sunroof What's the best modern Car/SUV with a Sunroof?

[C_J]

Hi,

I'm planning to buy a car/SUV with a Sunroof. 
Is it suitable for conditions in Sri Lanka?
What are my best options?

(I was trying to find info on the forum with no luck)

Thanks

[ismy]

Hi, 

Just giving my opinion only, i have used a SUV with dual sunroof for last 5 years, guess how many times i have i have used less than 10 times,can use it, when ur travelling out of Colombo with a good less dusty cool climate only , so my opinion its useless to spend extra few bucks on it,

[kush]

Sunroofs gives trouble in SL. They leak when the rubber is get  harden especially if parked outside

In my view troubles it gives out weight more than the occasional use.

[matroska]

8 hours ago, C_J said:

Hi,

I'm planning to buy a car/SUV with a Sunroof. 
Is it suitable for conditions in Sri Lanka?
What are my best options?

(I was trying to find info on the forum with no luck)

Thanks

What are my best options?

Few  of the common cars with sun/moonroof that come to mind : CRV, Civic tenth gen, Eclipse Cross.

Is it suitable for conditions in Sri Lanka?

People who have them rarely use them. Does not really make sense to use regularly in our climate. Probably nice outstation - that too in areas like Nuwara Eliya etc.  Kids would love it - but the novelty soon wears off. 

and then you see posts like this 

[iRage]

Like the others have said....sunroofs can be quite troublesome with age. No matter where you are in the world. So..if you are paying extra for the sunroof, then it is not worth it. But if you can buy a car with a sunroof for the same price as one without it...then sure...if it makes you happy. Just make sure that the retracting mechanism is working and that all the seals are not worn out.

As for car options...you have what @matroska mentioned, plus the Outlander, Lexus RX, Toyota Harrier, the usual Euros like Mercs,BMWs and Audis.

You also will find quite a few Japanese cars like RAV4s, Premios, Allions, etc..with sunroofs. Keep in mind there are not manufacturer/factory installed sunroofs. Some are installed by reputed installers in Japan but most are jobs done locally. So watch out. In fact stay away from these as you will never know who has done it. 

Edited July 22, 2023 by iRage

[C_J]

Thanks all for all the valuable info. My son (12) asked for it, but I'm not too sure if I should just go for it just because of him. As some of you pointed out, he might soon lose interest and I will end up with all maintenance 🙃

[RWD]

Novelty of a sunroof wears out with kids- personally I have used it when driving on winding mountain roads when the climate is cooler-quite a nice experience. Only word of advice is use it atleast once a week- open and retract it otherwise tends to get sticky in our heat and humidity especially if parked outside.

One time the AC in my Civic gave out on a long journey to Sigiriya- was thankful for the tilt function in the sunroof- let some breeze in without the sun and managed to make the drive bearable somewhat. 

[C_J]

9 hours ago, RWD said:

Novelty of a sunroof wears out with kids- personally I have used it when driving on winding mountain roads when the climate is cooler-quite a nice experience. Only word of advice is use it atleast once a week- open and retract it otherwise tends to get sticky in our heat and humidity especially if parked outside.

One time the AC in my Civic gave out on a long journey to Sigiriya- was thankful for the tilt function in the sunroof- let some breeze in without the sun and managed to make the drive bearable somewhat. 

Thanks for the advice, will it keep it in mind. 

[C_J]

@iRage  @matroska @ismy @kush @RWD

Thanks for the recommendations, but most of them are out of my budget (8-9M).

You wouldn't recommend X-Trail, right? 
Went through some  X-Trail threads and it doesn't sound good.

How about  Qashqai or Peugeot 3008?

[iRage]

10 hours ago, C_J said:

X-Trail

Which one ? The T32 Hybrid ? It is a bit of a gamble....It is known for gearbox problems and hybrid system issues (especially if you get the early versions). In Japan it is easy to take care of but in Sri Lanka it seems like it can be a messy and expensive job. The gasoline variant doesn't suffer these issues that much but the gasoline version is gutless.

