First a few rock dings on the bumper & hood, now it's a thousand!

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JimN @ Jun 12 2007, 08:33 PM) [snapback]460507[/snapback]</div>

Wow, you're getting a little ahead of yourself -- we're still in 2007. But, to answer your question -- my boyfriend has a 2007 Toyota Matrix -- a limited edition "M-Theory" in a bright metallic blue. It's about 7 months old now with 5000 miles and doesn't have a single chip, ding, or scratch on it. He drives faster than me on the highway and did a 1600-mile highway trip in it not long after he bought it. My Prius got all its little bruises within a few months. I always keep my distance from vehicles in front of me, especially anything that could spill or spurt anything.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(PriusRos @ Jun 19 2007, 05:13 PM) [snapback]464887[/snapback]</div>

My 2004 Black Prius is far worse then my daughter's 2004 Salsa Red Prius, and she has twice the mileage on it -all highway 81 and trucks and all that crap. So - I think it's the color and not necessarily the year. It's almost like two problems. The chipping is bad adhesion of the BASE (black) coat, and the unruly susceptibility to scratches and stuff is the CLEAR coat - perhaps not strong enough, or cured properly, not at all sure. If that was the case, it would show up on other colors, but perhaps not as bad as on black (which shows every defect anyway). Clearly, no pun intended, putting black over a white primer is nuts - that's just bad planning and cutting corners on having only one primer color for all the Prius topcoats. So - I think we have a bad base coat in the black, and an overall clearcoat problem that we should solicit input on from owners with other colors than black. just my opinion -

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(wayne60014 @ Jun 19 2007, 03:07 PM) [snapback]464850[/snapback]</div>

Thanks a lot for the information, Wayne, Ginostef, and Les Gas! I really love this website...I have learned a lot from reading some of the posts. I look forward to learning more! By the way, any difference for my 2006 Prius as far as oil changes are concerned? How often, any special type of oil, etc.?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kentano @ Jun 19 2007, 07:44 PM) [snapback]464947[/snapback]</div>

No - not really. I prefer Mobil One 5W30 synthetic, but I suppose any good grade synthetic will do. Toyota will want to put their oil in it - non-synthetic, but that's simply not a good idea. There is no reason not to use synth, and lots of reasons to use it. Also, on my 2004 the recommended oil changes were somewhat long -5000 miles I think. I do it every 3-4000 miles tops - just good insurance. LAstly - if you research this site for oil changes, etc, you will probably find the thread on overfilling. If you refill at oil change with the recommended amount of oil, it puts it at the top of the dipstick, maybe even slightly above. That can draw oil into the Mass Air Flow Sensor and gum it up - reduce your mileage, not to mention thrash the oil needlessly in the crankcase/oilpan. So - have your oil change guys fill it with two quarts, then 1/2 quart, then check it after running it. If it is between the marks - stop right there - otherwise add a cup or so at a time until you get to the middle and then stop. You'll read all this in the oil change threads as well as ultimate miles per gallon threads - mileage per se. Okay? Good luck - Prius' are superb when it comes to maintenance and have the good ol Toyota reliability so go forward fearlessly -just change the oil, rotate the tires, do the sensible things and you'll be fine. When in doubt - consult your owner's manual for required maintenance and intervals. Have a good one!

Gene

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Les Gas @ Jun 11 2007, 02:16 PM) [snapback]459723[/snapback]</div>

I learned that Toyota have really soft paint job that get rock chip very EASY! First thing I will do when I buy a new Toyota car or any car is to put on a 3M CLEAR BRA which you can get it for cheap nowadays from EBAY for about $200 for a complete set compare to what I paid for my 2002 Lexus IS300 clear bra set from Xpel.com which cost me almost $400!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(aznDragonX @ Jun 25 2007, 07:59 PM) [snapback]467931[/snapback]</div>

You know - I have painted cars for more years then most of you have existed, and yes the paint on the Prius, particularly the black, is overprone to chipping and scratching. We've talked about ways to fill larger chip marks. For those of us who have the "sand spray" effect on our hoods, there is a simple, kind of, sort of, fix for this. It isn't elegant, except in it's simplicity. It's an old painter's trick revitalized. Turtle Wax used to sell colored waxes, a blk, red, dark blue and I think a white wax. The trick is to apply something close to your paint color, and let it fill in those chip marks, covering the primer or scratches in the clear. Well - I went and tried it on my Prius this past weekend - thinking I had nothing to lose. Well- darned if it didn't do a darn good job!! You cannot see the chips unless you get up within a few inches of the hood, the shine is good, and the hiding ability is great. So - if you can find a color wax that fits your body color, (forinstance, I don't know of a silver one - but since this is mostly a black problem there should be other options), then give it a try! By all means use the bra if you have one, etal, but if you already have the chips - this is a way to make them hide. Try it - would be interested in anyone's feedback. By the way - it took me two coats on my 2004 which has seen all highway miles (54000), so it does involve a LITTLE work. Thank God the Prius is relatively simple and small to wax!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Les Gas @ Jun 25 2007, 10:17 PM) [snapback]467994[/snapback]</div>

You were EXACTLY the one I was thinking of - your front looks just like mine. I was skeptical that it would work, but I forgot how well this covered. Good luck and I hope you find wax that works for you! I feel the sand blast pain!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ginostef @ Jun 25 2007, 08:10 PM) [snapback]468027[/snapback]</div>

OMG..I still got one can in my garage for my 1992 Maroon color camry ...I got sand blast effect when I drove that car cross country from CA to VA.

 

I've had my car for all of an hour and already the paint is chipped on the side of the vehicle where a rock flew into my car from another lane. The car will soon have a million dings simply based on where I park every day, so I'm not exactly heartbroken, but I'm not thrilled either.

As for bras, I've always disliked the look of them. They kind of remind me of plastic couch covers...if the only way to preserve the look of the car is by adding something I don't like the look of, I guess I'm in a lose-lose situation and should just save my money.

Kind of a bummer of a way to start my Prius experience, but driving on the highway in the heat with the A/C on full yielded over a 50mpg average, so that sort of takes the edge off.