Am I crazy for considering a black colored vehicle?

[Kmrtnsn]

As the owner of both black and white colored vehicles in the Southwest I'd recommend any other color with the exception of red.

 

[t-rex grrr]

Once you go black, you never go back.

The only downside is what others have mentioned - pinstripes are noticeable.

 

[another_mike]

Ive had an 80's K5 blazer. Black with the black topper. I couldnt touch the inside of the non insulated topper in the summer sun. I now have a white Ford E350 with an uninsulated roof. I can touch the inside of that just fine.

Yes, air conditioning can cool a vehicle. For me, when im camping out in the vehicle, Id rather not have the additional radiating heat in the living area.

If I ended up with a black van, id probably do the roof in white like an FJ

 

[stevenmd]

The Black Widow was *obviously* black (96 D1) and it got no hotter during the summer than any of my other vehicles. As mentioned before, the only downside is black really shows off Mother Nature's pin-striping.

 

[rayra]

I put a solid deck on top of mine, trying to create some shade. It's made a large difference in slowing the hearting of the vehicle, but even more so, it seems to have greatly reduced the heat load when I'm tooling down the highway. In a very short while I can dial the AC back to its lowest setting and even then turn the vents off me somewhat, and that's tooling around SoCal in 100F temps. Before I put the top deck on you could feel the heat on your back, coming from the rear of the vehicle.

http://forum.expeditionportal.com/threads/156783-Building-a-roof-rack-deck-on-a-GMT800-Suburban-Z-71

 

[haven]

I owned a black LX450 for several years when I lived in Las Vegas. The black paint did make the vehicle hotter inside than my other vehicle, which was tan. Nothing a few minutes of running the A/C couldn't address. Black shows dust and dirt more, and desert pinstriping is more noticeable. But overall, If you like the vehicle, I'd buy regardless of color.

 

[plainjaneFJC]

Additionally, black vehicles are harder to see at night and possibly less safe than a more visible one--ask me how I know....



I'd love to hear from other expo members on their experiences, any regrets or revelations, or just any 'ol plain jaw jacking or banter. Thanks in advance from the Land of Land Cruiser....

There was a lengthy thread on campsite security if that's your main concern. Heck rub mud on it like they do overseas if you want to blend in.

 

[btburn]

I won't own another black vehicle unless it's a screaming deal. My last black car always looked dirty and scratched. My current Jeep is a darker green and it doesn't show much of anything but the best were my JKU and XJ in the bright silver color, they always looked great unless they were absolutely filthy.

 

[kdeleon]

I walked into a Jeep dealership with a Black F150 -- the paint is a 20-footer... looks good from that far. I swore no more black -- I was in line for a white one. Two hours later I am an owner of a black jeep.

It has lots of pinstripes now

To balance it, i got two white cars that barely needed polishing so I can spend more time fixing the Jeep's paint.

 

[Stryder106]

I've owned my black 02 Avalanche since it was new and it has been parked outside everyday of it's life. Black is by far the hardest color to keep clean and shows the most dirt and pinstripes - however, a proper waxing will remove 90%+ of the striping. A buff job would take it all out. I don't understand the "harder to see at night" comment, because at night you should be running with lights blazing and if not, it really isn't going to matter what color your vehicle is as it won't be seen until it's too late. Another advantage, is that in showing all of the desert pinstriping, it absolutely cannot be mistaken for one of the many mall crawlers that inhabit Southern California.
//
In the daylight - and the desert where we typically are given our locale, the black gets a little hotter, but that's what AC is for, and to me - if we were to get stranded - a black vehicle will contrast and standout against a light tan/white sand background far more than a white one will.
//
Having said all of that, if I were buying a different vehicle, I would likely be looking for something other than black, but if the right vehicle at the right price were there - black would not scare me away from it.

 

[rayra]

...if we were to get stranded - a black vehicle will contrast and standout against a light tan/white sand background far more than a white one will.
....

That's why I made the center panel of my awning project two-sided

Maybe neon green would stand out more, but I went for 'blaze orange'. $4/yd, 60" wide roll. ~$30 for materials to make what is in essence a large marker panel

Which reminds me, that's one topic I haven't yet rescued from Photobucket's shakedown attempt.

 

[F350joe]

Had to work on my truck in the blazing sun on the last trip. The black trim had to be covered, it would burn me otherwise. Leaning on the white was fine, just a little warm. My old black suv could not be touched if parked in the sun, current white truck is never a problem. Something to think about if you are camping out of it.