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Black Exterior Paint

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by Husker4theSpurs, Sep 20, 2007.

  1. Husker4theSpurs

    Husker4theSpurs Active Member

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    Hello all ... still thinking about a Prius ... now I'm thinking I want a loaded Touring w/black exterior and dark gray interior. Question for those of you who have the black exterior color ... how bad does your paint look after time? Does the paint on the Prius seem to chip easily? I had a black Lexus that REALLY seemed to chip easily ... now I have a black Acura and the paint seems to hold up better.

    I have had black cars for quite some time and, for a bit, thought I wanted to get Super White instead ... knowing what a pain a black car can be ... but now after browsing a few pics on here of the Touring in Black, I think that's the way I'm going to go. Seems to me black makes the car look as sporty as it's going to look :)

    Any input would be great! Thanks!
     
  2. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    We have the black in a non-touring version. After a year and a half, the paint is holding up pretty well. I do think the Prius paint is softer than some, and the black shows every blemish. All in all, we like the black a lot and would get it again.

    Tom
     
  3. SureValla

    SureValla Member

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    I have the black touring 07

    i have 7000 miles on it and its holding up fine no blemishes at all


    I also chose it because I dont wanna say it looked more manly but maybe less toyish in black, you get the idea

    check it out:

    [​IMG]
     
  4. Husker4theSpurs

    Husker4theSpurs Active Member

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    I agree it makes it look less "toy-ish" ... less wimpy ... less feminine ... something :)
     
  5. PLMurphy

    PLMurphy New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Husker4theSpurs @ Sep 20 2007, 04:44 PM) [snapback]515420[/snapback]</div>
    B) Our 2007 black touring, bought in Oct'06, looks great. We did get the dealer "liquid sealer" and it protects, shines great. Never done that before. Also, have a touch-up bottle to use (overdue). However not all dealer add-on sealers are the same or as good.($350)
     
  6. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    perhaps go with the clear film?
     
  7. SureValla

    SureValla Member

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    I might add that I have no protections
     
  8. galaxee

    galaxee mostly benevolent

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    36k miles, 2.5 years later... the hood has taken a beating. it has a bra, so the rest of the front end is ok. just had the passenger side repainted (vandalism) but the driver's side and rear look just fine.

    i've got more swirls than i'd like but that's inevitable with time.
     
  9. apriusfan

    apriusfan New Member

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    The biggest issue is birds**t. The newer water-based paints (black in particular) just can't stand up to the toxic brew that is in birds**t. And, for some reason, black is an open invitation to all birds to come along and s**t on your car (at least that has been my experience with 6 black cars over the years). I carry a full spray bottle of water to remove the birds**t as soon as I see it on the car. Another consideration is an auto insurance policy with a $0 comprehensive deductible.... But there is no color like black.
     
  10. rigormortis

    rigormortis Active Member

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    got 2 chips
    1 in the back, the local toyota dealer touched it up for me as a favor
    1 in the front no front end mask

    the advanced aerodynamics of the prius render the mr clean autrodry useless it still spots no matter how well you rinse with thier water filter
    and you can burn those mr clean filters really fast by trying to get every sqaure inch of the car

    was reading consumer reports they reccomended black magic liquid wax, works good, isnt very abrasive on black paint

    was considering getting an electric leaf blower to dry the prius, figure it would blow all the water off at 300 mph leaving no water on the car to leave waterspots

    had prius since feb 2007
     
  11. patsparks

    patsparks An Aussie perspective

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Husker4theSpurs @ Sep 21 2007, 06:41 AM) [snapback]515441[/snapback]</div>
    and it goes with everything. :eek: :p




    Sorry I couldn't help myself.
     
  12. rufaro

    rufaro WeePoo, Gen II

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    LESS FEMININE???

    I ask you all to take a looksee at all the members of "Hot Chicks in Black Prii" club. Or we'll beat you up.

    Howzat for feminine?

    And yes, Pat, it does indeed go with everything! B)

    As to how it's holding up...I've done 2 cross-country trips in mine since last October, and several roundtrips between NoCal and LoCal (thanx MarinJohn for the nomenclature :D ), and I have several chips out of the front, two of which are actual dents. It wasn't too bad after the first trip (late October to early December), but the more recent one (early August to early September) really seemed to do it in. I'm kinda hoping for an encounter with a deer so my insurance company will pay to fix the hood. (Before anyone attacks me for being anti-wildlife, please note that we have deer eating everything we try to plant in our 'back 40.' DH and I have a 'live and let live' policy, and the bambis are NOT keeping their part of the bargain. DH hit one a--TOTALLY ACCIDENTALLY--REALLY!--a few years ago and the insurance company paid for the repairs, saying they count car vs bambi as no-fault. This was VERY good news for DH, as it was a used car that had some dings in the hood that he'd been thinking about getting repaired anyway.)

