I have always thought the Prius looked like a flea from the rear 3/4 view because of the thick side profile. To lessen the effect, I am thinking of a two tone paint job. In my case matching the dark metallic grey Touring wheels that came with the car below the design crease that runs on the front and rear bumpers and just above the trough on the lower side. What do you think? I am also thinking of painting the roof gloss black.
I like it! Not sure about three tone (with the roof black ) though. What exhaust tip/muffler is on it?
I like the look! You might want to paint the little trim panels beneath the bumper to keep the second color all the way down but otherwise I think it's great.
Thanks for your comments! What I meant by painting the roof gloss black was not together with the dk grey bottom, but alone. In which case painting the hood gloss black as well may be close to what seems to be the trend now. My point was to break up the thickness of the side profile Shin The exhaust tips are just that, a bolt on I found on eBay. But I like the looks of it and you can identify your car in a snap here in Los Angeles, where Prii are parked everywhere.
I think you've come up with a real winner... very classy and understated. It would complement any body color in the Prius palate. Go for it! If you do this, could you keep us advised of costs?
Thanks Rokeby, I've already discussed this with my body shop and their estimate is $1,400 including pinstriping the edge to blend it into the classic silver. On a separate note, painting just the roof gloss black was about $400. And your right about it complementing any Prii color.
Indeed it could get hot. Its a trend Mercedes started with the Panorama Roof which continues the windshield all the way to the rear glass. If you look at some Scion Tc, the roof is painted gloss black to make it look like the glass is contiguous. I have seen many imports that in addition to the roof they have extended the gloss black on the hood. And in some cases it looks good. I personally like less bling, so subtle customizing is what I like. I wanted to photo-shop it but I don't know how to do it. My brother did the 2-tone and said it was too much work to do gloss black, especially since I wasn't paying him anything. Maybe someone here could do it and do one with and without incorporating the rear wing so we can all see it. Shin
SPEEDEAMON, I've looked long and hard at my Barcelona red Prius thinking about a two tone paint job, with the dividing line at the panel break on the doors, just below the windows. That line extends naturally to the dividing line between the brake light and the turn signal on the rear light assembly. Now, here is where a black roof could make sense, artistically speaking. If you installed retro 2004-05 tail lights, the brake lights are black. On the tail gate, the black "roof" would include the spoiler, and the vertical black tailgate glass. This is beginning to look really tight! The problem that I see is determining how to end the black up front. The break line is too low just to end the black roof at the base of the A pillars. It has to run across the hood. I haven't been able to visualize a way to do it that isn't either trite, or cutesy. The line sort of coincides with the division between the front turn signal and the headlight. You could colorize the turn signal with light smoke tint film from these folks: http://carcustomz.com/osc/toyota-prius-0407-smoked-headlight-film-protection-p-233.html You seem to have some facility with PhotoShop or a similar program. Perhaps you could try some options. FWIW, there are at least three P/T Cruisers in the general NE Ballamer area that have two tone paint jobs, with the dividing line at the hood and a chrome trim piece running along the doors. It is very easily done. But then the P/T is just a "two box" shape; the engine box and the body box. Nothing subtle about it. But those cars really stand out in traffic, or in a crowd of P/Ts.
I'm on a G35 site as well, the other car.... A couple of members have painted their roofs black, but that is to match the carbon fiber hood and trunk Maybe to end it like the previous poster said, you could have it come down the hood but only thin strips where the bulges on the side are to where they meet the smile...if that makes any sense OK BELOW IS A VERY VERY POOR CONCEPT DONE IN MS PAINT IN 10 SECONDS.
The two-tone look is very nice... classy. DH says he thinks we'll be seeing more customizations as Prius gets more popular. I'm not sure how that would work on a superwhite, though... the white is so stark, that I think any other color would look odd paired with it.
Rae, Mercedes Benz did it with light grey way back 20 years ago with light-gray. I think it would look great. Shin
Actually courtesy of the "Firesign Theatre". First uttered on the "Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me The Pliers" album, circa early 70's and I do think we are all bozos on this bus!!! kk6pd
