Does vehicle color affect interior temperature | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Does vehicle color affect interior temperature

Sgt1411

Elite Explorer
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2021 Explorer ST
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Is there any specific testing that shows that dark vehicle interiors get hotter in the sun then light colour interiors?

New Explorers have privacy tinted rear windows, solar front glass, A/C seats with remote start and the 2017 model will have Ford Connect or Ford Pass that allows remote cooling before you get in the vehicle.

I think the old adage that dark interiors are hotter hasn't been realistic for years.
 



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Is there any specific testing that shows that dark vehicle interiors get hotter in the sun then light colour interiors?

New Explorers have privacy tinted rear windows, solar front glass, A/C seats with remote start and the 2017 model will have Ford Connect or Ford Pass that allows remote cooling before you get in the vehicle.

I think the old adage that dark interiors are hotter hasn't been realistic for years.
Do you watch Mythbusters? Here is what I found;


"MythBusters used two identical cars, one black the other white and left them both out in the summer heat with thermometers in both. By mid-afternoon the white car had a temperature of 126 °F (52.2 °C), while the black car had heated up to a temperature of 135 °F (57.2 °C), about 9 degrees hotter in the Fahrenheit scale. The explanation was that black paint absorbs heat while white paint reflects it." - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… – pentane Jan 13 at 16:42

http://physics.stackexchange.com/qu...e-of-black-or-white-cars-in-hot-sunny-regions

I know that colour makes a huge difference to the outside of a vehicle. After sitting in the sun for a period of time you can't hold your hand on a black coloured one very long if at all while you can leave you hand on a white one without any problems. That heat is bound to transfer to the interior over time whether there are tinted windows or not.

Peter
 






I know that colour makes a huge difference to the outside of a vehicle. After sitting in the sun for a period of time you can't hold your hand on a black coloured one very long if at all while you can leave you hand on a white one without any problems. That heat is bound to transfer to the interior over time whether there are tinted windows or not.
Peter

Agreed that on a very hot, desert type day there can be as much as a 30-40 degree difference on the surface of black car vs a white car respectively. Tinted windows definitely help to keep the interior cooler as well as all or any insulation built into the roof, doors, etc. If no tint on the windows the interior color can also effect the inside temperature, black being hotter than white or light colors. Simply put in very warm climates people usually gravitate to light colored vehicles. The light colored paint will also last longer or fare better than dark colors over time in these extreme warm climates.
 






MythBusters also fried an egg on the roof of a black vehicle and on the white vehicle the egg rolled off. Black absorbs heat while white reflects.

Many manufacturers have added metallic flakes to the black paint not just to look "cool" but to help reflect the sun's UV rays.
 






I think the old adage that dark interiors are hotter hasn't been realistic for years.

I would bet that there are a few babes in bikinis that would argue that point with you!:)
 






I have 3 cars.... black leather seat, beige leather seat and black cloth seat.....if you park them facing the sun the black leather will burn your back...the other to will not get as hot.....color and materials are important to consider...same goes for dash, steering wheel, shifts etc
 






Isn't that what remote start and A/C seats are for?
 






Isn't that what remote start and A/C seats are for?
Yes, that definitely helps, but that isn't what the topic is about.;)

Peter
 






my 13 EX was white without moonroof and was cooler, this summer will really expose the difference I bet on the 16.
 






I have 3 cars.... black leather seat, beige leather seat and black cloth seat.....if you park them facing the sun the black leather will burn your back...the other to will not get as hot.....color and materials are important to consider...same goes for dash, steering wheel, shifts etc

Sorry that we missed your first post Lep. Welcome to the forum!
I'll beat Peter and say that it would be helpful if you would put the trim of your Ex for future reference.
I hope you enjoy your Explorer!! Good Luck!
 






Black interior + exterior = hotter n hell.
Never again.

In the summer ...
The cabin will stay hot hours after parking somewhere cool.

Dash & sunroof make upper area of entire cabin to heat up like crazy- you feel it around your face and chest when getting in.

Sunroof shade and tint do nothing to diminish heat-you can get solar tint for that.
Tint is for privacy, its not for heat.

The upper storage cubby - too hot to touch, sunglasses too hot to use, could melt a cheap item in there like some other plastic gadget or toy or whatever.

If you have a child seat you must cover it-the plastic parts will be burning hot.

Use sun shield all summer, have vents so windows always open a tad when parked, ac, always try to park front of car away from sun, always go for shade.
 






I owned a Black and Black Navigator back in 2007 in miserable hot very humid Miami Beach..With a sunshade, [on every time you get out of your vehicle] 18% tint all around I had no issues with the leather or anything..It was no hotter then my friends white Explorer.

I found leaving the windows cracked did absolutely nothing but let all the garbage in from landscapers..If your A/C is up to speed your vehicle should cool down in seconds..When you leave your vehicle the A/C setting should be left on the automatic or vent position..NEVER in the off position..I leave mine on auto all the time.
 






it's always going to cost you more energy.

sure you have cooled seats and you can remote start the car for 10 minutes or so to cool the cabin down.

but black vs white - absolutely there is a difference. biggest thing you can do - regardless of the paint color - of even the interior color. Is to have IR rejecting film on all your windows.

IR - infrared. This is the light bandwidth that creates the most heat. UV damages pigments but is the IR that gets the car hot on the inside.

Solar ray glass is a start but there are a few window tint films out there that have near 95% IR rejection. They tend to be spendy.

Putting on the DR, Pax windows and the windshield - will help quite a bit. And lower the time you'll need for the car to cool down.


Now for the paint - why are dark colors hotter inside than lighter ones. Black Body Radiation absorption. your darker colors absorb more of the IR radiation than lighter ones. Subtract out the paint gloss for a minute and consider both surfaces as matte, or flat colors. White - being the absence of all pigments - is also reflective of all colors. This White tends to reflect off most IR radiation. Black being the presence of all pigments, tends to absorb all light. THus Black tends to absorb most IR radiation and heat up because of it.

that heat transfers in. If you have to pick a dark color I would suggest something in the red family - as that will reflect off red spectrum and most red pigments tend to also reject IR. (most not all)

However - back to the gloss. If you kept the roof, and sides of the car in good polish - and you used a modern tech polymer polish. There are some that happen to reject IR as well. They aren't labeled as such (or I haven't seen on state this) but because they promote gloss retention and the like they are formulated to reject as much radiation as possible.

This would help to negate the effects of black body radiation.

The IR film in the windows though - far far more noticeable.
 






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