... interior wise. Ever since the recent swap from '18 with boring black interior to '19 with white a.k.a. "moonstone", I was curious how it will compare in the current heat. After multiple comments from passengers like "huh, it does seem cooler than before", it was time for science, and since moonstone seats have black inserts and can accurately represent black seats, here it is.
Yes the Moonstone interior is wonderful here in Atlanta. Even after several hours in the direct sun it never feels overly uncomfortable to get in the car. A couple of minutes of AC and the interior is very pleasant.
wow! a lot of people here seem to like the black interior, but i prefer a lighter color, even though our heat is a few short months. toyotas interior color choices are disappointing
My wife likes black because she says it’s easier to keep clean. I like lighter colors due to decreased heat.
I have had many cars with light interiors. Ive never bought a new car so I kinda just got what I got (interior color was never of that high importance to me). I do prefer dark if I had the choice, but only because of looks (harder to see stains). I happen to have a black interior now. The only disturbing part are the white accents on the steering wheel/ gear selector. You can get covers, but it still leaves behind white buttons. Not worth the $$$ for me to get a whole new wheel. It doesn't bother me enough.
When I was shopping for my Gen 4, I looked at black and rejected it as too dark. I was going to get Moonstone even though I thought it might tend to look dirty. I ended up with beige because this car became available at a good price.
i looked at new hycams, and only two exterior colors came with non black interior options. a new toyota design failure i guess.
If someone gave me a brand new car with black interior, I would gladly accept it. And then sell it immediately to get something less painful to sit on in Florida.
As bad as the black interior is for heat, I'd be more bothered by any reflection of the white dash off the windshield. I can cool the heat, I can't get rid of reflections. Not without polarized sunglasses anyway, and then you lose vision of any LCD displays like in the wife's Rav4. Not having a Prime, I don't know how bad the reflections are. And I assume you can't see the HUD with polarized sunglasses either. In case you're wondering, I really dislike reflections on my windshield.
I believe it’s been changed for 2020. The Moonstone now has a grey insert instead of black and I believe the dashboard is black instead of white.
There is slight reflection on side windows and even less on windshield. I was curious if it ever becomes an issue, but can now attest it's not. However, I suspect if you add tint, especially a ghetto limo one, the reflection will be more pronounced and could become annoying.
NICE! With that, I can agree, White>Black. Now all I need is 50-mile EV range, matrix headlights and thermo paint and it's time to splurge! Maybe gen2 Prime?? (I just paid off my 2014, so I won't trade it in yet.)
I've never owned a car with black interior before this one. Recently it's been getting sunscreen residue all over where I touch, like the arm rest and the sides of the seats. And I moved some 2x4s, and they left sawdust rubbed into the fabric of the seat. White would have problems too, mainly getting dirty too easily. How about good old gray or tan?
When I was young, I had a relative that offered to sell me their used Ford EXP, an 80's version, with the box like headlights. It was in good shape, it was a fair price, I passed. I passed because it had entirely Red Lipstick Colored Interior. It was just too much. It kinda made the Batmobile look subdued. In retrospect I probably should of bought it. It was unique. You couldn't get past it. But at the time, I just didn't know if I could take it, every time I got behind the wheel. Since then? Grey, Black...whatever color...seems OK with me.
Yeah I’m not a fan of black interiors either. Especially in cheaper cars, the black plastic looks cheap and it’s hot inside. The dark grey from the Gen 3 is alright. Or a medium grey like “Ash” or “Stone” that Toyota had in the early 2000s. I lied. Looks like they kept the white dashboard. Sorry I should’ve checked before I answered. Yes I would agree with your list too! Next one should arrive for 2023 model year if it goes with the same 6 year lifespan.
I had a grey cloth interior in my Gen 2, and I have the grey softex in my PiP. I have been very happy with the colour of each, and especially the comfort of the softex, I find it more comfortable than leather, easy to clean, and doesn’t get too hot or cold. Once I got the PiP, it made me realize how uncomfortable the Gen 2 seats were, lol. My wife’s Leaf has black leather, and I don’t find it as comfortable as the Prius softex, and definitely seems to heat up more. Both cars are fully loaded. That said, I am not all that fussy about the interior colour, and while I like some more than others, not so much that I would not be a significant factor in a used car buying decision for me. My $0.02.
Indeed! This is a big part of the reason why we, here in Austin TX, got Moonstone instead of black, especially since the Advanced trim doesn’t offer cloth seats! That plus a medium window tint. Granted, we generally keep it in one form of garage or another (our house’s garage or a parking garage), but definitely does help! Now I’m working on a black card to block the reflection from the left edge of the white dashboard piece onto the left side window, obscuring the view of the left-side RVM... At first, Moonstone struck me as looking bizarrely “cartoonish,” but it’s rather grown on me... I too haven’t seen many (if any) reflections off the windshield, but I have on the left side window at the rear-view mirror. But I’ve got a (partial) plan...
That's odd. But I've only had mine since March, so I probably haven't experienced all the possible sunlight angles yet.
