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MG ZR ZS ZT Technical Colour recommendations please BBS discussion at MG-Cars.info
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MG ZR ZS ZT Technical - Colour recommendations please
| I'm torn between Silver, Anthracite or X-Power Grey for a new Z saloon. Does anyone have any views on these colours with regards to how quickly it looks dirty, do scratches show etc? Thanks. |
| David |
| Antracite is probably the worst for showing dirt quickly. I speak from experience! LOL Just washed the car! |
| Martin |
| It looks like a colour that will look scratched in sunlight? |
| David |
| Anthracite is odd, it can look purple or blueish in certain lights. Certainly it shows the scratches somewhat, and the stonechips are more noticeable. HTH |
| Martin |
| I have a silver ZS and don't think i would have any other colour of car again. it is great. because it was a second hand car there are a couple of stone chips on the body which have been touched up and you can hardly notice them. also, grime does not show that much - but obviously dirt does - and flies on the front do too. but simple dirt from rain, dust from harvesting just dulls the shine rather than make it look dirty. i highly recommend silver :o) |
| Demon |
| Having just wrestled with this decision myself, my view is this: ZT - Anthracite is by far-and-away the best colour for the ZT, with XPower Grey a close second. In general, the darker metallics suit the ZT best. ZS - I think the darker colours also suit the ZS saloon well, à la the ZT. As far as the hatch is concerned, I would recommend one of the more restrained lighter metallics, such as silver. ZR - Knock yourself out if you're going for one of these. They look great in in-your-face colours like Yellow and Trophy Blue. Just my opinion, of course. Seamaster |
| seamaster |
| Le Mans Green is the best colour for a Z IMHO. For the same reasons as Demon (execpt the stonechips). Silver - every other car on the road seems to be this colour. If you want to disappear into the crowd this is the colour to pick. Anthracite - 'Anthracite is odd, it can look purple or blueish in certain lights.' Strangely, I used to have an Amethyst R400, which was described a purple on the registration documents, and everyone thought it was charcoal grey. Maybe MGR are using the same paint but just renamed it! X-Power Grey - hmmm, nice. Particularly with a green stripe over the centre section of the car. Ralph |
| Ralph |
| Silver is surely so popular becuase it does hides dirt so well. At the other extreme black looks just fanastic if spotlessly clean and beautifully polished. (Anthracite is a poor subsitute for real BLACK!) Grey however is the internationly recognised sign of the drab and boring! Great on a Volvo or Honda but surely poor Cecil is turning in his grave at the thought of an MG being painted grey.... I marvel at the seductive abilities of the boys in marketing in persuading people that Grey is a cool colour if you just stick "X-Power" on the front. Sorry folks it is still just grey. |
| Patrick Beet |
| Silver is the new white, ie ubiquitous. Anthracite is a much better colour than solid colour black, IMO. Being metallic, it is tougher and more resilient. Solid colour blacks are very soft (as are all soft colours, but black is the worst -- I used to work for a car paint manufacturer). Seamaster |
| seamaster |
| Remember the early silver cars from BL in the 70/80's where the paint used to rust as much as the metal! Not many Mini 25's about today in their original silver, I guess. Seamaster, what about the clearcoat that is often applied over the solid colour, is this as resilient, or also a bit soft? Martin |
| Martin |
| Yes, clear-over-base paints (that is, solid colours with clearcoats over them) are more resilient than standard solid colours -- the lacquer is tougher than the paint. Seamaster |
| seamaster |
| Well i like the grey, i think any car looks meaner in dark colours. i love the trophy blue, but i think the ZS can look to much like a scooby wanna-be especially with the big rear wing. (a scooby is the car i am aiming to get in a year or two). solid deep colours make cars look chunkier than they are. it is astonishing how a colour can change a cars overal appearance. i once wanted a nissan primera gt in silver (i like non to common - but affordable cars) - looked so nice. red however made it look about 500kg heavier and fatter, and plastic. the in-your-face colours do look good on the ZR, but yellow is a complete insect magnet. i have seen a yellow ZR with more flies on it than a tramp. black cars are the hardest to keep looking nice and shiny. ever thought of a really retro colour like starsky and hutch red, with the white slash up the side ;op (have you got a perm?) |
