Any colour so long as it is black

I am not sure what to think of some laws on the books, or most likely will become law. Many have heard those silly laws, like an Arizona law that forbids having a donkey sleep in your bathtub. I wonder if these laws originally made sense in the time they were written, or if some politician is screwing with us.

California has its share of strange ones, but one coming down the pipe right now is high on the ridiculous scale. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) placed a 2016 mandate to have paint reflect 20% of light, with a phase-in period starting 2012. What this means in English is that dark paint colors will be banned. No more going to your local car dealership and picking up a black car, or anything with a dark hue at all.

Unfortunately, this is not a governmental April Fool’s joke, as the announcement was made on CARB’s press release on standards and test procedures. Supposedly the dark paint colors makes climate control systems work harder to cool the car. Here is a link to a PDF of the report.

I like living in California, but the possibility of not being able to buy a car in a dark paint job is silly. Henry Ford would probably be ticked off at this news. Whether you like Ford or not, Henry Ford really did revolutionize the car industry when he introduced the Model T in 1908, as well as starting assembly lines.

My Grandfather had a 1910 Model T and a 1930 Model A, so I love classic Fords. He used to drive us around as kids through the city, everyone in other cars waving and honking hellos.

Henry Ford was a fan of black cars. The Model T originally came in one color, black. In his 1922 autobiography Henry Ford said, “Any customer can have a car painted any colour that he wants so long as it is black.” I doubt he would be a fan of Malibu Barbie’s pink convertible.