Defender - is black (hot?) in summer?

[EastFreo]

Hi all

Quick question to all new Puma owners.

If I buy a black Defender will I regret it in summer?

Obviously it will absorb the heat but does the new air con cool you down enough?

Cheers

James

[discovery39]

ANY black car is gunna get hot.
The only regret you may have, is that you didn't buy a Range Rover!;)

[Jojo]

Yep, it will get hot, even at our latitude, not to mention Australia. A white roof and the upright windows make it somewhat better than in other cars, but I wouldn't want to have one in black, nevertheless.

[JDNSW]

In my view, anyone would have to be nuts to own a black car in Perth (or most of the rest of Australia). The colour will make more difference in a Defender, because the windows are near vertical rather than near horizontal as in most cars these days, so most heat gain will be through the roof rather than through the windows.

While the airconditioning will probably cope when the engine is running, think about what it will be like if you park anywhere out of the shade for a few hours and return to the vehicle mid afternoon, the airconditioning will not have kept the interior or any of your belongings or shopping cool while you have been away.

John

[carlschmid2002]

The zircon in a new Defender is still a joke when the temp goes above 40 Deg C. I have an Orkney Grey 90 and I wish I bought Indus Silver. Some people on here reckon the Puma zircon is so much better than the TD5.Well the TD5 must have been completely useless then.

[Drover]

Had my Black SVX since new in 2008 and love it.

The black does show the bush pin stripping and dust, but the black car and heat argument doesn't hold water for me.

Not saying black is as reflective as white or silver and sure it's gets a bit hotter, but how much hotter this translates to .......

I found this from an earlier thread about the same question -
Mythbusters
A black car heats up faster than an identical white car. (From episode 38 pilot 2)
CONFIRMED
A fan wrote in and asked a follow up question: "Does the color of a car affect the way it heats up?". The 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 black car had heated up to a temperature of 135 °F while the white car topped off at 126 °F, almost 10 degrees cooler. (5deg Celsius)

SWMBO silver Focus seems just as hot after sitting in the sun as my SVX does. The temp difference would be negligible and based on the MythBuster results you would need a thermometer to tell the difference......both are hot.




And black looks the goods

[Pickles2]

A black car when new, or when properly polished looks very good,.....but I would never own one, if I could help it.
The only black car I ever owned was a very special Brock/HDT Commodore that was S/H, but I just had to have it. It was a lot of work to keep it nice.
I remember being at the Winton races one year, & a friend of mine had his Commodore parked in the sun,...it was white. he said no worries,...feel the roof,...it was "cool", whereas you could've fried an egg on the roof of mine!!
Also, as soon as ya've washed/polished the vehicle, you can see the dust settling on it, just too hard to look after. On the other hand I have a friend who drives a black Landcruiser for his work car, & it is ALWAYS immaculate. He dusts it off with a microfibre twice a week, which he says he finds therapeutic!
So no, although they look great, I'd never want to own one.
Pickles.

[AndyG]

Well i have a Black Defender on order, illogical, but if i was logical i would not buy a Defender, i would buy something sensible like a white Isuzu D-Max.

Every car in my life has been white or silver, sensible colors.
I know with my boat (55' wooden) getting the high gloss white paint over the grey primer makes an immense difference, so logically we should all drive white vehicles with reflective stripes down the side.

However:
My Santorini Black with have an Indus Silver Roof, (Logic dictates it should be white)
Going for heavy 3M Scotchtint which i believe is one of the better ones.
And a sun roof to let the hot air vent out.

This is going to be my final car i think, so bring on the bling and pimp my ride !

Almost forgot the Sawtooth wheels, leather and color coded Bull Bar

[dullbird]

Colour coded bull bar? All bullbars come black :D

[Lagerfan]

We've got a Limited Edition (Nara bronze with black roof) and as Drover says it looks the dog's and is definitely a keeper (no regrets). The darker colours don't hold you back, I don't think we've ever said "you can't go to X it's too hot for a black roof".

