Just got my new v 5 about a month ago and I LOVE it. I traded a new 528i for my v and its the best automotive decision I've ever made. (Wife loves it too). Anyway, I've been trying to trick it out. So far, I've: Debadged the rear emblems Flat black Toyota rear emblem Tint all the way around Smoke tail lights What do y'all think I should do next? (Input is appreciated) I'm thinking of doing flat black paint for the rims or powdercoat, or aftermarket Enkei's or TSW's. Rear bumper appliqué Led license plate lights and interior lights
What did you use to darken the tail lights? I would like to darken mine a little, not much. Same for headlights. Dan
The list of possible mods is long my friend. If it were me, I would go for aftermarket wheels then lower it with either springs or coil overs. The gap in the wheel wells was way too much for me when I changed my wheels and it was begging to be lowered. Rear bumper applique and led interior lights are easy mods. Other mods you could do include adding HID lights, carbon fiber dash kit, shark fin antenna, front bumper clear bra, change the horn out, chassis bracing, leather steering wheel cover... I didnt have leather interior so I added leather seat covers. I also was disapointed with the stereo system and changed the speakers out and added some amps. Have fun.
You could find an auto body or paint shop and they could spray a tinted clear coat on them. Some folks have also gotten the tails actually tinted like you would windows. The best option would be to change the tails out to Valenti tails but I dont think they make them for the Prius c.
Ya you have 2 options for taillights.. Either paint or tint. I did paint because no tint shop in the local area knew how. There are pros and cons to both. Paint is more durable, but if you get harassed by the police, then you're SOL and might have to buy new taillights. I rolled the dice on this one. Tint is nice because its temporary and you can remove it if you get a fix it ticket, but after a few years, it can start to flake off. (Mine did on a Honda insight that I used to have)
I like your taste- similar to mine and some great suggestions too. I would like to do rims, but my main concerns are budget, but also I don't want it to worsen the MPG. Did yours get worse from aftermarket rims? How was the ride quality affected from lowering it? Also do you have links for the carbon fiber dash kit and chassis kit?
Budget will always be a concern but its also relative to each persons circumstances. Size and weight will be considerations for rims and effect on MPG and I am assuming you will stay with the 17s you have. If you do that you should easily find some rims you like and hopefully they either weigh close to what the OEMs weigh or even lighter. Going with that route will allow you to reuse your original tires and save you some money. MPG will also be affected by the type of tire you have as well but if you use the same tires, as long as the weight of the new rims are good, your MPG shouldnt be affected. I had the trim level 2 so I went up from 16s to 17s so I had to buy new tires. MPG wasnt affected much at all. I personally feel the overall ride quality has improved after I lowered it but I like the more sportier feel performance springs and coil overs add to the ride. Its probably less "cushy" than stock but I much prefer the added performance and improved stance of the car. The v has a high profile and I think lowering makes the profile more appealing. There arent alot of options for lowering the v so I would recommend the ones I have which are made by Tanabe. I have the Tanabe Pro S-OC coil overs. They have lowering springs for the v as well but it didnt seem they lowered them enough for my preference. Coil overs can get expensive though so its a tough choice based on your budget. Tanabe also has chassis improvements as well. Those are relatively inexpensive. Got to the Tanabe homepage for more info and you will probably need to find a local distributor in your area. I have a thread on here giving more details on the Tanabe parts so you could find that thread and read more about my review. The dash kit can be found at the CARiD website. I went the carbon fiber kit which I think would look awesome with the color scheme of your car. Pretty easy install and adds a sportier look to the interior. Theres another thread on here where I posted pictures of the result in my car.
I was about to suggest "Why don't you reduce the output of your headlamps too?" but I was too late with that idea.
Hate to tell you this, but there is nothing you can do to make a Prius "look" bad-nice person. However if you were to get rear-ended because of your dim idea your Prius would "have" a bad nice person. Anyway I always try to avoid giving cause for cops to pull me over at any time they choose.