| Demon |
| "i think any car looks meaner in dark colours." That is possibly the most common comment I hear about my Anthracite ZT, how mean it looks at the front, like an angry wasp! In fact, it has so much "get-out-of-my-way" outside lane presence that it can be embarrassing and I find myself being polite and hanging well back from the car in front! Some people actually move over as soon as they see me approaching, never happened in my 75! Of course, others take it as a threat/challenge and just sit in the outside lane! FWIW Martin |
| Martin |
| So as a summary: Grey is great if I want to be grey. Silver is good for hiding the dirt and stonechips, looks good but fairly anonymous. Anthracite, looks the best and I won't need to flash my lights too often in the outside lane, but only if I can be ar*ed to wash it every weekend. I'm still no nearer. Back to the showroom for another look around I guess. P.S. does anyone else find the controls on the steering wheel awkward to use or do you just get used to it? The demonstrator I tried had both the cruise and stereo controls. |
| David |
| Yes ! The cruise control always seems to be the wrong way round It would be easier if you push down the switch's instead of pull up ? |
| shoggy |
| My cruise control is great. just keep an eye on the speed, and my right foot does the rest. actually i like the idea of cruise control, but not for the uk. i feel that cruise control is for countries that have roads that allow you to cruise. the best car to have in the uk is an automatic, with sound activated horn and main beam, so you get beeps and flashes whenever you raise your voice (in the event of getting stuck in traffic, or being cut up). i am just bitter at the moment cos i just been trundling along the a10 stuck behind a bloody lorry. there is always something! why do lorry drivers and farmers set their alarms so they can be on the road in time for rush hour? and why is it called rush hour? 45mph up the a10 (15mph off the max) is not what i would call a rush! anyway - david - go for silver, your car will look newer for longer, and looks so bedable after an auto-glym job, which is not that much hard work. you know you want to cos silver is such a neutral colour, which everyone likes. my mate has a turquoise rover 216 cabriolet, and he is even embarrassed admitting it. hehe ;op |
| Demon |
| Silver leaf on my MG Montegos looks superb. Just my opinion of course. So when it came to ordering the new ZS, Silver was top of the list followed by LeMans Green and Trophy Blue. However, someone on this BBS mentioned that the ZS in silver looks like just another silver Rover 400/45 coming along and he was right. Hadn't noticed that before.... so silver was out and went for blue in the end as it was acceptable for all the family. I preferred the LeMans for the ZS and ZT and still do but the blue is nice. I think all the Zed saloons look better in the vibrant colours otherwise they tend to look little different from the Rover saloons they are based on..... many of which appear in more bland colours. My E and D reg Montegos look good in silver and when they first appeared, there were few silver cars about. Nowadays, just about every other car is silver particularly those from Stuttgart, Wolfsburg und Bavaria. Thus common as muck .... as a glance at any UK road will now confirm. Glad I did not opt for the Silver ..... JMcF |
| John McFeely |
| P.S. I like those Rovers in that Solar Blue I think it's called. Enhances the car no end in my opinion unlike most of the Rover colours which to my eyes, are usually low profile and make the cars understated. |
| John McFeely |
| Le Mans Green is great. But you need to see one for real, 'cos the colour in the brochure is totally and completely wrong. If i had to pick a colour from the brocure, Le Mans Green would have been bottom of the list. SF |
| Scarlet Fever |
| you get a garish colour and you risk having trouble when you sell it later (obviously only if you intend to sell it). Le Mans green --- i would not have anything to do with the french on my car. and i think the trophy blue is a complete Subaru Wanna-be, especially with the large rear wing. my cars silver is phantom silver or something - looks like silver but don't if you put it next to another "silver" car. i suppose the good thing about having a bland colour is that it don't stand out in the car park and so is less likely to get noticed by joy riders or jealous "key scratching" happy losers. I think the goldielocks test should do it... Le Mans green.... too Frenchy Grey............. too mean looking/too too drab. Yellow........... too fly attracting Blue............. too, i wish i had a Subaru WRX Silver........... hmmm, just right. ;op i think the ZS is going to come out in 45 colours too - that would be scary..... burgundy ZS... hmmmmm - chuck |