But Pickles makes a good point, it's a bugger to keep clean, not that I worry too much about that... but some do. Also lighter colours are probably better suited to touring, easy to spot in the bush, and would certainly help keep the temps down a bit.

[AndyG]

Colour coded bull bar? All bullbars come black

Not Santorini Black, i know what your thinking, but its either spend it or let Hockey grab it.

[BilboBoggles]

No noticeable difference. Went from a silver puma to a black roof puma, can't really tell much difference in temp. Window tinting makes a bigger difference. Only thing is, as mentioned above, you can see every little scratch on black.

[Jacko44]

77352

Dont worry about it, my svx is no hotter than mates cruiser inside in summer, legs get warm around handbrake tho!!!!!!

[kenleyfred]

My svx was cunningly assembled with very large gaps everywhere. Heat build up is not a problem because all hot air escapes.
Air conditioner does work well though.
Kenley

[Bushie]

My svx was cunningly assembled with very large gaps everywhere. Heat build up is not a problem because all hot air escapes.
Air conditioner does work well though.
Kenley

As are all defenders, the secret is to get one where the gaps are positioned so water doesn't get in, but the heat can still escape. :D:D


Martyn

[sorefeetseepete]

I have a white 110, and have only owned two cars my whole life both white.
My last (first) car had no heating so I used to find the sunniest spot when parking to rely on the greenhouse effect.

My current defender never gets at all hot. A front runner 1.8m roof rack and a large roof top tent are always on top and make a huge difference to temp build up. I would almost say its usually the same as the surrounding ambient temp.

Peter

[cooperrat]

i have a black 90..Havent really noticed it gets hot because its black ,but it does get hot inside from the handbrake,exhaust etc.I have dark tints all around and a hatch which opens about half way, due to a full length mesh rack on top.It lets a bit of air thro when i park up in sunlight. Yes it does show scratches and dust, but Heck , its a defender…..aircon works pretty well tho on moderately hot days but takes a while to really cool on bloody hot days….

[Shoogs]

Mine is Sandglow... but one of the best mods is a sheet of plexiglass fitted to the cargo barrier so the air con only tries to cool 2/3rds of the car... mind you the full length rack with a sheet of marine ply acts like a tropical roof, and I havent used it in an Australian summer as yet.

[vnx205]

MythBuster results you would need a thermometer to tell the difference......both are hot.


And black looks the goods
Only while it is clean and that only lasts for a few minutes after you polish it. :p


There are two reasons the Mythbusters' figures are not the complete answer.

For a start, they used a car, not a Defender. See JDNSW's post for an explanation of the difference that makes.

The other thing is that while black might be only 10 degrees different if you leave the car in the sun all day, tests have shown that they heat up faster. So when you come back out of the supermarket, the butcher's or the hairdresser's, the black Defender will be noticeably hotter.

[Drover]

tests have shown that they heat up faster.

Okay, so what tests.....please share !

[Sirocco]

What's aircon? ;)

G

[Dopey]

What's aircon? ;)

G

Aircon is when you open the firewall vent flaps, isn't it?

Regards,
Mike.

[Dopey]

Okay, so what tests.....please share !

Found this, not terribly scientific though.

Silver and white cars are cooler, says study (http://phys.org/news/2011-10-silver-white-cars-cooler.html)

I have a few 90's, one with a white roof is the coolest inside when they have all been in the sun for the same time, all the others that I have all have black roofs and are quite a lot hotter.

Regards,
Mike.

[Basil135]

I am on my 3rd black car. Yes, I was bagged by a few people who currently own white cars, but, once you go black, you cant go back... :angel:

Yes, when compared to a white car, a black car will heat up faster, but over a longer period of time, the difference will be negligible.

Lets face it, if your car is sitting in 43 degree heat all day, are you really going to notice?

