What Color Rims Go Best With a Blue Car?

by Cindy Quarters
Primary Secondary & Tertiary Colour Wheel image by Sophia Winters from Fotolia.com

Adding rims to a car can enhance or detract from its appearance, depending on the rims that are chosen. It is important to give thought not only to the style of the rims, but also to the color. Although choosing the best color rims to go with a blue car is largely a matter of personal taste, there are some colors that most people agree will look better with blue than do others. A "color wheel" can help with the selection of colors.


Rims that match the color of the car exactly are available from many different sources, both online and in bricks and mortar stores. These rims can either be completely painted in the car's color or they can have accents that match, with the rest of the rims left silver, black or white. All that is required to be able to match the color is to supply the rim company with the paint code from the vehicle's manufacturer, to insure an exact match.


Silver is generally considered to be a flashy color, making it a good choice for someone who wants the rims to stand out but not overwhelm the car. For many types of rims, silver is the default because it works so well with most auto paint colors. The silver can have a shiny, reflective finish, or it can have a flat, matte finish. Both types of finish go well with blue paint. The shiny finish will pick up the car color and so appear to have some blue in the rims, which some people find more attractive than the matte finish.


White rims look sharp on a dark blue car. The dramatic contrast between the white and the dark blue adds interest to the appearance of the car. White rims have the added advantage of looking clean much of the time. If they get muddy or dirty, often all it takes is a simple rinse to make them look like new.

Analogous Color

An analogous color is one that is immediately next to another color on the color wheel. If the car is dark blue, both light blue and purple are analogous colors, which means they will blend with the dark blue if the rims are painted either of these colors. If the car is a light blue, the analogous colors are dark blue and aqua, either one of which will look good with the car.

Complementary Color

A complementary color appears directly opposite the selected color on the color wheel. A complementary color stands out from the main color, and is used to make the colors "pop." For a dark blue car, the complementary color is yellow, and rims of that color would stand out on the car. A light blue car using a complementary color scheme would have red rims. In both cases the rims make a strong statement, and these combinations can be too much for some people.

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