Are black cars more of a problem?

I am considering purchasing a leaf ( here in the UK), and have found a black coloured 2015 with 6.6 charger, which I like.
However, having read how storing and running the car in high temperatures can affect the longevity of the batteries, I was concerned if the colour black, which always caused heat build up, might push the battery temperature too high in the summer months?

I've considered buying a SuperBlack leaf in a part of the US that is warmer than the UK. I decided I'd get the windows tinted to compensate for the extra heat acquired by the body shell. You could also get light interior, for the same effect. Or a lightweight, white car cover.

If you are in a hot climate, yes, black makes it worse for the battery. But we don't have any data to say how much worse.

The battery is deep under the car, not on the surface where the body panels are. My gut tells me that parking and driving on black pavement is much worse for the battery than a black body and the black body is almost insignificant, but I can't back that up with data or calculations.

But a black car will need more air conditioning in a hot climate, and that will reduce your range measurably.

If you're in a temperate or cool climate, you shouldn't worry about the body color. Just get what you like.

Bob

and during the cooler months, which is from July through June in the UK it;'ll be warmer in the car.

I'd love a black car for winter and white for summer here but (in the US) it's typically over 40+ for a couple of months each day in Utah, I grew up in England and it's hardly warm enough there to bother your battery. Getting a black car will mean you'll need to clean it a lot more but they look great when clean.

A/C is used over in the UK to clear windows from all the condensation rather than cooling the driver, but they sometimes have a few days of summer where the wind stops and the humidity makes it feel uncomfortable.

Here's a test that quantified the difference (in the passenger compartment, at least):

http://www.autotrader.com/car-video/car-color-test-are-black-cars-really-hotter-in-the-sun-video-242940

We took two nearly identical vehicles, one white and one black, and let them bake in the hot Georgia summer sun. When we measured the interior temperature after a few hours, we discovered this isn't just an old wives' tale. The black car's cabin measured a scorching 130 degrees Fahrenheit, while the white car's interior registered only 113 degrees.

My silver 2015 with black plastic and leather interior is significantly hotter inside than my silver 2011 with light-colored interior (plastic and recycled plastic that looked and felt like cloth) after being parked in the sun. Both cars have (had) the same exterior color, same body shape, and factory-tinted windows with no additional tint. Air conditioning is very effective and has no trouble cooling the cars, but a few more watt-hours are used with the 2015.

There is air space between the top of the battery and the bottom of the passenger compartment so I strongly doubt that the exterior color of the car would make a measurable difference to the battery temperature. Parking on hot black pavement vs. not quite so hot white concrete will result in higher battery temperature.

Gerry

GerryAZ said:

My silver 2015 with black plastic and leather interior is significantly hotter inside than my silver 2011 with light-colored interior (plastic and recycled plastic that looked and felt like cloth) after being parked in the sun. Both cars have (had) the same exterior color, same body shape, and factory-tinted windows with no additional tint. Air conditioning is very effective and has no trouble cooling the cars, but a few more watt-hours are used with the 2015.

There is air space between the top of the battery and the bottom of the passenger compartment so I strongly doubt that the exterior color of the car would make a measurable difference to the battery temperature. Parking on hot black pavement vs. not quite so hot white concrete will result in higher battery temperature.

Gerry

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I read a study a few years back that said that silver metallic has the second highest albedo (behind white) of typical car colors, so the temperature difference would be greater with darker (lower albedo) body colors. Personally, when I park my (silver metallic body, light gray cloth seats and interior) car in the sun in warm weather I use sunshades on any windows likely to get significant sun; the temperature difference is very noticeable if I don't, although I don't think I've ever measured it.

In the U.K. I think black would be fine.

My car had a low albedo, so I put some Viagra in the battery.

Ba-dum-bum!

I have all Black cars.
Yes, they are a few degrees hotter in the baking sun, so I try to charge and park my Leaf in the shade.
But they are a few degrees warmer in the cooler months.

From my time in the UK, I wouldn't exactly compare it to Georgia in the summer.
London is at the same Latitude as Newfoundland, (and Rain and fog don't really heat a car up )

I'm about 12 degrees further South than London; it was 87F here today, and I drove all around in AC comfort.
38K miles, much charging abuse, and I'm still only one bar down.

The battery is not in the passenger compartment.
I like a black car with tinted windows.
I wouldn't worry about the body colour affecting the battery.

BAM! Black Leaf!!

I was tempted to go with Super Black with either the charcoal or light interior. Ultimately I decided on Forged Bronze, as it rains enough here that black cars only look nice the day or two after washing.

Heat-wise, lighter cars both interior and exterior stay appreciably cooler in the sun, especially when parked. The rather large roof area can conduct a significant amount of heat into the cabin, and only has a thin layer of insulation to slow that process down. The dark interior, likewise, absorbs more light, turning it into heat, which is then trapped by the IR-rejecting glass.

Despite my initial desire to go with the light gray interior, I went for the charcoal color as it shows less staining, especially on the inside door arm rests/pulls. It also looks sophisticated in its own way. The darker dash, though, generates a lot of heat in the sun. A reflective sunshade mitigates that when parked. The side windows have a reasonable solar tint to them from the factory, but could use a bit more. I will be looking into 3M Crystalline.

The only saving grace for a dark interior is it helps warm the car during the day on colder days. If you have a car without the more efficient heat pump and must use resistance heating only, one could argue the dark interior is overall more efficient.

Too bad the LEAF doesn't have a solar powered whole cabin ventilation fan as on certain versions of the Prius.

I drive many gravel roads with my Leaf. After a few hundred yards, my Glacier/White ride looks pretty gray. My next Leaf's color will be Gray Dust.

Colors are very subjective. I will never have a black car again. My last two cars were white. This is from the dirty standpoint not the heating difference. 30 minutes after washing the car it looks dirty again. You really need a little boy with a feather duster to maintain it!

GlennD said:

Colors are very subjective. I will never have a black car again. My last two cars were white. This is from the dirty standpoint not the heating difference. 30 minutes after washing the car it looks dirty again. You really need a little boy with a feather duster to maintain it!

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Aside from the heat issue, that's been my biggest reason for not having a black car, especially since my basic philosophy on car washing is "that's what rain's for." Silver metallic looks much the same dirty or clean, and white's not much different.

Keeping it looking clean is a problem - black cars show dirt the worst.

GRA said:

GlennD said:

Colors are very subjective. I will never have a black car again. My last two cars were white. This is from the dirty standpoint not the heating difference. 30 minutes after washing the car it looks dirty again. You really need a little boy with a feather duster to maintain it!

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Aside from the heat issue, that's been my biggest reason not for having a black car, especially since my basic philosophy on car washing is "that's what rain's for." Silver metallic looks much the same dirty or clean, and white's not much different.

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I once had a tan BMW2002. It never got dirty it just got textured.

Everyone should have a black car ONCE! When I was in high school I had a black Harman ghia, never again.

Stupid spell checker. I had a Karman Ghia.

I've had a black Leaf for a little over 2.5 years living in the Houston, TX area. 100 degrees Fahrenheit is common in the summer, and summer is defined as roughly April through December

I'd say I'm about as hard on the battery as possible. Charge to 100% every weekday. Discharge to 0-15% every weekday. Park outside in the sun/heat. Leave the car plugged and charged to 100% all weekend. Well over 100 QC sessions in total. Over 40k miles on the car. I've lost one capacity bar so far and can still regularly go 75-85 miles on a charge if I'm reasonably efficient and keep to 65-68 mph. Maybe I got lucky with my car / battery, but there's a data point for you.