Ford Rapid Red vs. Race Red vs. Ruby Red: Can’t Pick Your Color?

Anyone having decent experience buying Ford trucks knows the struggle that the choice of color causes, let alone the different hues. For example, with the Red color, you have dozens of shades to choose from. Some of you may get confused, I’m sure.

Today, I’ll analyze the advantages and the disadvantages of various details on a red Ford. More specifically, I focus on the three distinct shades of Red: Ford Rapid Red, Race Red, and Ruby Red.

It’s crucial to understand Rapid Red’s emotional appeal to buyers regarding the shiny surface under the light and the metallic texture. Similarly, the Race Red might be appealing to people who want a red but still lighter presence. People might also be attached to the luxurious presence that Ruby Red attains in the same fashion. 

There can be a great variety of points behind the reasoning of people’s decisions. Nonetheless, one thing is for sure: No one has considered every point of reasoning, either as a previous buyer or an article writer. There’s never been an article laying out all the advantages and disadvantages and the similarities and differences of the three red shades. No piece of content until today. 

So let’s dive into the complete, well-rounded analysis of the three popular shades. 

Ford Rapid Red vs. Race Red vs. Ruby Red: What are the similarities?

There can only be a robust comparison of the three different colors after understanding the similarities and the typical starting points of all three. 

Personality Concept

Regardless of the specific shades, the red cars express the same traits. They have a dynamic quality and vibrant energy wherever you see a red car. That’s not connected to the hue or the brightness of the color. With the red car, you can always stand out. 

This is what a red car or truck says about you: You are a powerful individual that wants to be seen as outgoing. This is who you are, and you shouldn’t be ashamed about it. 

Cleaning Ability

Keeping your car cleaned might also be an essential factor when it comes to the choice of color. Some of the red shades are brighter, while others have more of a bulk hue on them, which might be a detail that changes the maintenance cost and efficiency. 

Nonetheless, honestly, cleaning for these red models is a challenge regardless of the shade. Some of the costs might be different, and the applications of the cleaning mechanism might divert, but the result will always be the same; the cleaning part is the most challenging part of the purchase. 

As a matter of fact, this isn’t part of my opinion but of the customer reviews for the red colors on Ford. The level of difficulty in cleaning for these three shades is so high that a previous buyer even states that “(Red color) Shows dirt and dust more than the white on my 2002 Ford 150 did.“

Some counterarguments might entail that cleaning is less rigid on the Rapid Red bulk color and more of a challenge for models such as the Race Red. Overall, it’s tough for all red models and definitely has to be underlined as a similarity between the different red shades’ models.

Price

Let’s face it. For the big automobile companies with heavy and robust trucks, the red color is usually the one that’s the most expensive of them all. The investment becomes bigger once the consumer’s choice is outside the range of the ‘normal.’ 

The truck becomes more costly when it’s not a black and white color or a grey shade. This certainly applies to all three models we are analyzing.

Value

The price is higher for a red car. The resale value is also higher, however. Therefore, one that’s financially stable to purchase either one of the three cars will also benefit from the resale value. Reselling such a car is more beneficial than one with a darker or – even better – a more common color or shade because the demand is higher. 

This applies especially to the Ford trucks. The manufacturing company provides a wide array of colors and shades, but the most significant output comes with either all black, white, or grey cars.  

Read more: Star White vs. Oxford White: Which Color Looks Better On Your Truck?

Ford Rapid Red vs. Race Red vs. Ruby Red: Side-by-side Comparison

 Alright, it’s enough with the similarities, nonetheless. Let’s get to the central part of the analysis, the constructive comparison between the detailed aspects of every single color. This side-by-side comparison aims at helping you make your decision and solve the debate of ‘Ford Rapid Red vs. Race Red vs. Ruby Red’ once and for all. 

Comparison Chart

	Rapid Red	Race Red	Ruby Red
Paint Code	D4, M7444	PQ/M7236	RR, M7283A
Exterior Look	Darkish	Bright	Shiny (luxurious)
Heat Absorption	Good	Mediocre	Bad
Cleaning Capacity	Moderate	Difficult	Difficult
Best Suited Regions	Warm Regions	Any regions	Sunny regions
Cost	Most expensive	Cost less	Cost less

Detailed Comparison

Paint Code

The color code for the Rapid Red shade is D4, M7444, and the HEX code can be found as #7b001c. For Ruby Red, the color code is RR, M7283A, and the HEX code is #9b111e. Similarly, the first value is PQ/M7236, and the second is #f51b00 for the Race Red Ford model. 

But what do all these numbers and codes mean for most of us who haven’t graduated with honors from the Arts department? It’s a way of depicting the percentages of the colors and the shades that every single one of these trucks is presenting.

As far as the paint code is considered, we cannot analyze it on its own. We have to pay attention to the RGB when defining the color code and its aspects. When it comes to RGB, we are talking about the color combination’s design by understanding the intensity of the red, green, and blue shades. 

Let’s take a look at the RGB color codes chart below. 

Color Name	Hex Color Code	Red	Green	Blue
Rapid Red	#7b001c	123%	0%	28%
Race Red	#f51b00	155%	17%	30%
Ruby Red	#9b111e	174%	11%	10%

The way that the combination of these statistics is playing out in the real-world presence of the three colors is analyzed in the following section.