BUT, don't forget, using the same theory, during winter, a black car should be warmer.. ;)

Here is a bit of reading, by someone unassociated with Land Rovers:

The interior of a Black car is not hotter than a White car - Bimmerfest - BMW Forums (http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php't=71317)

[PAT303]

I have a black roofed defender and had a plain white Hilux,the hilux would get so hot it was unbearable,the defender never has.The defender has near vertical windows but the hilux has a very sloped windscreen that just let the heat in,it was redonkulas how hot that POS got. Pat

[vnx205]

How much of the roof of a Defender is lined?

If some of the roof has no insulating lining, then the graph is this article suggests another significant difference between the heat build up in a Defender compared with a car.
Silver and white cars are cooler, says study (http://phys.org/news/2011-10-silver-white-cars-cooler.html)

[Sirocco]

Aircon is when you open the firewall vent flaps, isn't it?

Regards,
Mike.

and drive a bit faster ;)

G

[Drover]

Found this, not terribly scientific though.

Silver and white cars are cooler, says study (http://phys.org/news/2011-10-silver-white-cars-cooler.html)

Regards,
Mike.

So the results of the test quoted below estimate a rise of 5-6c within an hour, -

(The researchers had two cars in the sun for an hour, one black and the other silver, parked facing south, in Sacramento, California. The silver Honda Civic (shell SR 0.57) had a cabin air temperature of about 5-6°C (9-11°F) lower than an identical black car (shell SR 0.05).

MythBuster's results had 10c rise over a full day......

So I go back to my original post.....the difference is neglidgeable and realalisticly would only be noticed with thermometer.

And black still looks the goods ;)
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/05/666.jpg

[vnx205]

(The researchers had two cars in the sun for an hour, one black and the other silver,

Defenders are not cars.

See post #4.

[Drover]

Defenders are not cars.

See post #4.


But.....this is the test that you posted ? Now you've got me confused .......

Do you not like the results of your own evidence ?

[EastFreo]

Thanks all for the posts.

Really appreciate all the advice.

One thing I know for sure is that at least there will be some air con irrespective of the colour I go.

Never had that as a kid with the series 2 and 3 utes I grew up with on he farm!

Even the 2 defender utes we had later weren't too good as dad never believed in fixing the a/c up after it stopped working. A true scot - he'd prefer to open the front vents and tell us it was saving diesel.

Such a shame they lost the front vents in this last configuration of the defender.

[rutmutt]

Yes it does show scratches and dust, but Heck , its a defender…...

exactly what I was thinking, my 11 month old black 110 has been pinstriped and missing paint off the wheelarches. Its only been washed twice, both times by the dealer. Still looks a million dollars.

as to the heat, barely notice it. Air on struggled on one hot day, so we got it tinted. Got a sunroof we can crack to let some heat out as well.

[EastFreo]

Thanks Lee

Actually I was wondering about the sunroof.

I did think it might let out some heat but was worried about whether it might make it hotter, be noisier and also whether it might leak (saw some posts about that).

Do you think it is worth putting one in?

Cheers

[Drover]

My sun roof is from the factory, no water leaks ! ( not from the sun roof anyway...lol)

It does work well to allow built up heat to escape and when driving actually will draw air up and out aiding in the circulation of the air conditioned air.

Down side, in direct sun ligh it can get hot where the sunshine touches and won't fully open when the roof rack is on.

[vnx205]

But.....this is the test that you posted ? Now you've got me confused .......

Do you not like the results of your own evidence ?

The test in the link I posted shows that the black car was hotter. I am happy with that.

My point about Defenders not being cars was explained in an earlier post. There is good reason to believe that the enormous sloping windscreen on the cars used in the California test would have a significant impact on the temperature inside the car. That would mask the difference between paint colours.

My argument is that while tests on cars show that black cars heat up faster a test on a vehicle with small vertical glass surfaces would show a much greater difference between black and white.

[MuzzyDelta90]

My Puma 90 is black although I didn't really have much choice in the colour when I bought it, I don't mind the black. My previous vehicle was a white Honda Accord and I don't really notice that the black Defender is any hotter than the white Honda. I did have the windows tinted on the Defender and I think that makes a big difference. White cars look cleaner even if you haven't washed them for some time, whilst you notice the dirt more on black cars.
cheers
Andrew

[EastFreo]

Well I have taken the plunge. Put my order in today for a santorini black Defender!