| Demon |
| You have all missed the best colour of the lot. My solar red 180- looks the business. It polishes up a real treat and doesn't show the dirt...Remember ."you never see a slow Fire engine" |
| Gerry |
| What about a Green Godess? |
| Patrick Beet |
| Gerry, I deliberately excluded any form of Red for my ZS .... Over the years have had too many Red MGs. Back in the early 60s, my first MGB was Tartan red. Presently have Montego and Maestro turbos in guess what ..... correct! Badly need a refreshing change that's why my ZS aint solar red ...LOL. John |
| John McFeely |
| LMG, could be referring to the American LeMans Series - sorry clutching at straws there! ;-) Would you have liked it better Demon if it had been called Brands Hatch Green? :-) SF |
| Scarlet Fever |
| Mine is in Trophy Blue and I love it! This was my preference. At the time I also liked Anthracite (since gone off it) and the LeMans green I think looks a bit weak. Silver is too common and does not show the sporting tones that well IMO. The red is ok for the hatch version only. Before, all my cars from Escort, Monty, Rover 214, Maestro turbo and then ZR have all been red. Trophy Blue I think, although popular, is a good chice esp if you get the ZS180!! Your decision thou! |
| Ian Rusbridge |
| Scarlet Fever, what you say about LMG is equally applicable to XPower Grey, at least as far as the ZT is concerned. I had ruled XPG out immediately, on the basis of the brochure swatch (not least because it is, er, grey), and ordered my ZT in Anthracite. When I subsequently revisited my dealership to sort out some paperwork, the Dealer Principal's own ZT was on the forecourt -- in XPG. And it looked *amazing*. It's an incredibly striking colour on the ZT in the flesh. If I had my time over again, I would seriously consider it. Seamaster |
| seamaster |
| American Le Mans??? if that was the case, then the green would have been a louder green ;op i think a more british related green would have been better - why did they not use BRG? - strange! MG is british for feck sake! maybe it had something to do with some european law - wink wink sob sob. i must admit that the silver does lose some of the sportiness that the other colours possess, but it is a nice subtle colour. when i get my scooby i want as in your face as i can get!!! ;op |
| Demon |
| Demon, BRG is actually kind of Irish. Apparently, in the early years of the last century Britain won a Gordon Bennett race and was thus required to host the race the following year. Regulations in force in Britain at the time precluded racing, so the race was held in Ireland. The British cars were painted shamrock green as an acknowledgement of Ireland hosting the British race. That's one theory, anyway. Also, if the name LMG is too Frenchy you could always refer to it as Lemon Green. :) Ralph |
| Ralph |
| think the ZT is a striking car period, looks good in any colour maybe? My ZS180 is Trophy yellow as I find silver/ green / grey too anonymous on the 45 shell, blue is a tad too common, red is... dunno just didn't take my fancy. I love the eyecatching yellow, but a sod for flies on the front etc. I would not have chosen it if it was my money however, as I expect it will not look too good after 3 years. |
| David |
| I have just taken delivery of my new ZTT in Lemans Green, Its the colout mg use in their blurb so they must think its an ok colour, they use the Anthracite for the saloon. I have just sold an Anthracite zs180 an the person who had it said the colour was good stood out from all the blue/ red / silver ones d |
| david |
| Typhoon is the best colour... Followed by Trophy blue, Trophy yellow and then Le Mans green, Solar Red is a very nice too, nice and deep, not very orangey unlike my Flame Red. Gk |
| Gareth Kidman |
| >> Solar Red is a very nice too, nice and deep, not very orangey unlike my Flame Red. << Oddly, this is precisely why i prefer Flame to Solar! Each to their own i suppose eh? :-) I find Solar a bit stark, whereas Flame is a nice warm colour, similarly i prefer Lotus Norfolk Mustard Yellow to Trophy Yellow for the same reasons - (I know of an F done in LNMY and it looks stunning). You can't please everyone... SF |
| Scarlet Fever |
| As Spike Milligan once said, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder - get it out with Optrex". Ralph |
| Ralph |
| ZT / 75 looks good in almost every colour, I suppose that is down to its beautiful design. Anthracite is the best colour, well, at least it looks well on all the cars. |
