# What color is your car? Is it true red ones go faster? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 8, 2000, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915 "2000-07-08T01:00:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Anonymous\_c38f64651bbfc0fca993c5b066c30099](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a698b9/32.png) [@Anonymous\_c38f64651bbfc0fca993c5b066c30099](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anonymous_c38f64651bbfc0fca993c5b066c30099)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/1 "2000-07-08T01:00:18Z")
That’s always the questions I ask when a friend tells me they got a new or used car. They think this is strange, like I should care if they got a hatchback or a DVD player? Nope. The only part I’m apt to notice is the color. I always get red, and I think that shows in my leadfoot acceleration. I don’t drive fast, just like to start fast. I’ve driven white and “silver” (really grey) cars, and they always seem sluggish before you even get in. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/2 "2000-07-08T01:03:57Z")
how do I get the nose character, my keyboard doesn’t seem to have one ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/3 "2000-07-08T01:57:06Z")
I’m trying to stick with the national colors they used to use in sports car racing up through the mid 60s. Italian cars were red, german cars were silver and english cars were a particular shade of dark green. The '55 Mercedes racers have been called a lot of things, but “sluggish” is not one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Eo\_Echo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ebca7d/32.png) [@Eo\_Echo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eo_Echo)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/4 "2000-07-08T02:15:28Z")
My car is green, and being a Ford Escort, wouldn’t be considered fast no matter what color it was. But I can’t complain; it’s the most dependable car I’ve ever had. Also, since I work for the dealership, I got a sweet deal and maintenance is pretty cheap. ---
**Author:** ![Anonymous\_c38f64651bbfc0fca993c5b066c30099](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a698b9/32.png) [@Anonymous\_c38f64651bbfc0fca993c5b066c30099](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anonymous_c38f64651bbfc0fca993c5b066c30099)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/5 "2000-07-08T02:18:27Z")
It’s on Windows programs under Accessories, the Character Map. It’s an option on the installation, so you may not have it, especially on a laptop, without going to Add/Remove Programs and copying it off the installation disk. There are key codes too, mentioned a lot on the forum About This Board. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/6 "2000-07-08T03:43:58Z")
My '99 Jeep Cherokee looked blue in the catalog. The colour chip in the catalog looked blue. One of the Wranglers I looked at on a rare cloudy day, near dusk, looked blue. Okay, I’m a guy. Guys know colours like “red”, “blue”, “green”, etc. How was I supposed to know that “Deep Amythist” mean “dark purple”? :o It’s cool though. When I got it, there weren’t many cars that colour on the road. By coincidence, my first motorcycle was purple (the only colour it came in that year); so my first new 4-wheeler being purple is kinds serendipitous. And just because I drive a purple Jeep does not make me gay! (Not that there would be anything wrong with it if I were, but you know how we hets are when it comes to image. ;)) ---
**Author:** ![lee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lee/32/7455_2.png) [@lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lee)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/7 "2000-07-08T04:31:14Z")
I call her the Abelian Grape 😉 ---
**Author:** ![JimmyNipples](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb9ed0/32.png) [@JimmyNipples](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimmyNipples)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/8 "2000-07-08T14:58:10Z")
Silver Oldsmobile Sedan. What a babe magnet that thing is. And apparently, it _is_ my Dad’s car. ---
**Author:** ![SwimmingRiddles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SwimmingRiddles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SwimmingRiddles)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/9 "2000-07-08T15:17:15Z")
Merc Tracer. Not a very sexy car, but I got mine used with a spoiler and alloy wheels, so it is tres’ sassy. And it doesn’t hurt that it is a nice deep red. I refer to it as my “Sassy Red Car.” ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/10 "2000-07-08T15:20:11Z")
I just bought a little red Ford Focus, and I’ve fallen in love with it. It’s a great little car-- it has personality. ---
**Author:** ![Crunchy\_Frog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ebca7d/32.png) [@Crunchy\_Frog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crunchy_Frog)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/11 "2000-07-08T15:48:05Z")
My Neon is not a true red, but it is reddish. And I’m sure that I can say with an ample amount of certainty, if I were to repaint the car green or blue, it wouldn’t go any slower than it already is. ---
