Priuschat Side Moldings

Thanks for the photos. First time I've seen photos of them on a Pine Mica Prius. I think they look good. Did you guys put them on your Silver Prius too?

BTW, I don't know if you or other PriusChatters have, but personally I have never seen another Prius with any of the exterior/visible modifications that a lot of us PriusChatters have, such as the body side moldings, rear top bumper protector, sharkfin antenna, upgraded tires, trim rings or wheel covers removed, etc.

 

How do they attach? (What type of adhesive)
I'm thinking of getting a set so any advice would be helpful, thanks.

 

If I understand you correctly, these are not good for the silver Prius (mine is silver) due to the type of adhesive or is the xzilon coating an aftermarket type coating that the side strip adhesive won't bond too?

 

Ah those Love Bugs. Once when I was in central Florida during Love Bug season, it was like something out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie. Splat! Splat! Splat!

So now that you have the moldings on the Pine Mica, you're going to put that xzilon coating on?

Re the Silver Prius, I would think that you could still put the moldings on (that 3M tape is very sticky), or by stripping the xzilon coating from the area where the moldings would go and/or prepping that area with alcohol wiping and that bonding prep stuff that they give you with the moldings.

 

Whoa, early Seventies -- 1973 to be exact -- was when I was in Central Florida and experienced those Love Bugs. What has been the cause of their dwindling numbers since then?

 

BTW, have you tried Rejex (an aviation wax) for the Love Bugs problem? I understand some Floridian PriusChatters have used it specifically for that purpose:

http://priuschat.com/forums/care-ma.../38522-does-anyone-use-rejex-their-prius.html

 

Global warming!!

 

BTW, I was at my Toyota dealer -- Toyota of Manhattan -- this morning getting some work done, and saw its price list for installed side moldings and installed BumperDefender.com bumper guard strips:

-- PriusChat Side Moldings: $399 installed (the cost here on PriusChat for the moldings alone is ~ $120, which means that my dealer is charging ~ $280 for labor)

-- BumperDefender.com Front & Rear Bumper Guard Strips: $299 installed (the cost of the bumper guard strips alone at BumperDefender.com is ~ $80, which means that my dealer is charging ~ $220 for labor)

$280 labor charge to install peel-and-stick side moldings, and $220 labor charge to install peel-and-stick bumper guard strips!!! My dealer -- what a funny guy!!!

 

The dealer threw in side moldings and burl dash trim after market for me. I hated them, I thought it made the car look old fashioned and it just didn't look like a Prius! I removed them after 3 weeks, after trying to convince myself they were functional and looks didn't matter. Just one of those gut things

 

Yes, aesthetics are always personal.

Re the burl dash --- I've seen some that look great and others that look terrible.

Re the PriusChat side moldings --- I think they look great (and at minimum, they're innocuous and do not detract from the Prius' looks).

 

Wood dash kit may not mix well with Prius' futuristic dash layout, even with luxury wood-look, IMO. Something metallic or carbon fiber maybe a better choice if I were doing a dash kit, but that's personal perference.

Boo:
$280 for the labor to put on the moldings? It certainly is a rip-off but that's New York Manhattan's price, everything is expensive there plus tips.

 

Those wood dash kits come in various numbers of pieces. There are 12 piece kits, 18 piece kits, 24 piece kits, etc. I think if you use a lot of pieces it looks terrible. But if you're judicious and selective in limiting the number of pieces you use, it can look great. Check out these pictures from usbseawolf2000 --- I think he did a really nice job with his wood dash kit, and it looks great:

http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-modifications/20827-woodtrim-17-rims.html

Yup. This is the same dealer who wanted to charge me $2500 for the same Platinum Care Extended Warranty that PriusChat (through Troy Dietrich of WarrantyShack.com/Toyota of Greenfield, MA) charges $990 for.