    Bottom line for me is...stuff happens. I still LOVE my black Pri and think it looks WAY cool...

    I don't like car bras, so I just have to live with the consequences. I don't know about the paint being softer or anything, but I've never had any car get so dinged. I suspect it's a function of the shape--just as the air flows so well, so does the road crap. I'm not thrilled about it, but it doesn't make me love the car any less. And the only other color I've actually regretted not having is the magnetic grey, but that wasn't sold until a few weeks after I bought mine. (And I bought it FAST--within less than a week after starting looking--not from a pre-order. My only real regret is that it doesn't have the dark grey interior, but I'd have had to wait for that as well.)

    Oh yeah...it's not just birds**t--lots of the kamikaze bugs eat the paint also--which ALSO wasn't as much of a problem on my winter roadtrip as on the summer one...

    And Galaxee--VERY sorry to hear about your vandalism--that sucks big time! :(
     
  13. SureValla

    SureValla Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Rufaro @ Sep 21 2007, 03:38 AM) [snapback]515653[/snapback]</div>

    yes less feminine. Zat is because women are generally associated with bright colors such as pink. There is no denying this.

    As for you members of you're club, I see your club as a bunch of girls that reject this stereotype. I have no problem with that go for it but in the mean time im afraid black remains a masculine color.
     
  14. rufaro

    rufaro WeePoo, Gen II

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SureValla @ Sep 21 2007, 03:00 AM) [snapback]515673[/snapback]</div>
    Oh. Ok. I guess you have lots of classic, wear anywhere, little black dresses in your wardrobe, huh? Those in our are club are confident enough in our are respective gender identity to not require dated stereotyping. (And "chicks" is used tongue-in-cheek, in case you wondered.)

    To each his, or her, or your, or you're, own.

    And in my experience, girls generally let boys go play with themselves. Have fun, SV!
     
  15. patsparks

    patsparks An Aussie perspective

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    Last time I went past a gay bar black leather was a popular style, what ever floats ya boat I guess.
     
  16. alexilic

    alexilic Member

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    Can't go wrong...
     

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  17. Husker4theSpurs

    Husker4theSpurs Active Member

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    Yeah ... I know how it goes with black .... every little door ding, rock, bug, etc can cause problems ... let alone the birdpoo ... then you have the swirlies. Often people can't see these things, but YOU always know they're there.

    I was kind of just curious if it was a Toyota paint type thing since my Lexus was SO bad about chips while the Acura isn't so ...

    As far as black as a masculine color or not ... I just think black makes any car look a little "sportier" ... sorry, but silver/white/driftwood just don't do that for me. I am in my early 30s, so that probably has something to do with it.

    My first inclination was to get Super White and get the windows tinted BIG TIME like I've seen on here ... the guy from Denver's looks really nice, but the more I see pictures of the black Touring model the more I can't resist going with black YET AGAIN ... I'll probably curse my YET AGAIN decision as well :)

    Overall though, you just can't beat a black car when it's all nice and clean! (which unfortunately is rare)

    Thanks everyone for the input and feel free to continue!

    Husker
     
  18. apriusfan

    apriusfan New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(rigormortis @ Sep 20 2007, 11:39 PM) [snapback]515646[/snapback]</div>
    Ha! That is an interesting concept. But seriously, a leaf blower could damage the finish by sucking in grit in the air and then blowing it at 300 mph against the finish. I use a squeegee to remove the majority of water from the car and then complete the drying process with a set of 4 100% cotton towels. Before I tried the squeegee approach, I was thinking of using a wet/dry vacuum to suck off the water; but the squeegee works reasonably well, so inertia being what it is, the wet/dry vacuum approach hasn't been pursued.
     
  19. galaxee

    galaxee mostly benevolent

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    oh, i cursed the black car thing many times. but when it's washed and waxed and shiny, and when it still looks so good that people ask me how i like my NEW car... oh, it goes to my head. :wub:

    speaking of which, i REALLY need to wax it. stupid 2-month waiting period after repainting...

    like rufaro, my hood is the worst. if someone wants to key my car again, i hope it's on the hood next time. :mellow:
     
  20. PLMurphy

    PLMurphy New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Husker4theSpurs @ Sep 21 2007, 11:45 AM) [snapback]515803[/snapback]</div>

    If you get white with a heavy tint, you may be arrested. Get the black touring model with the grey alloy wheels(take off the silly plastic wheel covers)--different look. Plus, get black leather. Chick mobile. ;)