[AndyG]

Another one! But I changed my order to the silver pack

[rutmutt]

congrats, You'll love it!

[EastFreo]

I liked the silver pack but wanted the black roof.

Have ended up with most of the silver pack - ie silver grill, silver dash insert, dual alloys etc and have made it a bit special with the premium all leather seats.

I wanted the sun roof but my wife put her foot down and said that would be the straw that breaks the camel's back! She didn't like the fact we couldn't block out the sun.

Don't intend to do any other major upgrades. Might look into the noise and heat insulation ideas I have read about in this forum.

Now I just have to wait until Sept (and hope it really does arrive then).

[AndyG]

Ah , getting silver pack & the red leather, and sunroof. The twin tube steps were on order but been dropped for my15 builds.So will live without. July 9 build so our cars will prob be boat buddies. Oh did have sawtooth on order, but dropped to pay for the leather.

[Pickles2]

Ah , getting silver pack & the red leather, and sunroof. The twin tube steps were on order but been dropped for my15 builds.So will live without. July 9 build so our cars will prob be boat buddies. Oh did have sawtooth on order, but dropped to pay for the leather.
Sounds good. I don't like the twin tube side steps, they look a bit "busy". Have a look at the single tube.
Pickles.

[vnx205]

There must be a simple way to answer this question.

The problem is that all the test we have been able to find have been conducted using cars, so the results are not applicable to Defenders.

Surely there must be two Defender owners , one with a black Defender and one white, who live near enough to each other to conduct a little experiment.

The vehicles would need to be similar in other respects as there is evidence that upholstery colour and sun roofs affect the results.

If the two vehicles were parked side by side and temperature readings taken every 15 minutes, we would have some useful data to answer the question originally posed in this thread.

Early afternoon would be a sensible time to conduct the experiment.

Any volunteers? :)

[AndyG]

All else equal, black will absorb more. The question is how much?

And how much beer in the beer garden will be absorbed at the same time

[Pickles2]

All else equal, black will absorb more. The question is how much?

And how much beer in the beer garden will be absorbed at the same time
That is correct, doesn't matter what the item is, whether it be a house roof, any sort of flat surface in the sun, black or any similar dark colour, will always absorb more heat, & become hotter.
Pickles.

[EastFreo]

The idea about parking two next to each other and measuring temp is a great one.

I think it would really influence people's decisions.

[Gerokent]

That is correct, doesn't matter what the item is, whether it be a house roof, any sort of flat surface in the sun, black or any similar dark colour, will always absorb more heat, & become hotter.
Pickles.

I believe you are wrong there Pickles (and others). Black may absorb heat quicker therefore heat up quicker, but any colour will heat up to ambient eventually, as tested by the "mythbusters", 5 degrees celcius difference is nothing.
And black is the best looking colour for a car, no doubt.:)

[AndyG]

Which colors absorb the most heat? Why is this? Does a bright color like yellow absorb a lot of heat?
Answer 1:
When an object appears a certain color when illuminated by white light it means that it is reflecting light of that color and absorbing all other colors. For example, a red apple is reflecting red light and absorbing all other colors of light. The more light the object absorbs, the more heat absorbed since light is energy. If you consider it a color, black absorbs the most heat. A black object absorbs all wavelengths of light and reflects none. Objects that are white, on the other hand, reflect all wavelengths of light and therefore absorb the least heat.

Now, what about a color like yellow? It is difficult to compare the amount of heat absorbed by a yellow object verses another colored object like green or red because a lot of other factors come into play. For example, the intensity of the color, the incident illumination (the wavelengths of light hitting the object) and the angles of the light coming in and being reflected all play a part in the amount of heat absorbed. Now if you have a light yellow T-shirt and a dark yellow T-shirt, you can confidently say that the darker (more intense) yellow will absorb more heat because there is more pigment (less white). But comparing to another colored T-shirt like blue-green or red you would have to experimentally test!

