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Sandy Beach metallic is surprisingly good in person!

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by sarahsoo, Aug 27, 2009.

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  1. sarahsoo

    sarahsoo New Member

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    OK - I haven't bought the Gen III yet, but I finally went to a Toyota dealer today to look at the Gen III's in person. I've been trying to decide whether to get Blizzard Pearl or Blue Ribbon metallic (or possibly even Winter Gray), and was lucky enough that the dealer I went to had one of every color in stock altho' most were sold and awaiting pickup.

    Well, I'm surprised to say that the Sandy Beach metallic really impressed me. I really haven't liked the rendering of it on the Toyota website, or the photos on here of other people's cars. In fact, I voted in the poll of "what is your least favorite color" that mine was Sandy Beach. But, ummm, I think having now seen all the colors in person, it might be the one I end up with. :eek: It looked really sharp with the sunroof. And I'm SO not a gold/beige-loving person normally.

    Anyway, just wanted to share. :cheer2: If anyone out there is still on the fence about colors, don't discount SBM without seeing it in person, especially if you live somewhere hot where the lighter colors will work better in the heat.

    Actually, while I was there, the sales guys got pretty interested in my Gen I. I guess they don't see too many of them any more!
     
    #1 sarahsoo, Aug 27, 2009
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  2. hschen

    hschen New Member

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    Sarah,
    If I were you, I would go with SB color too. Not because I like gold color, but because it's the least favorite and most rare to find. I would rather have a color that few have. That's called personality. Too bad I have no choice but to pick up a Winter Gray one. Good luck to you.

     
    #2 hschen, Aug 27, 2009
  3. jay_man2

    jay_man2 jay_man_also

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    I had a beige RX330 and it was kinda blah. Won't do that again.
     
    #3 jay_man2, Aug 27, 2009
  4. jaywolf

    jaywolf Member

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    We thought about SB but decided we did not like the blue logos on the sandy color.
     
    #4 jaywolf, Aug 27, 2009
    nuclear1 likes this.
  5. LaurieTx

    LaurieTx Proud new owner!

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    Thanks for the love on the SBM! I have one with the SR and think it looks sharp too. I've gotten quite a few compliments on it. To me, it's certainly nicer looking than boring silver and gray.
     
    #5 LaurieTx, Aug 27, 2009
  6. sarahsoo

    sarahsoo New Member

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    Thanks for the comments!

    I do wonder if the color will affect resale value, because the thought of "beige" might put people off. But it has a nice sparkle in it, so hopefully it won't be too blah.
     
    #6 sarahsoo, Aug 27, 2009
  7. 32kcolors

    32kcolors Senior Member

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    It most likely will, worse than black.
     
    #7 32kcolors, Aug 27, 2009
  8. dmvp

    dmvp Member

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    Yay, Sarah!!

    I LOVE my SBM...I think it's gorgeous, especially in the sunlight. I'm not worried about resale value, as I'll keep my Gen III for many, many years.
     
    #8 dmvp, Aug 27, 2009
  9. DeanFL

    DeanFL 2010 owner - 1st Prius

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    Personally, I find it distinctive and attractive. Matter of fact, during a short drive today, I noticed a SBM as I passed an intersection. It was stopped and I caught it out of the corner of my eye right away. Of course I'm always on the lookout for a '10...

    The color should be great to hide dirt and such; looking nice between washings. Vehicle color is the absolute personal choice. And as long as YOU'RE happy that's the name of the game. And I would believe for some worrying about SBM resale --- don't.

    I believe both the Camry (at least the '09) and Lexus RX350 had a very similar SBM color.
     
    #9 DeanFL, Aug 27, 2009
  10. octavia

    octavia Active Member

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    My previous car was a civic in a very similar color. The great news was that it looked clean and fabulous all the time. You literally could not tell the outside was dirty. The not-so-great news was that it didn't fit my personality at all and the interior was very hard to keep clean. ( I have two boys and a dog)
    I've seen the gen III in sandy too and it looked much cleaner than all the other cars on the lot!