**Author:** ![Nika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ba9def/32.png) [@Nika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nika)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2000, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/12 "2000-07-08T16:08:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny L.A. \* > \*\*How was I supposed to know that “Deep Amythist” mean “dark purple”? :o > > , my first motorcycle was purple (the only colour it came in that year); so my first new 4-wheeler being purple is kinds serendipitous. > > And just because I drive a purple Jeep does not make me gay! (Not that there would be anything wrong with it if I were, but you know how we hets are when it comes to image. ;)) \*\* [hyjack] Apperently, people attracted to purple are unsatisfied with their sex life…Apperently. [/hyjack] ---
**Author:** ![Altair\_8800](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4491bb/32.png) [@Altair\_8800](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Altair_8800)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/13 "2000-07-09T01:55:04Z")
My '97 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo is bright platinum. And she’s not the least bit sluggish, thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Philbuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e9a140/32.png) [@Philbuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philbuck)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/14 "2000-07-09T02:27:29Z")
Judging by my '89 Ford Tempo, beige cars aren’t built for racing. ---
**Author:** ![JimOfAllTrades](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@JimOfAllTrades](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimOfAllTrades)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/15 "2000-07-09T03:11:05Z")
'96 Pontiac Bonneville, official color is “Silver Teal”. Looks like light blue to me. Ugly (me, not the car. It actually looks pretty good) ---
**Author:** ![Gunslinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gunslinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gunslinger)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/16 "2000-07-09T05:23:54Z")
‘84 Jeep Grand Wagoneer, 360 cid V8 (made by AMC–none o’ that Mopar crap for me, thanks). According to the door tag, it’s “Garnet”; looks a rather blood-ish dark red to me. I’m working on the speed (soon as I get a job, it’s getting a 4bbl carb, MSD ignition, etc), but I have had it over 95 mph and still accelerating, but had to slow down because of a wicked crosswind (this thing has aerodynamic qualities somewhere between those of “parachute” and “barn”, mind you) ---
**Author:** ![brachyrhynchos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brachyrhynchos/32/376_2.png) [@brachyrhynchos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brachyrhynchos)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/17 "2000-07-09T06:27:02Z")
'95 Maxima - dark eggplant gray. NOT a slowmobile. ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/18 "2000-07-09T08:44:57Z")
Actually, I drive a pickup-truck. It’s a Mazda B-4000 and it is RED! 😃 I love it. And yes, it does go fast. Way, way too fast. It rides so smooth you have to be careful or you look down at the speedometer and you’re doing 15 mph over the limit. [hijack] And, no, I’m not a red-neck or a really butch girl. I just have a pickup for practical reasons…hauling and towing…and couldn’t afford an SUV anyway… A new guy at work saw me getting into the pickup and said “I thought that car was yours”, pointing to a 4-door sedan next to it that belongs to a guy co-worker). “I thought the pickup was \_\_\_\_\_\_\_'s” (the guy co-worker) So I’m thinking to myself, why would he think that the old-people car was mine???[/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Falula\_Guinea\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e95f7d/32.png) [@Falula\_Guinea\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Falula_Guinea_Pig)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/19 "2000-07-09T21:20:09Z")
My little vauxhall Corsa is Ceramic Blue, which is just a posh name for purple really! I love it - and I don’t care what, if anything, it says about my sex life!! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![mega\_the\_roo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@mega\_the\_roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mega_the_roo)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2000, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915/20 "2000-07-09T22:02:12Z")
My car is white and very sluggish. If were up to me when I bought it, white would have been the last colour on my list. I’m more of a bright coloured girl, myself. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-is-your-car-is-it-true-red-ones-go-faster/24915.md?page=2)