particularly badly on red paintwork. However, mud spots and other earthy tones aren’t too obvious, so red comes in 3rd place for car colors that are renowned for showing the dirt.

So, these are the bad guys in the dirt-showing contest. Now let’s take a look at those that are the kings of camouflage.

  • Gold: The stand-out winner is the shine of gold. There are two main reasons for this. The first is that most contaminants—sand, dust, mud, earth, etc—are pretty close in shade to this color. And secondly? Gold cars reflect light, scattering it in multiple directions. This means eyesight struggles to pick up any anomalies, so the car appears cleaner for longer.
  • Champagne: The reasons this hides dirt are similar to gold paintwork. It has good reflective abilities and most road debris is within the same color spectrum.
  • Light brown: Once very unpopular, you only need take a short drive to see many light brown cars on the road today. It hides dirt well and is quite a comforting shade. Manufacturers like to give light brown cars warming names, such as cappuccino, latte, chocolate, etc.
  • Light metallic gray/silver: This also offers great reflective qualities and hides contaminants well.
  • White: This might seem strange, but white genuinely does hide dirt, especially dust and water spots. Once again, it’s because of the reflective abilities. However, be aware that darker debris, such as clay and mud, will be extremely obvious and can be difficult to clean off.

The simple answer to color paint issues

There is a single, easy way to help reduce the effort to keep all shades of cars clean… 

Paint protection film (PPF) or ceramic coating. 

Both of these have hydrophobic properties, helping dirt run away from the surface. They also make cleaning far easier, removing the need for waxing and polishing for good!

Another reason to get paint protection installed on your vehicle is that it does exactly as the title suggests—it protects the paintwork beneath. In turn, this increases the resale value of the vehicle when the time comes to trade.

For those who want to spend more time driving and enjoying their car, as opposed to washing and cleaning, then PPF or ceramic coating is well worth exploring—whatever the color of your ride…

Ready to Explore PPF? Call Auto SuperShield Today

Paint protection film is only as good as the quality of the product and the skill of the installation. For the ultimate service—and to ensure that your hard-to-keep-clean color choice remains looking its best, whatever the weather, you need the best possible service.

And this doesn’t come much better than at Auto SuperShield. Our highly experienced technicians live, breathe, and dream of beautiful finishes. We only deal in PPF (clear bra), car wraps, ceramic coating, and window tints—so we’re pretty confident to say that we’re the best in the business.

Discover more at https://www.autosupershield.com/paint-protection-films and call today to discuss your requirements.

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