[vnx205]

I believe you are wrong there Pickles (and others). Black may absorb heat quicker therefore heat up quicker, but any colour will heat up to ambient eventually, as tested by the "mythbusters", 5 degrees celcius difference is nothing.
And black is the best looking colour for a car, no doubt.:)

They may eventually get to a similar temperature. The question is how quickly each one reaches that temperature. There is some evidence that a white Defender will be significantly cooler after shorter periods of time, such as the time it is parked in the sun while you do some shopping.

The Mythbusters tested a car. We are talking about Defenders. For reasons that have been explained several times, the data from cars does not apply to Defenders.

Black is the best looking colour for a car for those few minutes between when you polish it and when it begins to attract dust and dirt. :p

[JDNSW]

I believe you are wrong there Pickles (and others). Black may absorb heat quicker therefore heat up quicker, but any colour will heat up to ambient eventually, as tested by the "mythbusters", 5 degrees celcius difference is nothing.
And black is the best looking colour for a car, no doubt.:)

No, exposed to sunlight the temperature of a surface will always higher than ambient, and the extra temperature is very dependent on the surface texture and colour, the temperature rise depending on the balance between incident absorption and reradiation or reflection. If it is any colour except black, incident radiation corresponding to that colour (or set of colours) is reflected, and does not add to the heat absorbed by the surface. Black, by definition, absorbs and does not reflect, all visible frequencies (which is most of the energy in sunlight). Hence black will heat up more than any other colour. White will heat up least, and other colours will be in between.

How much difference does it make? For most modern cars, not very much (as mythbusters found), as the near horizontal windscreen and rear window act as greenhouse devices, with visible light allowed to fall on the interior (usually black or dark) so that heating via the roof is relatively minor. This does not, as pointed out in an earlier post, apply to Landrover Defender, Series, and to some extent other models, which have vertical or near vertical glass.

There is a very good reason why almost all Landrovers sold in this country as utility vehicles, if they had a hardtop or cab, had the roof white (or close to) regardless of the body coolour.


John

[Dorian]

The original post was
"Hi all
Quick question to all new Puma owners.
If I buy a black Defender will I regret it in summer?
Obviously it will absorb the heat but does the new air con cool you down enough?"

So wasn't the question about the air con not the colour?

"The problem is that all the test we have been able to find have been conducted using cars, so the results are not applicable to Defenders."

It's still a metal box with glass sides so I reckon the results would be pretty much the same. Some RMIT engineering students did a study on this for the RACV back in the mid 80's (again not with defenders) with various sorts of cars.
The results were that black cars heated up quicker but eventually both reached close to the same temperature. The hotter the day the quicker they reached the same temperature.

[Gerokent]

Air con? Windows down for me. Air con is good for pressurization to keep (some of) the dust out :p

PS. Ive had my black 2007 defender for 5 years and don't regret a second of it.

[AndyG]

I am hoping the silver roof and premium tint will alleviate this in my black Defender.
Another strategy would be flexible solar panels, stuck to the roof, just thinking out of the box here.

[EastFreo]

Thanks Gerokent. If you can live with a black Defender in the mid west I think I should be fine here in Perth.

[Mudnut]

I have a black BMW X5, black John Cooper Works MINI, and a Cairns Blue Defender with a white roof.

I do not use the air con in the Defender. It is a TD5, and the aircon is hopeless anyways. The only time I do use it is to de humidify the inside during rain. I do however have rain guards on the front windows. They came with the 110 from the dealer, and were the large ones that covered approx 30% of the the window. Too much dust, and grime built up inside of them, and made it impossible to see out the sides. I took the band saw to them and cut them down to about 100mm in size. I can now leave the windows cracked at about 50mm even in the tropics without any water entering.

As for heat in the Defender. I insulated around the transmission tunnel, and under the roof lining. (look for "insulating Defender" in projects tutorials section) Both made a huge difference in the inside temp.