| Andy |
David,London This is a list of the cars on our drive at the moment with their resective colours 1/ Landrover Freelander Oslo Blue 2/ MG TF160 Anthracite 3/ MG TF135 Anthracite 4/ MG ZR+120 Anthracite yep we prefer Anthracite On the MG's and incidently our first Freelander was Black as well but the wife wanted a change when we bought the second one. Des |
| Des |
| Des, does the anthracite show those circular type polishing scratches or is it more 'user friendly' than previous blacks? |
| David |
| David, I was going to ask Des exactly the same question! Also, Des, how are the anthracite cars doing for stonechips etc? Seamaster |
| seamaster |
David,London Just had a quick look at TF160 and I can't see any trace of polishing marks in the paint. The Freelander and the TF160 which belong to the wife and I are generally washed on a regular basis with a weak solution of wash and wax and leathered dry then about every three months they are wax polished. The only problem is with bird lime which needs to be removed quickly as it will mark the paint,but I think this applies to all colours. The TF135 belongs to my youngest daughter and is wahed and wax polished on a regular basis, I've not noticed any polishing marks in this either. The ZR+120 belongs to my eldest daughter but has only been rinsed of so far as it is only just over a week old. Des |
| Des |
| The worst issue is the careless parking manouvres where my corners are slightly scratched! I haven't noticed polishing marks so much as very slight scratching from leathering the car dry. Mine is washed with a pressure washer, the wheels are done with halford's cleaner, and then washed with a quality wash/wax and dried. I did polish the bonnet last week and found that insects tend to stick less so will polish the front more regularly. Stonechips are a pain as the bumper appears to have a blue primer so are immediately apparent. After 14 months including Winter on the Motorways, it is not too bad and the touch up paint set is quite good. HTH |
| Martin |
| Martin, did you get touch up paint with the car, or did you have to obtain this yourself? Seamaster |
| seamaster |
| Seamaster TF160 is now 14 months old with 11,000 on the clock no significant stone chips on the paintwork although there is a small stone chip on the passenger side of the windscreen. Any small marks I've treated with the wax filler pencil included with Turtle Wax Colour Magic, I have found this is very effective on small marks in the paintwork on any colour TF135 I don't think there are any stone chips on this either, This car is 9 months old and I'm not sure how many miles it's done ZR+120 No stone chips or marks on this one yet as it's only a week old. Martin I also use a pressure washer. I first remove road grime using the pressure washer, I then wash and wax using a car wash brush,this is then rinsed of with the pressure washer and then leathered dry, I've had no problems with marking the paintwork. Are the Careless parking manouvres yours or somebody elses. Des |
| Des |
| Seamaster No, cost cutting means the paint is extra! Des, no, I am actually a reasonably competent driver, it's the dammed morons that have the cheek to park next to me! Mine has 30k miles in 14mths, and so far have even recently had a new windscreen owing to an injudicious stone chip sharp enough to instigate a crack. Replacement was relatively painless, though! I 'unfortunately' have a 4 yo daughter who hero worships MG Rover and can spot the ZS at the BTCC, but this does mean she wishes to help wash Daddy's racing car! I have at least managed to avoid crisp and chocolate stains, but the sills do get the occasional scratch from climbing in and out! Oh well, the joys of family! Martin |
| Martin |
| I remember my dad's old P6 Rovers that came with a half-pint tin of the original paint!! :-( Seamaster |
| seamaster |
| I went for Le Mans Green for my ZTT after weeks of deliberation. 2 months on I have no regrets. It looks superb, and people stop on a regular basis when I'm getting in or out of the car to say how good the colour looks. Originally I was going to order Trophy Blue, but just before I placed the order I changed my mind, and in retrospect I think the ZTT is too large a car, with too big panels to really suit TB - just my opinion. I've always steered clear of black, because a friend in the paint manufacturing business advised me that it is one of the softest and less durable colours. As for Starlight silver, its a nice colour but as 90% of Vectras, 3 series, Mondeos seem to be silver its just too common. |
| AdrianMenzies |
This thread was discussed between 25/08/2003 and 02/09/2003
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