Lyft is giving its cars a makeover that involves the removal of the furry pink mustaches on the front of its vehicles.
The facial hair, called the "carstache," has been synonymous with the ride-sharing service since its birth in San Francisco in 2012, according to Wired. Lyft President John Zimmer said the stache made customers happy, but admitted that it doesn't have the same effect in certain situations.
"It was this big giant fuzzy thing," he said. "If you were going to an important business meeting, it might not be the best way to roll up."
The pink stache's smaller, plastic replacement, which Lyft calls the "glowstache," is about the size of a banana, uses magnets to float on the driver's dashboards and emits a pink light.
The carstache was created in 2010 and used first by Ethan Eyler in San Francisco while driving around town, PC Magazine reported. Zimmer would then contact Eyler and order a bundle of mustaches as gag gifts for investors in his ride-sharing startup, Zimride. Eyler would become Lyft's brand manager when the company came into being.
Zimmer said the declining use of the furry stache is also playing a role in finding a replacement.
"A lot of times you'd see people driving around and it was cockeyed, or matted, or windblown," he said, adding that the glowstache is "more modern, more fresh, and also more acceptable for everyone."
Zimmer said that while Lyft is trying to gain more business customers, it will continue to focus on community and making people smile.