If you are looking at a T31 series....or even a T30...then it is a completely different story.

Qashqai is supposed to have similar issues but we don't hear it that much in SL. On one hand it is because Nissan fixed a lot of these issues and also the number of units we see on the streets.

[C_J]

14 minutes ago, iRage said:

Which one ? The T32 Hybrid ?

The latest X-Trail I see for sale is 2016 Hybrid. I guess all 2015, 2016 Hybrid X-Trails are T32.

Do you think old T31, T30 are better? I'm trying to go for a newer car as possible. 

[iRage]

57 minutes ago, C_J said:

Do you think old T31, T30 are better?

They are more conventional/old-fashioned crossovers. Sure they had some issues but they were easily fixed and once fixed that was it. All that was required was proper pre-emptive and running maintenace.

[C_J]

On 7/22/2023 at 8:39 AM, matroska said:

What are my best options?

Few  of the common cars with sun/moonroof that come to mind : CRV, Civic tenth gen, Eclipse Cross.

I might move forward with Civic tenth gen. (2018/19). Trying to collect all information about it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated 😀

[Dee Jay]

2 hours ago, C_J said:

I might move forward with Civic tenth gen. (2018/19). Trying to collect all information about it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated 😀

@matroska is the guy to ask since he's an owner and there's a dedicated thread for the vehicle in auntolanka as well, which you can search and read as well..

[RWD]

15 hours ago, C_J said:

I might move forward with Civic tenth gen. (2018/19). Trying to collect all information about it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated 😀

Good choice- I have a 2018 Hatch and its been nothing but a solid daily driver. Any questions on the car let me know. 

[matroska]

19 hours ago, C_J said:

I might move forward with Civic tenth gen. (2018/19). Trying to collect all information about it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated 😀

You will have to go with the EX which has the moon roof. 

As RWD mentioned it's pretty much a solid daily driver - mind you most of the specimens we have are the 1.0 Turbo versions so do not expect Type R Performance - but is on par/better than common Japanese 1.5 Sedan's we have in Sri Lanka. 

read this thread it's quite comprehensive 

and this blog by yours truly 

 

 

[C_J]

20 minutes ago, matroska said:

read this thread it's quite comprehensive 

I was already going through it. Many pages to cover 😁

Thanks for the Blog, my google site search (forums.autolanka.com:Civic) didn't bring it up or I just missed it.

[C_J]

6 hours ago, RWD said:

Good choice- I have a 2018 Hatch and its been nothing but a solid daily driver. Any questions on the car let me know. 

I see a lot of 'Honda Civic Sedan Tech Pack 2019' (1.0 Turbo versions) advertised online. Are there any major differences between 2018 & 2019 models? 

[RWD]

No major differences except the 2018 hatch is made in UK and has adaptive dampers which I am not sure if the sedan has. Also i think the 2019 sedans are made in Turkey. Other than that interior is pretty much identical.

[Dee Jay]

10 hours ago, RWD said:

No major differences except the 2018 hatch is made in UK and has adaptive dampers which I am not sure if the sedan has. Also i think the 2019 sedans are made in Turkey. Other than that interior is pretty much identical.

Not every hatchback has adaptive dampers. Only EX grade and Tech pack grade has adaptive dampers and it is common for both hatchback and sedan models.

On 7/28/2023 at 3:17 PM, C_J said:

I see a lot of 'Honda Civic Sedan Tech Pack 2019' (1.0 Turbo versions) advertised online. Are there any major differences between 2018 & 2019 models? 

.Depending on the YoM there would be slight changes to the infotainment system and the steering multi-function controls as well as some improvements Honda added overall to the standard options and mechanical components with the feedback they get and continuous improvements. Don't know if the mid cycle refresh of the model took place in 2019 or 2020. So most of the above mentioned tweaks would be visible after the face-lift.