Do black cars really get hot in summer?

Obviously, the same principle that help you make smart clothing choices can help keep your car cool, too (and help the environment, while you're at it).

It's common knowledge that dark colors absorb heat (especially that from the sun's rays) while light colors reflect it. So in 2008 and 2009, the state of California considered banning the sale of new black cars, not out of concern for California residents' on-the-go comfort, but because of the unfavorable environmental effects. It sounded like a bunch of hippie nonsense (and it even got some conservatives, such as Rush Limbaugh, all worked up), but the science behind the idea is sound. A 2011 study by the Berkeley Lab Environmental Energy Technologies Division discovered that white, silver, and other light paint colors do improve a car's efficiency. The study, which pitted a silver Honda Civic against a black one, found that light colored cars reflect about 60 percent of sunlight compared to dark colored cars. This translates to a 2 percent decrease in fuel economy (due to increased air conditioner use), a 1.9 percent increase in carbon dioxide emissions, and a 1 percent increase in other harmful emissions for a black car