Taupe or graphite with silver paint?

[Wind&C]

Since I ordered a 2003 XC last week with silver metallic paint and the taupe interior I have read that the taupe causes a lot of front window reflection on sunny days. Anyone else out there with Silver/Taupe combination or having experienced a window glare problem with the Taupe? Should I call the dealer now and tell them to change to graphite before its too late? How about other pros vs cons on the Taupe vs graphite with the silver paint?

Thanks,

Wind&C

[x/c guy]

Hi,

I was one of the ones who responded in another post.  I think you should sit in an '02 and see for yourself.  My dealer was well aware of the complaints from customers and he himself said that his own sales people  found it annoying to drive with. Their are times in the day when your vision will be serverly restricted.  I lease an '02 x/c country silver with graphite interior.  I have found that the graphite "somewhat" reduces the problem.  My friend who loves my car decided against the x/c for himself for this reason alone.  Drive one first......    http://xc70.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[callan]

I have the silver exterior and taupe or sand leather interior. The windshield glare is a problem.  I called north america customer service and the rep said he'd heard the complaint before.  He suggested I speak with the dealer who, in turn, suggested I go to an auto parts store to buy a cover for the dashboard. Anybody out there have a better, less klugey idea?

[wiz]

Wind&C,
The reflection issue may not be just a function of the color of the trim. The windshield air vent may contribute also. Read this earlier thread (http://xc70.com/cgi-bin/ib3/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=1;t=333) which also contains a photo illustrating the air vent issue.

With respect to your color choice, the taupe leather shows the dirt very quickly. If you have kids or you don't want to make very good friends with a leather conditioner/cleaner, think about it. The graphite shows debris instantly though, whereas the light color of the taupe hides it a bit more.

Many people would select graphite with silver, as the two colors "go" together. The graphite looks good with the gray plastic trim in the car, and helps reduce the prominence of the somewhat cheap looking trim. Finally, a lot of people like a contrasting interior/exterior color scheme - dark with light. So that would argue for graphite/silver.

Of course, we have dark with dark... http://xc70.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif

[Chipshot]

My S80 has a taupe interior, and I haven't found reflection to be that big a problem.  Of course, we don't have as many sunny days in Michigan as those of you elsewhere enjoy.  A bigger problem, I have found, is the film deposited on the windshield by various interior materials "offgassing."  This film can make the windshield seem almost opaque when driving toward the rising or setting sun.  Frequent cleanings seem to be the only solution, but I wonder whether I am also breathing any noxious gasses.  I believe Armour All and other such products make the situation even worse.

[Wind&C]

Everyone:

 Thanks for the comments regarding Taupe vs Graphite.  I talked to the dealer yesterday and there is still time to make the switch at the factory so I am going with Graphite.
 The toughest part of all of this is just the waiting.  This is the first automobile I have ever "ordered"  as all the rest have been bought either right off the lot or used.  
 Anyway, have a great weekend.

Wind&C

[wiz]

I think you did the right thing, Wind&C.

Of course the way to deal with your "hurry up & wait" problem is to stop reading forums like this one!! http://xc70.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/happy.gif

[MagicDragon]

I drive Ash Gold with Taupe/Brown interior.  The reason why I chose brown seat was because taupe tends to "get old" and show a lot of wear after a few years.  I like the dark brown seats but it comes with taupe dash and the reflection problem is very serious.  If I could do it over again I'd get black/grey interior XC.

[1Lieutenant]

My XC is platinum green with Taupe interior.  I hardly ever notice the problem of reflection off the windshield because my sunglasses are polarized and remove most of the problem.  It would be a great problem if I didn't wear them most of the time while driving in sunny weather.

The only problem with polarized sunglasses is that the display on the radio goes black.  The radio and the instrumentation display are polarized at right angles so the dash instrumentation is not affected.

Steve

[1Lieutenant]

My XC is platinum green with Taupe interior. I hardly ever notice the problem of reflection off the windshield because my sunglasses are polarized and remove most of the problem. It would be a great problem if I didn't wear them most of the time while driving in sunny weather.

The only problem with polarized sunglasses is that the display on the radio goes black. The radio and the instrumentation display are polarized at right angles so the dash instrumentation is not affected. Not real well thought out by the engineering dept.

Steve

[Prepo]

I think that the message should be got across that the reflections of concern are mainly from the dash grills which are ALL painted black, independent of the trim color.  It doesn't matter which color you choose.  This is why a dash cover wold not help because you would have to leave holes for the defroster and speaker/display grills. Choose a color which you like, not the one which you wrongly think will eliminate reflection problem.  By the way, taupe with brown seats with silver works just fine and is a change from the boringly selected charcoal - if I can be permitted to rib some of you!

[MagicDragon]

I've posted this picture before, but here it is. As you can see, the glare is a very serious problem with taupe dash, especially when you are about to enter a tunnel or parking garage.  You simply can't see inside.  Very dangerous.

http://volvo.magicdragon.us/diary/pics/glare.jpg

[wiz]

I have the graphite and I had a reflection that was probably worse than this last weekend.  The sun was strong, low in the sky and there were extreme contrasts of light and shadow.  It was really bad.

The graphite may be a bit better, but not much...