Good news Boyd...yes, I took my side badges off after all, but left the rear hybrid badge on.

I'm glad what I posted helped you, I wasn't sure if you used the Berkely Fireline, but even though pricey at $11/spool at Wally World, it can withstand the Arizona heat without breaking, freezing temps at the cabin and doesn't develop a memory, so give it a try. I used to have to put a new spool of monofil on my reels about every year due to it losing its integrity from heat, time, etc., but I've had the same stuff on my reels now for 3+ years easily.

At first glance $11/spool seems pricey, but when you consider you won't really ever have to replace the line unless you get it all knotted up...it's pretty cost effective. Plus, if you're like me and like to use ultra-light tackle...you can really get a lot more of this stuff on a small diameter reel when compared to any others I've tried.

 

I removed the HSD badge from the rear deck... but only to reposition it where I think it will be seen bettter!

This morning, I drove behind a shaved and tinted Infiniti G35. You had to really know your cars to know what it was. Some people like that shaved look, you can't argue that it makes the car look completely different. Personally, I dislike the shaved look.

 

Shaved?

 

hey floppy whts shaved?

 

Shaved = no badges

 

I think "neutered" is a more appropriate term.

 

In the 90`s today so decided to debadge the TCH. Started with floss on all the badges but they pulled of easily. Just rolled the excess glue off too.

 

Read somewhere a while ago that the hybrids were badged to give accident response people notice they are dealing with a hybrid vehicle and the high voltages therein . If a fireman /policeman inadvertantly got hurt responding to an accident due to mistakenly believing the debaged car was conventional , would that not leave the person who debadged the car open to litigation ? Any lawyers here that could expand on this ? I understood that Toyota and other hybrid manu went to great pains to insure fire depts etc had info on how to deal with hybrids in accidents . I agree debadging a conventional vehicle in many cases does improve the looks , but debadging a hybrid could be lethal .

 

paul29 raises an interesting point; it's true that removing warning stickers or labels on many products might expose you to legal liability if someone is hurt using it later, but might not have been if they had seen the warning.

So it all depends on whether you consider a brand badge a warning label or not, I suppose. Certainly, people who looked under my hood seemed terribly surprised, so I can only assume that it's fantastically obvious-looking that it is not a normal engine. I believe there may also be a label on the engine itself, 'Integrated Motor Assist' or something like that. My guess is that there's internal badging in all hybrids, though of course people might not be famililar with what it means. If they aren't, then the hybrid badge wouldn't be much help, either, though.

It seems likely that an accident like the one you describe would be the kind of situation where even without the warning the special circumstances are self-evident, unless you think rescue workers would repair the engine without opening the hood and looking at the engine? I'm just not sure there are many situations where there would be no way for them to find out it was a hybrid in the absence of a trunk badge, while at the same time they'd be in danger from a jolt by the battery or some hybrid-specific part. I'm a lawyer, not an auto mechanic by any stretch of the imagination, however, so it's mainly a guess on my part.

 

First responders are trained to look for the Hybrid labels. If the labels are removed/altered/masked the first responders are put in jeopardy.