It's gaudy, and some would call it downright ugly, but the lime green paint job option for the 2017 Toyota Prius keeps the vehicle cool and can even save drivers on gas.
A Wired report says that customers in Japan could upgrade to the 2017 Prius' "Thermo-Tect Lime Green" solar reflective paint for $350. The paint job, which reportedly marks the first time the auto industry has used solar reflective paint, has embedded reflective titanium oxide particles and no traces of carbon black, which many cars have and which is known to retain heat.
"We expect heat increase control of around five degrees Celsius [9 degrees Fahrenheit] when comparing vehicle body surface temperature with and without thermal barrier function under the scorching sun in summer," Toyota spokesman Takashi Ogawa told Wired.
Although Toyota didn't reveal how much the paint job could save drivers on gas, the United States Deparment of Energy advises that "running your car's air conditioning is the main contributor to reduced fuel economy in hot weather" and that "under very hot conditions, AC use can reduce a conventional vehicle's fuel economy by more than 25 percent."
That spells all the more reason to adopt the technology found in the "Thermo-Tect Lime Green" solar reflective paint.
There are more possible benefits, as one study revealed that such a paint job could help lower Japan's CO2 emissions by 210,000 tons a year.
Part of the Wired report said that the California Air Resources Board (CARB) gives carbon credits to automakers that use solar reflective paints, so as long as this goes well in Japan, nothing should stop Toyota and other car manufacturers from adopting the paint with their models in the United States.
