Louver Purchase Poll

Yes

 

I would be interested in seeing some information about said louvers such as:

1. How much would it cost? Shipping?

2. How are they attached? Screws and holes vs clips at forward hatch edge.

3. Can they be easily raised to clean under?

4. Is the window wiper -- pathetic as it is -- operational?

3. What colors are available? (With luck, not the Henry Ford answer: Any color you want, so long as it's black.)

 

I'd also be interested in cost of shipping to California.

I am not interested in anything that requires I drill a hole or in any way damage my Prius. I'll do clips or adhesive, but will not drill.

I have to be able to either raise it or remove it easily to clean underneath.

I can live without the wiper. I'm not keen on removing it. I don't mind not being able to use it with the louver in place, but I don't want to have to deal with taking it off in case I remove the louver and have to put it back on later.

Black is fine with me. I've never seen a louver that wasn't black. Since it's on glass I think black works better than matching the color to the car. It will also keep the costs down if the run is all black. I've only had aluminum and I've found the finish oxidizes over time. They're also heavy. I'm not opposed to a good quality plastic.

 

Not interrested at any aluminum rear window louvers price.
wy not plastic?

 

I'm concerned about the removal of the rear wiper.

I've always installed my own rear louvers. If I have to remove the rear wiper, I'm concerned I'll have to hire someone to do that, and if in the future I remove the louver, I'll have to hire someone to put the wiper back on so it works properly.

If there is a way to design this and keep the wiper in place, even if it won't function, I would prefer that.

 

Oops! Forgot to say:

I would not buy said louvers until I had at least read a post, preferrably with 137 pictures, from a purely estatic PriusChat member who had mounted and driven around for a while, including in the hot sun and heavy rain.

Personally, I am not interested in getting into something like one of the ongoig squabbles involving the various i-pod interfaces.

On the matter of being available only in black: I think it almost necessary that the undersides be black -- heavily anodized aluminum I presume. Poorly done, the stuff does oxidize, or ablate, or something, but at any rate disappear over time. (Anybody know an ANSI or MILSPEC on this?) My hope is that with proper professional prep the upper surfaces could be painted to match body color. I'm thinking that the louvers would have a slight tilt towards the back and thus show only the black underside when seen through the rearview mirror.

 

If they're done right, you don't see much of the under or over side. You mostly see the edge.

Wouldn't the company making the louver be designing it too? So they would be the ones to figure out how it attaches and if the wiper needs to be removed or not? I would hope they could just modify something they already have to the dimensions of the Prius back window.

 

I'd rather have automatic louvers opening and closing with temp in the grill.

No thanks to the rear window ones.

Icarus

 

While these may be retro looking, something that hasn't been mentioned is the privacy factor. I didn't have cargo covers on my Pinto or 200SX so the rear louvers provided me with privacy for the cargo area. It was extremely difficult to look in and see what I had in the cargo area with the louvers in place.

 

Count me in. Retro all the way!!! Now if you could only find a manufacturer to make an 8-track player to fit in the Prius, we'd be talking.
Seriously though, I've always liked the look of louvers!

 

Color coordination is a must. Factory matched paint

 

Years ago I had louvers on my Accord hatchback; they rattled more than you can imagine -- and they weren't cheap louvers! However, that being said, if the retro louvers are manufactured, keep the clearance for the rear wiper.

Has anyone considered the micro-style metal solar screen? I've looked online for an example and one can be seen here Smart Louvre Solar Shading Systems. Basically it is a sheet of thin metal which has micro slits which are pushed out on an angle like a Venetian blind. The assembly is then mounted on the outside of a building's window like a window screen is. Anyone who passed through the DFW Airport would have seen them as they were installed on the exterior windows until several years back.

In the case of the Prius, it could be mounted on the inside of the rear window so that the wiper doesn't have to be messed with, it isn't damaged by hail, weighed down by snow, damaged by automated car washes, and because the mounting system is on the interior of the car, it wouldn't harm any painted surfaces. Additionally, it could be hinged at the top of the window so that it could be dropped down when the hatch is open so that the window could be cleaned.

While the "retro look" is appealing to some, in my opinion it was never practical. Also, the mass of the retro style adds more weight to the eco-Prius which diminishes the reason that we all bought them. I'd go with a micro-louver faster than a retro louver.

Just my thoughts.....
Tim

 

I'm in on it as well (black) .They need to be quiet since most of us up our tire pressure.Also i'm in and out of nyc and Queens so if they would work for me i think they could work for most .

 

ohboyohboyohboyohboyohboy!

 

It's gonna be pretty hard to get a louver to fit over that fin!!!