50 shades of grey.

Eight years of grey reigning supreme in the UK car colour charts, makes you wonder… did we all collectively agree to only ever paint our cars in fifty shades of nothing much at all?

According to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), grey was once again the UK’s most popular new car colour in 2025, making up more than a quarter of all registrations. Black and white weren’t far behind either, and the best of the 'colourful bunch', blue, only managed third place.

As someone who’s designed and produced countless car and van brochures, price and spec guides, and worked with hundreds of vehicle colour swatches over the years, I can tell you this: we used to have actual colour on offer. Blues that popped, reds that fired up a page, and greens that made you stop scrolling.

Sure, neutral colours sell. They’re 'safe', resale-friendly, and they photograph well in brochures. But as designers, we know that colour evokes emotion; something that data doesn’t always show.

Energetic colours make a statement before the engine even starts. They reflect personality, excitement, and identity. So here’s hoping the small uptick in green and blue is the first whisper of a comeback for more expressive palettes, and that OEMs start giving buyers more adventurous choices without the 'premium price for personality' surcharge.

We’ve got widescreen dashboards and over-the-air updates… yet our roads still look post-war black-and-white.

Here's the top 10 new UK car colours by registrations:

1. Grey – 558,050 (27.62%)

2. Black – 464,369 (22.98%)

3. Blue – 306,349 (15.16%)

4. White – 265,462 (13.14%)

5. Silver – 127,383 (6.30%)

6. Red – 116,576 (5.77%)

7. Green – 99,793 (4.94%)

8. Yellow – 10,725 (0.53%)

9. Orange – 9,614 (0.48%)

10. Mauve – 5,711 (0.28%)

Thrilling.

For more excitement with a dash more colour,