The Monochrome World of Cars in Korea
Lanes of cars stretch along a South Korean highway. Via Yonhap News.
If you look closely at the roads in South Korea, you will realize that almost all of the cars are either white, gray, or black. Whether Tucsons or Avantes, they all sport similar bland colors. In fact, 84% of the Tucsons and 88% of the Avantes are achromatic. This trend of achromatic cars is not abnormal in the nation. It is rather a regular phenomenon. The Global Automotive 2021 Color Popularity Report found that in South Korea, 32% of cars are white, 24% are gray, and 17% are black. In total, 73% of cars in Korea are achromatic.
Statistically, Korea isn’t much different from the rest of the world: approximately 80% of the cars worldwide are achromatic. However, in Korea, even vehicles that are designed to stand out or have befitting colors are painted without hues. Luxury cars usually come painted with brand colors, such as Ferrari with red, Lamborghini with yellow, and BMW with blue, but Koreans prefer to cover them with duller colors.
Hyundai sedans shown in the “cars” section. The lack of chromatic colors can be seen on the cars which are meant to be in their “ideal” color. Via Hyundai.
To compare, car colors in Europe have an even distribution among achromatic ones, with colors like blue being 11% of the vehicle color. Although Europeans may naturally prefer colorful cars, the color code of car manufacturers can also push customers to try more daring hues. For example, Renault and Citroën’s color codes have matched the artistic spirit of France, with distinctly-colored cars painting the streets of cities like Paris. However, Korean carmakers, which supply 83% of vehicles in Korea every year, tend to display achromatic colors. This leads to Korean customers purchasing cars with these colors as if the manufacturers are discouraging them from painting their cars in colors such as red or green. It can also be inferred that Korean carmakers are catering to the general interests of Korean consumers.
So what might be the reasons Koreans buy achromatic cars? Park Jong-suh, a reputable car designer for Hyundai, stated that Koreans “have no pleasure in diverse colors” and “grew up with no proper color education.” Although this claim comes from a professional that may have higher standards compared to that of the population, it shows the extremity to which achromatic cars are preferred across the nation. The relatively high rate of introverts in the population and the conservative culture discouraging people from standing out may also be factors, color therapist Yun Gyu-won states.
Korea’s comparatively high car accident rate of 59.5 deaths per million inhabitants in 2020. Via OECD.
Although one may say that monochromatic automobiles aren’t a major problem on the road, the underlying issues regarding car color can greatly impact society. Car color can greatly impact the safety of the road. Black cars are 47% more likely to crash than other colors. Indeed, black cars are the least common out of the achromatic colors, but being nearly half as more likely to crash is alarming. However, this does not mean that white and gray cars are safe. Silver cars were 50% less likely to be in a serious crash than white cars. With recent findings that visual detection increase with chromatic colors over achromatic colors, the bland view of the road can cause drivers to lose focus and be more susceptible to crashes.
Individuality is another factor that is endangered by Korea’s monotonous automobiles. Cars become the identity of the driver once it is on the road. Red cars may have more dynamic individuals behind the wheel, while blue cars may contain calm individuals who still value their uniqueness. Whatever the color, the lack of hues on the street demonstrates the lack of individuality in Korean society. People are looked down upon for standing out, which is caused by excessive social pressure and collectivism.
A step to promote diversity and individuality in Korean society can come from the highways, crossroads, and roundabouts. Korean car manufacturers should promote more colorful cars to their customers, and in turn, Koreans will be able to connect with their identity simply by driving vehicles with hues. It is about time we paint the streets of Korea something besides white, gray, or black.