What’s With All Those White Hondas? Thank F1, Type R, and Cleanliness
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For years now Honda enthusiasts have flocked to all-white builds in droves, and white-painted examples have long served as the most popular option for project cars. For some, the snow-white paint choice brings a clean and pure look, while others go all-white as an ode to Honda’s storied racing heritage—white is, after all, Japan’s national racing color. You might be familiar with British Racing Green, French Racing Blue, and Italy’s blood red hues; white belongs to the land of the rising sun.
On a more practical level, at least as it concerns custom car builds, color psychologists suggest that white represents a clean slate or new beginning as well as purity, completion, and an equal balance. And there is a specific Honda connection: Employees at Honda’s various R&D facilities and factories wear spotless, all-white uniforms, and the automaker explains its philosophy as one where good products come from clean workplaces and white symbolizes equality of all that work at Honda, including its CEO.
The Type R Influence
At surface level, the world famous NSX Type R, followed by the Civic and later Integra Type R models all featured a Championship White paint code in their palettes and served as aspirational models that countless builders worked to emulate, especially since those early models wouldn’t make it to U.S. soil sooner than 25 years after first going on sale. Some wouldn’t go as far as a complete color change to the signature off-white paint, but in the spirit of tribute style builds, any of Honda’s other white paint options will satisfy most.
Some Historical Significance
Championship White and the Type R itself is the result of Honda’s earliest motorsport conquests, which began in 1964 with the RA271 model serving as the brand’s debut in Formula 1 racing. Draped in Championship White with a bright red circle between the front wheels representing the Japanese flag, the livery announced the automaker, though early in its vehicle production journey, was ready to do battle.
A similar look was applied to the RA272 thrust into the 1965 F1 season with Richie Ginther joining the team for driving duties and earning not only Honda’s first Formula 1 victory at the Mexican Grand Prix, but the first ever for Japan. Decades later, the Type R family pays homage with the familiar paint scheme with the same white accented by red highlights.
Just Keeping It Simple
Putting history and motorsport accomplishments aside for a moment, some just like the clean and simple look of a white build. With it comes an array of wheel color options to pick from, the ability to add a dash of bold contrast with touches of carbon fiber, and the fact that it hides dirt better than many other paint colors—just a few more reasons for the white obsession.
Our friend and regular photo contributor @mr2mivin recently sent out a call to some local friends with white Honda builds and managed to gather them all for a morning photo shoot, and you can view the attached gallery that…
Read More: What’s With All Those White Hondas? Thank F1, Type R, and Cleanliness 2024-01-08 23:02:21