Okay, well now I've done it. I replaced the red faceplate (original, non-anti-reflective) on my EMPEG with a blue one (anti-reflective). I took before and after photos. So, for any BMW owners wondering whether they want a red or a blue faceplate, my current recommendation is to go with blue. Even though it doesn't match the BMW colors, the difference in brightness is quite dramatic.

Digital photos are here:
http://www.cs.rice.edu/~dwallach/empeg1.html