Friday, June 4, 2010

Friday Pimped: Murdered!

I don't think I'll ever find a Prius taken to this extreme again, but would love another shot at it with a real camera....



This Prius has received the full "murdered" look, complete with matte, primer black paint throughout (including logos), matching wheels, and some speedy looking tires.




Despite these "performance" upgrades, I have a suspicion this Prius still gets 48 mpg with the same 1.8L engine and moves with a zoomy 0-60 in.... 9.8 seconds. Vrrrrooom.

Hardly seems worth the expense. But this IS the Land of Prius, and the desire, no, the need to be unique makes it all worthwhile. 


Thursday, June 3, 2010

Attempted Pimp-age...


Although this Prius goes the distance, with it's window tint and color-matched matte alloy wheels...


it is an unfortunate victim to the street parking afforded to it adjacent to Oakwood Recreation Center, and therefore has sustained some obvious scars.




Meanwhile, this Prius cant wait to be fully pimped (with roof rack!) as soon as the other two wheels are out from lay-a-way...



And this Corolla, with its window tint and chrome five-stars, is trying desperately hard to fit in next to it's higher-pedigreed siblings in The Land of Prius, and will go so far as to pose in front of progressive architecture in attempt to accomplish this feat.





Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Whole Foods Prius Binge


There are several places in the Land of Prius that provide Prius viewing opportunities akin to "shooting fish in a barrel", so to speak. Actually, a worthy derivation of that phrase would be "like shooting Prius's in a Whole Foods parking lot". Here is a photo shot quickly with the camera phone.



The percentage of Prius's in this shot? Out of twelve parking spaces, there are five Prius's clearly visible, and you will have to trust me that on the other side of the hulking SUV (obviously not from this neighborhood), there is a sixth. Thats 50% Prius's, and this representative sampling seems to be accurate for the area.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Friday Pimped


Chrome 7-Spokes! Matching license plate frames too...








Thursday, May 20, 2010

Ahh, Spring...


It's a beautiful day in the Land of Prius, which in southern California is usually not worth mentioning, but the past season's weather has definitely not kept up with the rent lately.
And like bikinis to a college quad on the first summer-like day, the pimped out prius's have come out to play...


Both the young...




And the old...



And the sexy...






Friday, May 14, 2010

Pimped Out Prius

Here in the Land of Prius, the diminutive hybrid Toyota has long been used to send a message about its occupant to the outside world. That statement could be "I'm aware, I'm concerned; I think globally and act locally." Or, "I value the earth and its resources above petty materialism and european luxury". But most often I think the statement Prius owners really want to make is "I'm a unique individual who wants to make a difference in the world and I can spend 30k on a car to show it; ergo, I am better than you".

However, It is difficult in the Land of Prius to stand out as a unique consumer, because there is literally a Prius on every corner (I challenge anyone living in the Land of Prius to walk a block without a Toyota hybrid encounter).

The solution? "Pimp Your Prius", a practice that I find hysterical. It's not without a hint of irony, intended or not, that an automobile originally concepted to be compact, versatile, environmentally friendly (read: sloooow) and "affordable" is so often externally modified to look like an elitist "rice-rocket". Most often with window tint and expensive wheels, the Pimped Out Prius makes a definitive statement, although I'll leave it to others' opinion what that statement is.



Although I try to digitally capture images of these magnificent specimens, admittedly it is difficult to find the Pimped Out Prius stationary and in the wild, as their owners no doubt prefer to ride a dutch bicycle, beach cruiser, or "fixie" through the urban jungle whenever possible, in order to stay completely carbon-neutral (Don't They?!?). So I will share them here as I find them.



If you've seen a Pimped Out Prius you would like to share, Please send submissions to pimpedoutpriusland@gmail.com. Be sure to include the location.