    Happy hybrid hunting!
     
    #10 octavia, Aug 28, 2009
  11. sarahsoo

    sarahsoo New Member

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    Thanks for the additional comments! The more I think about it, the more sold I am on SBM. I mean, as far as resale value goes, I've kept my Gen I for 8.5 years so at this point the color is rather irrelevant to value. If I keep the Gen III as long it shouldn't matter if it's not the "in" color.

    And as my car gets washed once a year if it's lucky, the ability not to show dirt is pretty key!
     
    #11 sarahsoo, Aug 28, 2009
  12. 32kcolors

    32kcolors Senior Member

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    Same here, hence no qualm in getting it in black.
     
    #12 32kcolors, Aug 28, 2009
  13. rlr66

    rlr66 Junior Member

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    The SBM is the way to go. I was thinking of the Blizzard Pearl until I saw the SBM in person. Also, it will hide a lot of dirt while still looking good. Get the windows tinted and it'll look sharp!!! ;)
     
    #13 rlr66, Aug 28, 2009
  14. xerex

    xerex New Member

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    I like my SBM. I had a hard time finding a dealer with one coming in.
     
    #14 xerex, Aug 28, 2009
  15. ggood

    ggood Senior Member

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    FWIW, I had qualms about SBM, having only seen it on a Highlander and a Rav4 prior to my order; but I like it now that I have it and have not had second thoughts. All the color choices seem pretty bland, so I may as well be different. Blizzard is elegant, but still white after all, Blue is dark and bland unless shined to a fare thee well, and Barcelona red seems a bit washed out to my eye.
     
    #15 ggood, Aug 28, 2009
  16. MidWestGirl

    MidWestGirl New Member

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    Personally I think SBM gets a bad rap on PriusChat. I think I just have an affinity for gold cars. My '05 Corolla was Desert Sand Mica, and when I was car shopping, I naturally kept gravitating towards gold cars. The Prius that was readily available was Blizzard Pearl, and as much as people adore that color on Prius Chat, I was unmoved by it and wanted something else. As I was leaving the dealer a SBM Prius was spotted by the service and parts department (I'm sure it was a Gen II). I told my dealer I'd buy the Prius if he could get me one in Silver, Winter Grey or SBM (my first choice). The next day a Winter Grey came in and on first-look I fell in love with it. I have yet to see any SBM in my area. My dealer did mention that they were hard to come by.
     
    #16 MidWestGirl, Aug 28, 2009
  17. sarahsoo

    sarahsoo New Member

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    Yes, that's been my thoughts on Blizzard Pearl too. It looks very pretty in photos, but I am not keen on white cars in general and I just can't get seem to get over that. The BP was actually the main reason I wanted to go and take a close up look at the dealer, because I was trying to convince myself that it wasn't a plain white car and that if everyone on PriusChat loved it there must be something to the color that I wasn't seeing. But it just didn't appeal to me when it was sitting next to the SBM. It just looked...white.
     
    #17 sarahsoo, Aug 28, 2009
  18. samsprius1

    samsprius1 Active Member

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    You are right its better in person and even better with the pkg V wheels! when I bought it they had 42- 2010s all different colors
    It's really deep gold? I have had more people comment how nice it looks!!
     
    #18 samsprius1, Jul 19, 2010
  19. maomao

    maomao New Member

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    My V in sandy beach looks really great. I did not chose the color until I saw a IV in this color. But I had to travel from DC to NJ to get a V in sandy beach. I never regreted for my decision.
     
    #19 maomao, Jul 20, 2010
  20. OldArmy94

    OldArmy94 Crazy Prius Man

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    When I went in to the lot to buy the car, it happened that the one that fit my needs was in sandy beach metallic. I liked the look, plus it DOES hide the dirt a lot better than most colors. I didn't know they were so rare until I started frequenting priuschat.com. I still think black is the prettiest color, but I hate the constant washing it takes to keep it sharp.
     
    #20 OldArmy94, Jul 23, 2010
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