Help with Color option

[Slayth]

Since ordering a new Subaru is currently on hold at the dealership I got some time to figure out some options. One of the things I keep going back and forth on is paint color. I originally wanted black and black only, however I've read a lot of pros and cons (mainly cons) concerning this choice. Since then I've seen a lot of nice pics of both WRX's and STI's in both white and DGM that got me thinking "hey, that's a nice looking color" maybe that will work.

Two major things come to mind while I'm considering my options...
1) I'm a neat freak when it comes to my car (washing, detailing, etc.), however with 3 kids etc. I don't have a lot of free time on my hands. I don't want to neglect the car, however I also want to be realistic to how much time I have to devote to it.

2) There is snow on the ground here in Montana 8 months or so out of the year so the car is going to be dirty unless I invest a lot of time at the car wash.

So do I choose black and bite the bullet or choose white or DGM? Is DGM as difficult to maintain as black?

Thanks for your feedback

[Eric05mx]

In person, Black is the best looking hands down but it is a pain to take care of. The DGM doesn't show imperfections quite as bad but does not look as good. Kids can destroy the interior and exterior of a car without even knowing they are doing it so you might want to consider silver or white to hide scratches, swirls, etc...

[teflon_jones]

I have a black car and a DGM car and there's not a huge difference in keeping them clean. The black shows a tiny bit more but not by much. If you're a neat freak, you're going to notice it on both. I don't know where in the country you are, which makes a big difference on whether white or black will show more. If you're anywhere it snows or you drive on any roads or parking lots ever that have mud, then the white will show too.

Personally, I think white doesn't look the greatest. My last two cars before my new STI were black and I love the color, and my truck will probably end up black as well at some point. But the DGM color is pretty cool and I really like it.

[ElVerde]

Usually, I'd agree with people when they say black looks best. However, I REALLY don't think this is the case with the 2011 WRX's. I came across a guy with a Black premium sedan with 1000 miles and had a couple of issues with it. First of all...I'm finding subaru paint is really and truly crap, and the black shows this the most. Secondly, all of the grey trim (as in the WRX side emblems) and the gray wheels just looks strange on the black car. They look better on the DGM, but again, these colors are notoriously hard to maintain.

I honestly think the SWP is the best color these cars come in...but I'm biased. Check out my progress thread for photos of a white 2011, but get the car that is sexiest to you

[Pdot]

I have DGM. When its nice and shined up, it looks great in the sun but is probably just as hard to maintain as Black to be honest. Only you will know what you want, but based on your description of where you live and the fact that you are a neat freak, go with a color that will show the least amount of dirt/salt.

[poly_poly-man]

blue :P

Seriously, why must you get a boring car? WRB is very forgiving of dirt and scratches, surprisingly. Salt leaves those fun white marks, but they spray off with a hose (or some rain, if you're like me ).

Then again, I've always thought that our cars look best with a fine layer of mud...


In the end, it's whatever you want. The darker you go in the white->dark spectrum, the harder it'll be to keep looking good, generally. Any color can look great, any color can look like crap.

[Cephalgia]

I think it's funny that everybody chooses their own car's color. I had a WRB 08 and now a DGM 09, I personally love how the gray wheels match the DGM, or how they contrast the SWP. I'm not a fan of the black with '11 wheels personally, and the SWP simply looks stunning in person. I like flying under the radar color-wise so the DGM works out better for me. Either DGM or SWP would be my choice on the '11

[06scoobyrex]

Black is a major PITA to keep clean, but so worth it when it is... OBP FTW...

[Cephalgia]

FWIW, I use a California Duster to clean off water spots and dust/dirt between washes. It will usually cut the amount of times you need a wash in half. Bugs from a road trip however are another story

[WillieRX]

Naturally, i would say WR Blue... But no choices there, so i went with the dark gray.

[Marioshiboi]

Naturally, i would say WR Blue... But no choices there, so i went with the dark gray.

I think he forgot to put it. I thought of getting DGM but then I realized that it comes on other Subarus as well. WR Blue is a WRX only color and in my mind is THE wrx color. My second choice would be this:



Is that white or black? I am not sure but I def want that spoiler and the roof scoop. Also, I have the sudden desire to pick up some new shoes...

[2011RX]

^^ Haha love this

Anyways... I have had a black car and now have the DGM WRX and would definetly say the black was harder to keep looking consistenly clean. The gray masks your everyday dirt and such better than black hands down I don't care what anyone else says, but I will also conceed that nothing looks better perfectly clean than black....then white...and then DGM lol. It sounds like you know what you want and are realistic about the kind of time you can invest in keeping a car looking clean and keeping in mind your location I would say go with gray. Puting some mudflaps on it will help keep it cleaner as well.

Other than my recomendation I noticed that no one here has an opinion about the plasma blue, and I haven't seen many cars with that paint scheme. And I just realized it might be a STI only color...which is too bad since it looks pretty damn good.

[Sinister]

I have a black car and a DGM car and there's not a huge difference in keeping them clean. The black shows a tiny bit more but not by much. If you're a neat freak, you're going to notice it on both. I don't know where in the country you are, which makes a big difference on whether white or black will show more. If you're anywhere it snows or you drive on any roads or parking lots ever that have mud, then the white will show too.

Personally, I think white doesn't look the greatest. My last two cars before my new STI were black and I love the color, and my truck will probably end up black as well at some point. But the DGM color is pretty cool and I really like it.

Don't paint the truck black! I love the eskimo paint scheme

[teflon_jones]

Don't paint the truck black! I love the eskimo paint scheme

That's one way to describe it.

[ninefourteener]

Subaru paint has gotten better over the past couple years... but it is still not the best.

With that said, Black is an absolute nightmare to take care of, ESPECIALLY when you are dealing with poor road conditions. It's not just about the snow making it "ugly", but every little chip, scratch, etc is going to show, and your paint will likely look "old" in a year.

Any silver-based color will hide impercetions well, but the darker you go, the more they will show. Again, with the choices provided, I wouldn't go this route.

White may be a little "boring" to some.... I disagree. It looks great when its clean, hides imperfections extremely well, etc. Plus, the cool thing about white, is that unlike any other color, you can literally choose ANY color wheel, and it will look great. You can literally have an orange/fuscia mixxed color wheel that would look like crap on anything else, but on a white car, it will look great.

Plus, have you ever seen a white WRX or STI with white wheels? Beautiful.

White will stay "new" looking the longest.... and is the most versatile.

Easy choice if you ask me.