The MINI, and BMW we drive with the aircon. Use windscreen shade visors when parked and they make a big difference. If it is too hot when we first get in, down with the windows for a minute or two, and then aircon as normal.

Dust and scratches will be your main issue, but like I said, I own 2 black cars. To be honest I would have not purchased the black MINI due to the issues of keeping cars clean, but it was a deal I could not pass up, so an other black car joined the garage.

The short story is if you want it buy it!!

Cheers,

Ken

[Rick Fischer]

[QUOTE=Gerokent;2159563]Air con? Windows down for me. Air con is good for pressurization to keep (some of) the dust out :p

:angel: .............only if you are not on recirc :D


Thinks I already said that with Black SVX - didn't make any difference. However, window tinting definitely did :)

Cheers

RF

[EastFreo]

Thanks all for all the advice. Really appreciate it from all sides.

Interestingly enough a couple of years ago we bought a black volvo Xc60 T6 which was a 2.5 yr sale from someone selling their car early. Like Mudnet it was too good a deal to pass up and my wife has always been a volvo convert (and to tell the truth I liked her 1997 s40 t4 - the key is always go the most suped up version ).

Anyway it looks great and it does get hot but it is so different a car I did not want to compare it to the defender. Also it has airconditioner in the back so the kids get cold.

As it is, I may regret it but the order is in now so black is coming forntye defender and when it arrives will ask a friend up the road (our kids are in the same class) who has a white defender to do a side by side temp test in the Perth summer.

[Mudnut]

Congrats on your new order!!

Either way you will love it

Cheers

Ken

[Gerokent]

Congrats Eastfreo, you will love it.
Black is definatly the "coolest" colour for a car :D

[noyakfat]

when it arrives will ask a friend up the road (our kids are in the same class) who has a white defender to do a side by side temp test in the Perth summer.

Why bother? No point setting up for disappointment. Just get in your new beast and enjoy it. Once you turn the key and idle out of the dealer's lot, you'll have such a giant grin on your face you won't care if it's a million degrees :D

[vnx205]

when it arrives will ask a friend up the road (our kids are in the same class) who has a white defender to do a side by side temp test in the Perth summer.


Why bother? No point setting up for disappointment. Just get in your new beast and enjoy it. Once you turn the key and idle out of the dealer's lot, you'll have such a giant grin on your face you won't care if it's a million degrees :D

Why bother? To provide some relevant data to stop people on AULRO from arguing about how much difference there is between black Defenders and white Defenders. :p

You're right though. Once you have made your decision, you just enjoy driving it regardless.

[Baytown]

So, after reading all that: Is the air con on the Puma engined Defenders effective in an Australian summer?
As Im near Cairns, its an important issue so informed replies are appreiciated fellas.
Im right on the verge of purchasing a 2013 110, sight unseen.
Thanks in advance.
Ken

[kogvos]

The air con is OK but still not awesome in my opinion, although I find a lot of heat actually comes from underneath (another project for me to get stuck into).

The air con does cool down the interior of my 90 reasonably quickly on a hot day, but you don't get terrific air circulation with just the vents in the centre. It's OK at the front in the middle, but conditions vary as you move away from the vents (although the cold air shooting onto your legs does negate the hot floor OK).

I have a white roof, so I don't know how a black roof will treat you differently. I also have window tint which helps a lot.

I'm unhappy enough with the heat in the 90 to be lining the floors and rear cargo area, plus upgrading front rubber lining and adding similar to the rear (also for the noise suppression benefits).

