Team-BHP - Sunroof : Yes please or No thanks?

While I dont have voting right yet, I agree with many that Sunroofs are more bling than useful. Unfortunately many cars in their mid/higher trims have that and if you want other specs, you need to settle with the sunroof even if you dont want it.

I dont like large touch screens or digital dials, but some cars have digital dials from base model itself.

While I have stuck my head out of a sunroof when I was younger (~12 years back), I now realize its not sage in a moving car; so would ideally prefer to not have it at all and avoid the unforeseen attempt of someone (including myself) wanting to stick their head out of the sunroof.

Not important. I belong to the neutral camp. I lower the windows of my cars only if absolutely essential. Cannot phantom driving with the sun roof open ever. But I am
fascinated by all the light that enters cabin from the panoramic sunroof.

In a purchase decision, if the feedback on safety, security, longevity and general upkeep is negative, I'd opt-out for sun roof.

Ditto with the DRLs, for heaven's sake can't understand the use and necessity of DRLs in our country.

We talk about hot weather and how sunroofs are not practical in such weather, but people get their car's roof painted black !

Personally, as I had mentioned previously too, I am neutral about sunroofs. I don't find them useful, I am perfectly ok if a car does not have it; but I am OK if the car that I am going to buy have it too. Not a deal breaker either way.

End of the day, this is an additional feature. Features are always good to have, and always one more reason to be worried about going wrong later.

Owners with sunroof use it once in a while. And I am sure once in a while if the car is out in the open (either running or parked) and there is a hail storm (or high winds when parked close to trees, or Monkey menace for that matter) they would be more worried too.

Cars go through a lot here in India, no matter how much we care for it. (I am in my home town these days and whenever I see my 3 month old car parked outside the house here, covered in dust and footprints of monkeys all over it....it pains a lot).

We have a car in our home which has a panoramic sunroof. It is a slow slung sedan with black interiors.
Agreed to all other BHPians about their opinion
But for me
The Most important reason why I prefer sunroof-
When we are road tripping quite far, the side windows get dusty, and if we roll down there will be scratches on the windows and it’s not a pleasing to the eyes. :unhappy
So we prefer opening sunroof. Be it on ghat section, letting hot air out, night drives.

Not a fan of sunroof. In fact, given I have to park my car in the open, I am actually a bit paranoid about it.

Forget about the heat, given the levels of pollution, I do not see why I would be interested to open a sunroof while driving!

It is just a gimmick that has captured the imagination, or did it really? I think it is the manufacturers who manufactured a consensus on the matter only to make it more palatable for us.

My one car has a normal sunroof and other one has a panoramic sunroof, both cars would have been still bought if there was no sunroof option available.

For me it’s a gimmick and it will never make a difference to my car buying decision, most probably my next car won’t have it and I won’t miss it for even one day.

Voted Yes! For someone who has had predominantly a non sunroof experience in all my dad's previous cars, the sunroof in our Ecosport S definitely has had a positive effect for us for the following reasons-

1) Love to keep the glass shut, but the cover open on almost all times except the afternoon. Especially at night, cruising on the highways, the passengers feel very nice about it.
2) In the summer afternoons, even without the cover shut, the cabin does not warm up a lot. Maybe because this glass is quite thicker than the normal windows of a car.
3) Frequently do trips in the hilly areas. I discourage anyone standing in the sunroof, but when traversing the hills it definitely feels really good with the roof open.

As all polls on our forum, the options fail to catch every member.

I love my sunroof but it wouldn't affect my buying decision strongly

We never had the sunroof on our list of must haves, but since we bought the Honda city in 2016, we have had a car with a sunroof in the garage. In the 5 years of owning it, we've hardly ever opened it.

The blind almost always remains closed. The sunroof is for those late night drives when the air is cool. Or maybe for those early morning where you want to be engulfed in the wind from all your windows and sunroof.

Last month, on an airport run, I opened the sunroof while driving, for the first time. And I loved the feeling for some reason, it's a heart over the mind decision.

But it's utterly useless for a daily driver car driven in the heat of our indian climate.

Never been too interested in sunroof, since in India it serves very limited or no purpose. Besides, I see idiots allowing kids to stick out of sunroofs when the car is speeding on roads- my heart is in my mouth when I see such things.

The only reason I have it on my car is because the top end version which I bought (Ecosport S) compulsorily carries a sunroof. Never used or opened it till date.

Would like to add an old incident related to Sunroofs.

One of our colleagues mentioned that his uncle overturned his car while driving. The sunroof was open and while the car was sliding with the underbody facing the sky, the driver's body started sliding down towards the roof of the car which was scratching the road surface. As the sunroof was open, very soon his scalp came into direct contact with the road (he was wearing seatbelts).

Thankfully the car stopped, leaving nominal scratches on his head. Could have been fatal had the car been faster while it crashed.

I have always been indifferent towards sunroof's. But I had not experienced it enough to really preach my opinion.

That said, I had a friends' vehicle throughout the lockdown last year, and in all 6 months I drove it, I did not once feel the need to open the sunroof, or even the sunshade. It just adds another point of maintenance/leakage/failure.

The only possible use-case I see in India, is for someone who might be claustrophobic. It does give the cabin a roomy feeling.

I find regular sunroofs to be pointless. Neither front nor rear passengers can enjoy it.

If you're gonna spend most of the time on the rear seats panaromic sunroof ad a million dollar to your experience. For someone like me who can't sit inside dark drab interiors, panaromic sunroofs are a god send.

When we were buying our last car, it did seem to be quite a factor to be considered. But then, good sense prevailed and we didn't go for the lousy excuse of a sub-4m SUV that the WRV was.

Additionally, since I just began driving, I really don't give two hoots about useless features like these. I'll stick to focusing my attention on the road and revelling in properly timed gear changes and car control :Cheering:

If the car does not have a glass roof no problem. If it does have a glass roof then no problem as long as it does not open. I like it just as an extra window in the car and one that can entertain me if i m stuck in evening traffic with a spot of rainfall going on.
I m not fond of the "open sunroof" feature since that means somebody or the other is someday going to ask me to open it so that they can stick their head out. :Frustrati I have given up smoking in the car so an openable sunroof is no longer a requirement. On the other hand, if and when somebody asks for it to be opened, i can regale them with horrifying stories of people having their heads going at a different speed than the rest of their bodies!:D

My son has no clue that the roof opens up so he is content to sit inside and stare at the stars during night drives.