Why did they discontinue Salsa Red color?

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(loveit @ Sep 2 2006, 04:52 AM) [snapback]312988[/snapback]</div>

No idea on the reason why but they do make the barcelona on other models so you can see it. Look for a Camry or RAV4 with it

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ghostrider @ Sep 2 2006, 09:43 AM) [snapback]313026[/snapback]</div>

I love the salsa red. I bought the blue last year, and when I saw the red I was jealous of the owner. I bought the blue because of forecast of blue being the new "in color" over the next decade, so I figured it would help resale. I traded potential $$ for passion, a bad deal with the devil.

I use to have a Calypso Red BMW, much like the salsa. Best looking color I've ever owned.

 

I fell in love with the Salsa red too. Then I bought a 2006 Barcelona red because they didn't have the Salsa anymore.

At first I was a little disappointed... for about 0.01 seconds until I saw the color. I'm pretty sure I love the Barcelona red more, partly because I own it now, but also because it's still a nice subtle color. It's not the cherry-red that i hate so much.

In low light, like at night it takes on an earthy hue... I don't want to call it "brown", but more organic, and I like that. In daylight it pops out at you, but is still not too bright, and seems to pick up a lot of the blue from the sunlight, without looking purple, which is what the Salsa color seems to do. It's probably the "metallic" in the "barcelona red metallic" that makes it subtle like that.

My next-door neighbor has a Barcelona red '06 too

 

Quite a few things get changed for no apparent reason from year to year, not just on cars but software and other products as well. Sometimes these changes are the result of customer satisfaction surveys, legal requirements, etc. But to often, I fear, big companies and big government have people in management positions who feel that they need to make constant changes to justify their existence. So for the 2006 Prius we get new "packages" with essentially the same options but grouped in a new way that makes even less sense, and we get a few more lights on the dashboard that were not needed, and we get a different shade of red. It's mostly change for the sake of change.

 

I think there were trying to brighten up the Prius color offerings by switching from Salsa red to Barcelona and from Tideland green to Silver Pine. The silver may have been brightened a bit too.

I'm sorry you had your heart set on the Salsa. You should check out the Barcelona though. It's very nice.

 

We bought a 2006 Barcelona Red the first part of August. About a week later, we saw a 2005 Salsa Red parked at our dealer - someone with one had stopped in with a question - but we were able to park ours next to it and compare the two colors. I'll take Barcelona any day, and I don't think it's just because that's what we bought. I just like it better. The guy with the 2005 Salsa had just bought it from a dealer (not our dealer, but one out of state) as a demo, for $20,000, with only 2,000 miles on it.
He may have gotten lucky, but we've got the Barcelona!

 

A guy with a Barcelona parked next to me the other day. I really like the Salsa for it's elegant look. Barcelona is a "racy" red. I normally don't care for white cars but I have really gotten to like the looks of the white Prii I see. Pine Mica is also a favorite.

 

Barcelona is only "racy" by comparison to Salsa. If you're worried about it being too bright or flashy, I'm here to tell you it's not. I'm not a red-car kinda guy, and if it weren't for my wife we wouldn't have this color, but now I wouldn't trade it for another color.

One thing maybe to learn from this thread is that people love their Prius, no matter what color it is! (even though mine is still the best)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tumbleweed @ Sep 2 2006, 09:57 AM) [snapback]313049[/snapback]</div>

Ditto that.

Anyway, don't most if not all car companies do exactly the same thing? Color is the easiest thing to change, no redesign or anything . And who knows, that alteration in style alone might provide *the gotta-have-the-latest* person the only reason they need to buy a new car.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Starfall @ Sep 2 2006, 04:51 PM) [snapback]313262[/snapback]</div>

Almost all of them I think. Having been around quite a few years I can remember people waiting with great anticipation the arrival of the "new models" in the dealers show rooms. Actually American cars only had new models about once every 3 years but they got new chrome and new colors every year and that was good enough for the average buyer.

Interestingly the European cars of that era i. e. VW, Austin Healey, MG, Saab, Volvo et al only got new models when they were truly changed and their sales didn't seem to suffer because of it.

 

Heck, in 2005 I tried to find a green, like the Gen 1 had, but that wasn't available. I know, no matter what color you pick, the Prius is still green, but still.

 

If I would have bought and '06 I would have had to skip the red and get the Grey. I am just not found of regular red colors. The Salsa Red grey on me because its not really bright red. Sure shines in the sun though!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(htmlspinnr @ Sep 2 2006, 12:12 PM) [snapback]313124[/snapback]</div>

Thats according to what wine you like!

 

I don't care for the barcelona red or the silver pine personally, but I do think the effect was to try and make the color palette brighter.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SW03ES @ Sep 4 2006, 10:17 AM) [snapback]313977[/snapback]</div>

If the idea was to brighten the color palette, then they have a long way to go. In my opinion the color choices or lack there of is the worst PRIUS feature.
How about a real Blue or a real green. And then there is PINK, YELLOW, PURPLE. Maybe they could spice things up a little more with TWO-TONE, 55Chevy Pink/Grey, or 53 Chevy Turquoise/White, ect-ect....

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(htmlspinnr @ Sep 4 2006, 11:45 AM) [snapback]314079[/snapback]</div>

Hey! Fruit punch can be made quite interesting. In fact, I once drank too much "interesting fruit punch" at a Hallows Eve party in Reno and had to sleep in the back hatch of the Prius. True story.