How does it look like?

Let’s begin with the Rapid Red, or the metallic one as people call it. As stated before, the statistical analysis shows that there’s a 123% of red concentration, no green, and a small percentage of blue. This is precisely the explanation for the vibrant dusky reddish shade this color creates. This combination of red and blue without even a stain of green makes it a darker color, which is also capable of shining on the sunny days of the summer.

Ruby Red is the next on the list. The moderate – but still existent – presence of both the green and the blue color, as the red shade is nearly 25% increased from the Rapid Red, makes it an interesting case. It entails the brightness that the previous model lacks and embraces a rich and luxurious appearance. 

Finally, Race Red seems like the red color that one would generally put on his car for an actual race. It increases by nearly 50% red from the first shade and 25% from the second one. Therefore, the difference in brightness is prevalent from afar. The red color dominates, but the existence of the other two makes it more shiny and bright, even without the dark side that the Rapid Red possesses under less sunny situations. 

Heat absorption

Now, the heat absorption analysis will have to be slightly different. First, I will compare the Rapid Red with the Ruby Red, and then I will include the Race Red into the equation if you are asking why, it’s because the primary two colors are very close to one another, while the third and additional one is more of the outsider, which changes everything. 

As mentioned before, the Rapid Red looks very stunning and bright under direct sunlight. That’s due to its metallic structure. It’s the same structure that plays a role in the extra warmth to the truck on the exterior. It manages to keep you away from the harmful direct UV-ray of the sun because the direct contact is absorbed. 

The ability to absorb the heat is one of the main differences in the leading competitor, Ruby Red. That occurs because of the exterior color, which is very easy to apply or paint better than metallically structured models. This is why the outer shade isn’t shiny or metallic. At the same time, it also might cause heat problems to absorb the sunlight due to its lack of a strong base coat. The lack of a few layers makes the car warmer (it might be uncomfortable during the summer), and that’s even worse for the UVR exposure. 

The Rapid Red is darker and more profound than the Race Red shade. Therefore, even though it’s similar and shinier than the first one, the latter cannot permanently absorb the heat. That’s because of the lack of metal for the exterior structure. The reassuring presence is still prevalent in the car. The shiny surface is evident during all seasons, even the rainy ones, and the vehicle is better at absorbing heat than the Ruby Red. Nonetheless, it cannot similarly compete against Rapid Red to the latter. 

Read more: Abyss Grey vs. Leadfoot — The Battle Between the Two ‘Black Sheep’ of Ford

Ford Rapid Red vs. Race Red vs. Ruby Red: Pros and Cons

The list of the details above is long. However, it’s crucial to make it concise and effective for everyone.

Ford Rapid Red

Race Red

Ruby Red

What do the people think?

To be well prepared for this article, I’ve come through many forum threads and read many replies talking about their Red Ford vehicles. As far as it concerns, the need of people to show love to their car by putting it out on the Internet, there has never been an article of ours more flooded with pictures of the buyers. 

People all love the brightness and the shine that comes with all red shades’ cars. They are impressed and like getting complimented, going back to the personality traits that we mentioned before. 

Nonetheless, if there are some things that we might understand from the reviews and the statements in the forums, that would be the following. People don’t like the difficulty that comes with the cleaning problem of the three shades. An F-150 owner expressed his disappointment: “I went from a Ruby red to Rapid red…. basically shows dirt the same.”

So cleaning ability should be a significant factor in your decision. 

Another vital addition is that the shiny presence embraces your personality, and the fact that more and more people love their bright race or ruby red might be of significance. Previous buyers state, “when it’s clean and waxed, it’s very bright, and changes are mostly depending on sun or clouds. Really nice“. 

Finally, people are also considering the value of the vehicle from now. It’s significant to look into the details of each hue for resale in the future since the demand is high and the supply is low. 

Concluding Remarks

The unique part that makes you fall in love with your car is its color. As mentioned at the beginning of the article, the car’s color is a portrait of your personality traits. For the people choosing the red color, it’s pretty evident that they have a robust personality they want to show. They have their own ability to let their presence be known. And this isn’t the only factor that contributes to their decision. 

They also make sure that they invest their money in something valuable since red trucks tend to be more expensive. Therefore, this is why people tend to buy red Ford trucks. Are you one of them? There’s no way to find out other than doing your research. Even if you’d like to buy such a red car, it wouldn’t be wise to think that there’s only a common choice. It’s crucial to understand that the three different shades of the article might not be a tough decision, but you have to make them. 

Between the Ford Rapid Red vs. Race Red vs. Ruby Red, I cannot state that one is the best or another one is the worse. What I can do is make more of a recommendation for your situation. 

If you live in a state of sun and heat, while you want to be protected and don’t need a luxurious presence, you should be more than willing to go with the Rapid Red. 

Regardless of the state you live in and the weather circumstances, provided that you needed a luxurious look of low heat absorption but a great combination of colors, Ruby Red would be the way to go. 

Finally, if you ever needed a car that’s the moderate solution for extreme conditions and still manages to make a powerful presence, the Race Red would probably be your match.