Alternative to defacing Prius with HOV stickers?

I have the stickers too, and won't apply them because I don't want to sully my beautiful car!!! But regarding the magnetic stuff -- aren't the locations the DMV wants the stickers primarily over the plastic bumper? Is there any steel under the area that the magnet would adhere to?

Perhaps some of that vinyl stuff that various paint protectors like Invisible Mask are made of might work. Maybe if you cut it oversized (several inches beyond each edge of the sticker), it would adhere well enough. do not know.

(I feel guilty having sent off for the stickers and not using them. :huh: )

 

I wasn't too crazy about putting on the stickers on my month old car. What I did was use masking tape and figured out where I wanted them. I decided to apply them below the bottom line on the fender e.g. the line is where the fender starts to slant back towards the car. With the stickers low and all aligned it's not great but I can live with it. I've seen stickers placed all over the place. Some pointing up down, one low one high, THAT makes them look a lot worse in my book.

Ken

 

One could always paint the car the same color as the stickers :lol:

 

Tell ya what, you go ahead and do that and post some pictures for us to see

Ken

 

Please let us know where you live and what color you drive...in case I need to "borrow" your stickers until mine arrive!

Ha Ha

 

There was a post a while ago of someone gluing bar magnets inside the plastic bumpers so the magnet-modified stickers would stick and be removable. They seemed pretty happy with it. Maybe do a search for "bar"?

 

Uh... People... IT'S A CAR.

If you want to drive in the HOV lane solo, just put on the darned stickers. They'll come off later -- they are designed to. Just use a little heat (like a hair dryer) and they will peel off. Then you can use 3M adhesive remover to take off any remaining adhesive.

I know we like to think of our Prius cars as rolling sculpture, but you have to keep in mind it is transportation, first and foremost.

 

For the front location I used the horizontal, painted surface below the fog light. The sticker wraps around and isn't real obvious or glaring. It's easier to read from above.

 

Magnets don't seems like the way to go. First, they could be stolen. And I wouldn't want to go down to the DMV and try to get new ones. It took me 2 months to get my first set.

2nd, gluing magnets on the back of the bumper? That means you have to take the bumper(s) off. To me, it sounds like more work to take the bumpers off to install them, and then remove them again to take the magnets out in a few years.

I wouldn't trust the power of that magnetic material either. The locations of the stickers take a serious beating and force when driving 80 mph in the car pool lane.

Just put the stickers on. After all, its only a Toyota.

 

My Car had the carpool stickers, but the dealer took them off before selling me the car....grr, now I have to wait for stickers...anyway, the point is they came off really well.

 

I've used the printable magnetic sheets for stick-on numbers for autocross (Solo2), and they fly off at speed. I had to ad a little masking tape to the leading edge or the airflow would lift them. Just my 2 cents.

 

Best alternative I can think of (by far!) is to have an actual carpool. Presto - you help save the world even MORE, and you don't need the stickers. You could have even saved $8 plus each bridge toll.

But barring that... I LOVE my stickers. And I'll likely never use them since I AM a real carpool when I drive on the freeway and cross the bridges. But I put them on as a matter of course. To "fly the flag" as it were. I've done it to all of my qualified vehicles - even the ones that don't even have enough range to make it to a diamond lane.

 

I have ordered the stickers and I hope I get them before they run out (CA). I plan to have the 3M film applied to my car and have already spoken with the installer about wrapping the back bumper. I don't have a problem applying the stickers to the bumper with that film on it.

Maybe that's the way to go?

I like the idea of cutting out a shape for the film as mentioned earlier, but I think the film needs to be stretched (not sure about that) to be applied properly. You'd have to have a bigger piece applied and then (gulp) cut to match the sticker. No thanks.

 

The clear film does not NEED to be streched - though it often is to make pre-cut pieces fit perfectly.

Guys... these stickers are NOT hard to take off! I take off the factory emblems and decals on all my cars, and I've taken off HOV stickers before. It just isn't anything to worry about. A little heat and a fingernail, and you're good to go. WAY less hassle and expense than doing all these other fancy things to "protect" the car.

Wear your HOV stickers and be proud... or get yourself a REAL carpool and really help your environment and congestion with your non-yellow-stickered car. Your choice!

 

I will gladly put these stickers on my car as soon as they arrive, it's not hard to remove them, as my dealer made obvious, before I bought my car by removing them.

 

Suggestion: Put a few strips of double-sided removable tape on the back of your stickers (or other similar, removable adhesive). Apply the stickers and peel them off at will. Reapply more tape if you ever lose the stick.

Use something like this tape.

 

I wish I could be so lucky as to 'deface' my car with HOV stickers, as you put it. My application was mailed 1.5 months ago, my check cashed over 3 weeks ago, and still no stickers. I'll take yours off your hands if you don't care to use them.

 

I got some scrap 3M clear film from my local installer, then i cut it into rectangles about the size of the sticker. I applied the 3M sticker first, then i put the HOV sticker on top of the 3M---in that way the sticker is not permanently attached to the car. Now if ever i want to remove them, i can just peel out the 3M sticker and the HOV will come out. If i want to re-attach it, i'd just cut out the excess 3M film from the HOV sticker, then i'd put the HOV sticker under the clear 3M film this time. You just gotta have a large supply of 3M sticker if you want to keep removing and reapplying them.


I dont think you'll be removing and reapplying the HOV stickers anyways...it kinda grows on you...and it seems like a hybrid car is not complete without them.

 

"My Car had the carpool stickers, but the dealer took them off before selling me the car...."

Apply for replacements at DMV. The stickers are not transferable to another car, so you are entitled to replacments as the new owner. Cost is only $8.

I put mine on the glass. They are close to the proper location (except the front, which is covered by the bra anyway), so they are visible to an officer looking in the "right" places.