Exterior Color...Logic / Feedback

[suwaneedad]

So I plan to get silver, but note that it is the least popular color.
My thinking (your thoughts?)...
- No white or black...I've had those on other cars so find them boring, and in the case of black...too much rock chip road rash.
- Red and Blue...I'm concerned will fade. I keep cars FOREVER. I live in Atlanta and in Orlando, and although the car is garaged generally, these are intense sunshine climates that I expect will not be friendly to Red and Blue after 8-10-15 years. I'm also concerned these colors are dark enough to also show rock chips/etc on the front end (similar to black).
- Midnight Silver...I saw this on M3 in Fremont and liked it a lot, with the 19s, because I like contrast between the wheel and the body paint color, so in this case dark paint matches up nicely with the shiny 19s.
- But alas, I arrive at Silver with uncovered Aero 18s. It seems to me Silver will show the LEAST rock chip / road rash over time, will not fade, and when paired with uncovered Aero 18s (which are nice and dark and therefore contrast with the light silver paint), I end up with the most damage-resistant color choice, the most fade-resistant choice, and wheels that contrast nicely with the light paint color.

Feedback on my logic? Thanks very much.

 

[arcus]

Color is a personal preference. If you like silver, go with it. It is your choice after all.

I agree on your observations regarding black and rock chips. I had black Lexus before and all the imperfections where clearly (annoyingly I'd add) visible.

 

[flashflooder]

I'm going with white, for a lot of the same reasons.

Although the red is extremely tempting everytime I see pics.

 

[Tech_Guy]

My feedback is that all colors will show chips and damage, my recommendation especially if you are going to keep the car that long is get a clear bra I prefer 3M but Xpel is also a top brand. I wrapped my whole car with 3M scotchguard pro clear bra. It will protect your paint and keep your car looking like you just drove it off the showroom floor. The bonus being that you can also pick any color your heart desires vs being concerned with UV fading as the clear bra has a UV coating in it as well...

 

[jerjozwik]

My feedback is that all colors will show chips and damage, my recommendation especially if you are going to keep the car that long is get a clear bra I prefer 3M but Xpel is also a top brand.

got a quote for the model 3 from the same company that did the front end xpel on my S... $5,000 ! hahah... eh...

 

[suwaneedad]

Color is a personal preference. If you like silver, go with it. It is your choice after all.

I agree on your observations regarding black and rock chips. I had black Lexus before and all the imperfections where clearly (annoyingly I'd add) visible.

Black Lexus RX450h is precisely what's ruined black vehicles for me! It's incredible how trashed the front end is, just from typical highway/city use primarily in the Southeast. 2011 w 130k miles.

 

[ForeverFree]

So I plan to get silver, but note that it is the least popular color.
My thinking (your thoughts?)...
- No white or black...I've had those on other cars so find them boring, and in the case of black...too much rock chip road rash.
- Red and Blue...I'm concerned will fade. I keep cars FOREVER. I live in Atlanta and in Orlando, and although the car is garaged generally, these are intense sunshine climates that I expect will not be friendly to Red and Blue after 8-10-15 years. I'm also concerned these colors are dark enough to also show rock chips/etc on the front end (similar to black).
- Midnight Silver...I saw this on M3 in Fremont and liked it a lot, with the 19s, because I like contrast between the wheel and the body paint color, so in this case dark paint matches up nicely with the shiny 19s.
- But alas, I arrive at Silver with uncovered Aero 18s. It seems to me Silver will show the LEAST rock chip / road rash over time, will not fade, and when paired with uncovered Aero 18s (which are nice and dark and therefore contrast with the light silver paint), I end up with the most damage-resistant color choice, the most fade-resistant choice, and wheels that contrast nicely with the light paint color.

Feedback on my logic? Thanks very much.

Red looks amazing. Wife went with that.

Silver was her second choice. Saw silver at Delivery Center and it looked blah. It’s not the pewter color shown at the first reveal. And, in my experience, silver can go flat over time, as well.

My S is midnight silver and, through almost three years, has held up well. Does show chips, but not as badly as black.

 

[suwaneedad]

Red looks amazing. Wife went with that.

Silver was her second choice. Saw silver at Delivery Center and it looked blah. It’s not the pewter color shown at the first reveal. And, in my experience, silver can go flat over time, as well.

My S is midnight silver and, through almost three years, has held up well. Does show chips, but not as badly as black.

