What colo(u)r should I choose?

[Bos]

I intend to buy a Prius in October here in the UK.
Can any existing owners help me choose a colo(u)r, please?
Available over here are:
Standard:
Pure White
Astral Black
Metallic (£1,350 - about $2,610 - extra):
Tyrol Silver
Decuma Grey
Vermilion Red
Aztec Bronze
Verbier Green
Glacier Blue

I'm thinking...

• Most of the metallic colours look pretty insipid, and frankly, apart from the red,seem much the same. The green's not very green, the blue's not very blue...
• I'm not sure what I get for my 2 1/2 grand by having metallic paint. Is it more durable? Does it show grime less? Is it easier to keep clean?
• White should reflect radiation, so be cooler in Summer and not radiate (i.e. waste) heat in the Winter. On the other hand presumably it shows every speck of dirt.
• Black should both absorb and radiate radiation maximally, but seems a nice utilitarian colo(u)r.

I've never bought a car from new before, so choosing a colour has never been an issue. Any views/experiences?

[A strolling player]

Practically speaking, white is the best colour. It's coolest, it's one of the two cheapest, and it's one of the easiest to keep looking clean.

Not sure where you heard that white shows dirt. My previous car was a white '96 Camry, and it was hard to tell whether I'd washed it or not.

Black, on the other hand, is nigh impossible to keep looking clean. My dad has a black Infiniti G35 which is rarely washed and you know it. It's covered in dirt and is usually spotted because of rain. It is an unfortunate circumstance that (in my opinion) black is the best looking colour on nearly any car.

My pick is Decuma Grey, which looks about the same as the Magnetic Gray available in the US. I think it's the car's best colour, and if it'd been introduced before '07 I'd have likely waited for a car in this colour rather than snagging the only one in the New Orleans area with the option package I wanted. I ended up with a silver car which is a nonoffensive but boring colour. It does take a number of months before you notice dirt, though, which is good.

I'd go with grey, but if practicality is your concern I'd go with white.

[dogfriend]

It is also much easier to touch up the inevitable paint chips and small scratches on a white car.

Its very difficult to match the metallic paint when touching up a small chip or scratch.

White also is less likely to show swirls (circular scratches) while black is the worst for showing any defects.

[catgic]

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[hyo silver]

Hey, bos, welcome to PriusChat.

You're lucky you get to choose the colour. Around here, the waiting list is several months long, and people will take whatever car is in.

Do have any links to show us what those colours look like? Are they the same in each market, but with different names?



PS There's no ( ) in colour.

[McDonald]

I have the black and love it but it does get hot in 100 degree heat, and you don't want to take it through an automatic car wash (the swirl marks will show up). But it is very classy and looks good. I have always had black cars, and am thinking of choosing a more fun color next time.

If you want to see a set of photos of the exterior of my black car, you can check them out here. This is the direct link, Prius Photos

[McDonald]

Since you live in the UK, you should choose whichever color looks best with rain on it. Ha!

[subarutoo]

Pick the color you want, but be ready with a 2nd or 3rd choice, unless you like waiting longer. I wanted blue, second choice silver and settled for white. The only other choice was kind of a metallic beige (sand?) color. I love my white, and think the color choice is made to be a bigger deal than it needs to be. When you're inside the car, you can't see any painted surfaces anyway. I would have liked the grey interior instead of the beige. To me interior choice would be more important from a wear, and cleaning standpoint. My beige has held up fairly well considering I almost live in my car, 10 hrs a week commute, and hauling my bike inside numerous times. Still, I would have preferred gray. Happy hunting!

[Doc Willie]

Break the monochrome mold. Think about a bit of embellishment: pinstripes, racing stripes, polka dots, flames, green leaves, whatever. Look through some websites that have auto graphics. Once you have some sort of design, then you can find a color that fits.

Worked for me.

[Boo]

Here's Tideland Prius' international color code and names list (from his thread Prius II Standard and Optional Equipment (Most Countries)); I've bolded the UK colors mentioned.

Colours:
040 Super White / Alpine White / Pure White / Glacier White
070 White Pearl Crystal Shine
1CO Millennium Silver / Silver Steel Metallic / Silver Pearl Metallic
1F7 Classic Silver Metallic / Tyrol Silver Metallic / Silver Metallic
1G3 Magnetic Grey / Decuma Grey Mica
202 Black / Astral Black / Ebony
3Q3 Salsa Red Pearl / Regency Red Metallic / Merlot Red
3R3 Barcelona Red Metallic / Vermilion Red Mica / Wildfire Mica
4S2 Driftwood Pearl / Aztec Bronze Metallic / Metallic Bronze Mica / Bronze Mica
6S9 Tideland Pearl / Sileni Green Metallic / Jade Green Metallic / Gun Olive
6U9 Silver Pine Mica / Verbier Green Metallic / Pistachio Mica / Light Green Metallic
8M6 Spectra Blue Mica / Lagoon Blue Mica / Dark Blue Metallic / Galaxy Blue Mica
8K2 Light Purple Metallic
8S2 Seaside Pearl / Glacier Blue Metallic / Crystal Blue Mica / Blue Mica

The metallic colors look nice. But I wouldn't pay $2610 extra for them. So if it were me, I'd get either the white or black.

BTW, white truly is one of the easiest colors to keep clean. Or, at least it looks cleaner than most other colors when it is dirty. It's almost a trick of the eye. As if the white shoots through the dirt.

Also, black looks good on the Prius. And it looks good on a dirty Prius too. I was wondering about that for a long time, but it just occured to me the other day. The reason a dirty black Prius looks good to my eye is because of the Prius' shape ... not unlike seeing a dirty black Porshe 911 or a dirty black Fiat Spider 124 from the old days. Those black cars still looked good when dirty. It's because of the sharp sports car or aero shape of them, which I think the Prius is not unlike. Check out my theory for yourself. Compare a dirty black Prius to a dirty black sedan. The dirty black Prius looks A LOT better.