[Landi]

I've got a black 110 with a white roof. My partner's grey VW Polo gets A LOT hotter when parked out in the sun. Not sure exactly how much, but it's definitely noticeable. I never really get into my 110 after being parked in the sun and feel like it's that hot. Maybe the white roof makes a difference. The air con works well for about the first hour, then the heat from the floor takes over

[Baytown]

Thanks fellas.
I appreiciate the informed replies re air con effectiveness.
I still want the car😉
Ken

[noyakfat]

Get it :D

[JDNSW]

I've got a black 110 with a white roof. My partner's grey VW Polo gets A LOT hotter when parked out in the sun. Not sure exactly how much, but it's definitely noticeable. I never really get into my 110 after being parked in the sun and feel like it's that hot. Maybe the white roof makes a difference. The air con works well for about the first hour, then the heat from the floor takes over

The Defender has the advantage over the Polo of having the windows near vertical, which makes a big difference. The white roof is the only bit that really matters - unless you want to lean on the top of the mudguards after it has been in the sun for a while. There is a good reason why nearly all civilian Series Landrovers and 90/110 had white (or near white) roofs, regardless of the body colour. Dark coloured roofs only became common as the model moved out of the working market into the lifestyle market.

John

[Black 110]

Yes, Black Defenders get hot as all hell mate! Mine is all black 110, with a sunroof too. Best thing I have done for when I'm up north is a sunshade cut out and stuck onto the underside of the sunroof. Dropped internal roof temp significantly!
Not enough on the last trip north in 43degree sun though...next investment I made has been a Solarscreen (from Solarscreen Australia) - got a touring kit which covers all the glass behind the front. That has made the biggest difference, now the AC works a treat, and the fridge doesn't work as hard either.
Would I swap it for another colour? NO WAY! Love it in all Black :cool:

[Andrew86]

I've been pleasantly surprised with my new Defender. It's a Corris Grey 110 with a black roof and it doesn't seem to get anywhere near as hot as I expected it would. Obviously any car is going to be uncomfortable to return to on a 41 degree afternoon, but it doesn't feel as bad as other cars I've owned and certainly doesn't get as stuffy.

White would have been a more practical choice for Perth, but practical is boring :D

[Pickles2]

Well, I definitely believe Black cars are hotter,....the dark colour (black) simply absorbs more heat, doesn't matter whether it's roof tiles or whatever, the dark colour absorbs the heat,...haven't done the test on a Defender, but I have on a white, & a black Commodore, parked in the sun,...the difference was immense.
Anyway, be that as it may, I reckon the A/C in a Puma is OK,...just,....in a 90 anyway. We've been out in 40C & it copes,....just, for us in the front anyway,...don't know what it'd be like for a 110 full of people.
But in the 90, it's ok, nothing like the climate control ya get in most cars now, but definitely better than nothing, OK on a hot day, & also good for demisting the interior,...but it ain't gonna win any prizes in an A/C competition.
Pickles.

[kogvos]

I still want the car😉
Ken
That's the illogical part of your brain working. We all have that problem. And we never regret it (for the most part).

[VladTepes]

I've got a black 110 with a white roof. My partner's grey VW Polo gets A LOT hotter when parked out in the sun. Not sure exactly how much, but it's definitely noticeable. I never really get into my 110 after being parked in the sun and feel like it's that hot. Maybe the white roof makes a difference.

2 major issues there:

1. (as mentioned by others) the angled windows on modern cars are terrible for heat !
2. Appreciably smaller cabin volume in the Veedubya so it will heat up quicker.

[TeamFA]

Some people on here reckon the Puma zircon is so much better than the TD5.Well the TD5 must have been completely useless then.

Yes, it is...

No way I would ever have a black car of any kind (though I have a black bike!).

Ours is white, and I've attached a layer of chequer-plate aluminium to the top of the roof rack as an extra sun blocking layer... makes a huge difference to the internal temperature...

[cooperrat]

I have a black all over 90 with heavy window tints If on a hot day i park it in shade the aircon works a treat,so much so that i have to turn it off every now and again to get the feeling back in my toes (i fitted the Mud UK air flow to the footwell thingy) but if left in the open i find it cooler to open the windows and get the air moving. I have a sunroof with a mesh floor but I have a piece of ply zip locked to the rack over the sunroof for summer days. keeps the interior a lot cooler but still helps airflow when open.....

[D2lee]

yes, black absorbs more heat in the sun, along with any other dark colour, which might translate to a higher interior temperature. But most of the heat is radiated into the car through the windows, having more vertical windows such as on LR's helps.


