Image copyright Getty Images

Black was the most popular colour for new car buyers in the UK in 2017.

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, more than 500,000 black cars (20.3% of new sales) were sold last year.

White was the most popular colour in 2016, but has dipped to third place with 19% of sales, with grey in second.

The fastest growing colour of 2017 was gold, with demand up 19.1%, although it remained a niche choice with just 0.2% of the market.

2017 was a turbulent year for car sales, as new purchases fell for the first time in six years.

What Car? editorial director Jim Holder said buyers tended to stick to "plainer, safer colours" because they had better resale values.

He said: "This year's figures show few signs of that trend changing despite buyers being offered more choices of car colours than ever.

"Still, gold's position as the fastest-rising choice shows there are a few extroverts out there."

The survey also reveals differences between regions, with black the colour of choice in southern England, but white still the most popular in northern England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The top 10 colour choices

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Some extrovert colours such as orange and bronze also made the top 10

1. Black (20.3%)

2. Grey (19.7%)

3. White (19%)

4. Blue (16%)

5. Silver (10.0%)

6. Red (9.9%)

7. Green (1.1%)

8. Orange (0.8%)

9. Bronze (0.5%)

10. Yellow (0.4%)

Car sales dipped by 5.7% in 2017 compared with the previous year, with diesel sales down by 17.1% as higher taxes and pollution fears hit demand.

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said he said he expected sales to continue to fall this year, predicting a 5% to 7% drop.