You make a great point...I need to SEE SILVER WITH MY OWN EYEBALLS before making that commitment. When I saw midnight silver on a 3 at the factory in August I was high on it. Just worried about the chips.

So maybe I will revert to Midnight Silver, 19s for contrast, and wrap the front with 3M.
"The struggle is real."

 

[suwaneedad]

My feedback is that all colors will show chips and damage, my recommendation especially if you are going to keep the car that long is get a clear bra I prefer 3M but Xpel is also a top brand. I wrapped my whole car with 3M scotchguard pro clear bra. It will protect your paint and keep your car looking like you just drove it off the showroom floor. The bonus being that you can also pick any color your heart desires vs being concerned with UV fading as the clear bra has a UV coating in it as well...

Thanks. What effect does the 3M wrap have on the factory shine/gloss? Any sense of a cost range, particularly if I just did the front panels, mirrors etc rather than the whole body. (Would that approach result in a car that appears to have two different 'shines' to it?? Thanks very much for your thoughts here.

 

[BerTX]

WRT rock chips -- bear in mind that 95% of rock chips on a refresh Model S occur on the front bumper and area where the grille would be. This material is dark colored plastic. My white car has black rock chips.

No idea how this will translate to the Model 3, or if the nose is made of the same material.

I second the clear bra suggestion. Wish I had done it.

 

[arcus]

Thanks. What effect does the 3M wrap have on the factory shine/gloss? Any sense of a cost range, particularly if I just did the front panels, mirrors etc rather than the whole body. (Would that approach result in a car that appears to have two different 'shines' to it?? Thanks very much for your thoughts here.

It won't be noticeable if done professionally. Search the forums for the posts from vendors offering Xpel or 3M wraps, they usually post high quality pictures of before/after to give you an idea.

 

[smak]

For blue owners, which is a better representation of your car color?

 

[jerjozwik]

second one.

it has been kinda cloudy in california the last few days so the blue appears dark in photos. dougs photo is more representational. or we could go full dark and use my delivery photo.

 

[T34ME]

second one.

it has been kinda cloudy in california the last few days so the blue appears dark in photos. dougs photo is more representational. or we could go full dark and use my delivery photo.

Blue is weird! It depends on weather conditions. The day I saw a blue car, it looked like photo 2. It was outside under a bright sunny sky. BUT..........it may look different under different climatic conditions. The last I checked, blue was the most popular color for the model 3.

 

[jerjozwik]

@T34ME , same with my titanium model s. synthetic light v sunlight, overcast v direct. becomes a brand new car!

 

[T34ME]

@T34ME , same with my titanium model s. synthetic light v sunlight, overcast v direct. becomes a brand new car!

I love Titanium on the MS in bright California sunlight! Classy! Tesla eliminated all the interesting colors from their palette - dolphin grey, brown, green, titanium - and have resorted to mundane colors, probably because those colors are most popular with people who lack imagination.

 

[smak]

second one.

it has been kinda cloudy in california the last few days so the blue appears dark in photos. dougs photo is more representational. or we could go full dark and use my delivery photo.

Gonna be in Pasadena any time soon?

I know I'm an outlier here, but I like the darker look. And even yours inside looks good. But that other lighter one looks purple, and if it looked like that most of the time I probably would not get it.

 

[Justmurr]

I can not argue your logic on metallic silver w/ uncovered aeros likely being the most durable combo.

I’m just so relieved that I’m finally past this struggle of color/wheel combo... going red w/ aero & some sort of protectant on the front end, as I expect the face of this car to take very visible abuse over time.
.....just get me that invite!!

 

[suwaneedad]

I can not argue your logic on metallic silver w/ uncovered aeros likely being the most durable combo.

I’m just so relieved that I’m finally past this struggle of color/wheel combo... going red w/ aero & some sort of protectant on the front end, as I expect the face of this car to take very visible abuse over time.
.....just get me that invite!!

I hear you on nice to have the decision behind you. In fact, I'm now thinking midnight silver w the aeros (generally uncovered). I need to get a price for partial wrap though, before I embrace the midnight silver decision. I saw red and midnight silver in person in August in Fremont and loved both, but for some reason the midnight silver really jumped out for me (against the chrome trim and with the 19s). According to Troy's delivery estimator, I still have about five months before I configure so plenty of time to mull it over. That said, I just remembered that my brother in law's brother in Florida has an S; maybe I'll have him create a 3 reservation for me and skip to the front of the line!

 

[jerjozwik]

@smak i live in san gabriel and drive through pasadena everyday during my commute to burbank.