The worst thing with black is - it shows every scratch, mark, chip, fingerprint, polish swirl, dust, bird poo, splash, water mark.......... for me it was too much. Fortunately my Black Kia Sorrento destroyed itself, so I got a Silver Discovery. My wife still has a black Grand Scenic though, but I don't care about that.

[VladTepes]

I've not noticed any appreciable difference in heat between black and white motorcycle helmets -and those are a damn sight closer to the old scone that a LR roof....


I can see where a 'tropical' roof (jury rigged or otherwise) to shade the roof would make a difference though.


TeamFA - of course you have a black bike. So do I. That makes us cool... :lol2: and its a well known fact that black bikes go faster.

[seqfisho]

That makes us cool... :lol2: and its a well known fact that black bikes go faster.


Faster than RED, wouldn't thought that was possible Mike:p


At least it's easier to keep two wheels on the ground TIC[tonguewink]

[kogvos]

Black is the new red. All hipsters know that.

[EastFreo]

After a lots of internal wrangling (and a major disagreement with my wife) I ended up with the all black 110.

So far we have easily survived two very hot summers and done some major drives (covered about 30k in my first year alone).

Air con started out very cold but just lately it seems to have lost a bit of its chill. Will take it in to get looked at shortly. In saying that we have still got through the recent run of four days over 40 without any major complaints from the two kids in the back!

Personally I have never regretted my choice of colour. It does show the dirt and I have few scratches from some bush tracks. But a wash and good wax seems to hide the blemishes.

Also I constantly get positive comments from primary school kids to teenagers and gen Y through to the grandparents who reminisce about their memories (albeit the later always involve the old camel/sand colour).

Note: I second the comments about heat from the floor. I put some camp bed foam down to deaden the noise and it did cut the heat back a bit too. My next project will be better nsulation.

[cuppabillytea]

I've got a Black roof on top of a Corris Grey 110. and a bloody Sun Hatch. For mine the sun hatch is the main culprit when it comes to heating the inside. If I put my hand on the roof lining on a hot day, it feels warm not hot. It should be noted also, that black gives off heat faster then white. If you shade a black roof with a roof rack tray it should be cooler than white, especially when the car is moving.

[cuppabillytea]

Black is the new red. All hipsters know that.
All the colour blind ones that is. Actually all hipsters ever knew was what they were told to know.

[DazzaTD5]

Well just going slightly skew off topic, still heat related though.

Yes any colour if left out will get hot, last week in W.A we had a few 41 something degree days, mainly the monday and tuesday, a customers new (just happen to be black) Range Rover Sport sitting in the sun, the dash had a carpet dash mat and my digital temp gun was reading 85 deg C on the dash. So at that sort of temp, it aint going to matter the colour of the outside panels.

Regards
Daz

[barkingmad]

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/02/186.jpg

[AndyG]

Did a long drive to lightning Ridge & back from Bne this week, in a black / industry roof Defender. The A/C struggled, but the exhaust wrap kept the floor and handbrake coolish

[DiscoMick]

I'm about to fit a roof tray and I'm thinking of buying a rubber sheet, cutting it to size and fitting it to cover the tray. This could both reduce rattling of anything tied to the roof tray and shade the roof, I think.

Sent from my SM-G900I using AULRO mobile app

[cuppabillytea]

I'm about to fit a roof tray and I'm thinking of buying a rubber sheet, cutting it to size and fitting it to cover the tray. This could both reduce rattling of anything tied to the roof tray and shade the roof, I think.

Sent from my SM-G900I using AULRO mobile app

I reckon that is the best idea.

[VladTepes]

I reckon that is the best idea.


Make sure you fit it in such a way that it doesn't hold pools of water...

[DiscoMick]

Make sure you fit it in such a way that it doesn't hold pools of water...
I thought I'd make some holes in it so I can feed ratchet straps through them to hold things. That should let the water run off.

[VladTepes]

On the other hand it is a Defender so it might be better than it just flowing directly into the cabin ! ;) :lol2: