Glass canopy or Aluminum roof

[tmichael]

There is another reason why a glass canopy is a complete non-starter for me...

I've never understood the appeal of a huge glass roof on a car. I've spent most of my life living in Texas (sadly), and most of my dislike for them is based on heat and sunlight, but after last night's storms, I realized the other reason they are a terrible, terrible idea, especially in certain areas of the country/world.

Hail. We get hail here.

Not my photo, not my car. It's from /r/Dallas sub. And it's not a glass canopy roof, but I think it sufficiently illustrates my point.

From Michigan, so we don't get much hail - actually, very few natural disasters. Would the metal canopy have stood up to the hail? Honest question, not arguing!

 

[PJW]

I had XPEL15 installed from the sun visor supports to the back of the first row glass. It cuts the glare just the right amount while also reducing solar induced cabin heating. Highly recommended. Cost less than $100.

 

[martinjlm]

I must say that driving an aluminum roof AT loaner for the past week....I REALLY miss my glass canopy. But then I'm pre-disposed to that. My other cars are a convertible and a T-roof sports car.

 

[L-Dude]

There is another reason why a glass canopy is a complete non-starter for me...

I've never understood the appeal of a huge glass roof on a car. I've spent most of my life living in Texas (sadly), and most of my dislike for them is based on heat and sunlight, but after last night's storms, I realized the other reason they are a terrible, terrible idea, especially in certain areas of the country/world.

Hail. We get hail here.

Not my photo, not my car. It's from /r/Dallas sub. And it's not a glass canopy roof, but I think it sufficiently illustrates my point.

Hey if it is doing that to the glass, it's going to destroy your bodywork so the car will be completely trashed anyway.

FWIW, I wanted an aluminum roof, but ended up with a glass roof (the wait was going to be pretty long for the metal roof). I got the shades for it, and I don't mind it at all. It does make the roomy back seat seem even roomier.

 

[borski]

Hey if it is doing that to the glass, it's going to destroy your bodywork so the car will be completely trashed anyway.

FWIW, I wanted an aluminum roof, but ended up with a glass roof (the wait was going to be pretty long for the metal roof). I got the shades for it, and I don't mind it at all. It does make the roomy back seat seem even roomier.

Yeah this is what I was gonna say. Your glass is actually probably safer than the metal roof, as it takes less energy to dent aluminum than to break the glass roof.

 

[Coyote]

There is another reason why a glass canopy is a complete non-starter for me...

I've never understood the appeal of a huge glass roof on a car. I've spent most of my life living in Texas (sadly), and most of my dislike for them is based on heat and sunlight, but after last night's storms, I realized the other reason they are a terrible, terrible idea, especially in certain areas of the country/world.

Hail. We get hail here.

Not my photo, not my car. It's from /r/Dallas sub. And it's not a glass canopy roof, but I think it sufficiently illustrates my point.

So.... would you rather try to get all the dents out of a metal roof, or replace a piece of glass?

 

[micaeljames]

There is another reason why a glass canopy is a complete non-starter for me...

I've never understood the appeal of a huge glass roof on a car. I've spent most of my life living in Texas (sadly), and most of my dislike for them is based on heat and sunlight, but after last night's storms, I realized the other reason they are a terrible, terrible idea, especially in certain areas of the country/world.

Hail. We get hail here.

Not my photo, not my car. It's from /r/Dallas sub. And it's not a glass canopy roof, but I think it sufficiently illustrates my point about rzr accessories.

I came from a glass roof Model 3 as well, and the summer heat was definitely noticeable without some kind of shade. I ended up using a mesh shade, and it made a pretty big difference in comfort without completely losing the open glass roof feel. The main downside was having to remove it when I wanted the full glass view. I’d be interested to hear from owners who have gone without one, especially in really hot weather. Does the roof get noticeably warmer, or is the factory glass protection enough for most people?

 

[PJW]

I came from a glass roof Model 3 as well, and the summer heat was definitely noticeable without some kind of shade. I ended up using a mesh shade, and it made a pretty big difference in comfort without completely losing the open glass roof feel. The main downside was having to remove it when I wanted the full glass view. I’d be interested to hear from owners who have gone without one, especially in really hot weather. Does the roof get noticeably warmer, or is the factory glass protection enough for most people?

I has XPEL 15 film installed from the sunshade mounts back to the B pillar. Works great! Glare is no longer an issue and heat rejection is much improved. I get the open sense of the sky above without any downsides.

 

[Cabonzhp]

My car for 2 years is metal roof, my loaner the past month is glass. It would be a harder choice if it wasn’t a several thousand dollar option. Not a fan of the cabin heating and feeling like I have a sunburn after a long drive. What would tip the scale toward choosing glass was if they fixed the weird sun visor situation and let me store it to the side.

 

[gaskiller]

I'm coming from a glass roof Model 3. I must say in summer that I add a mesh for a little more protection from the sun. Interested in hearing the pros/cons for owners (having followed socks' thread as well on this)

Go glass with mesh. Best of both worlds.

 

[EZEVDriver]

Go glass with mesh. Best of both worlds.

In SoCal (where the temperatures are in the mid-90s right now) I have a calendar for glass-only and glass-with-mesh: June-October glass-with-mesh. November-May glass-only. I still love those rare opportunities where I am in the backseat looking up at the view, but those days are gone during summer months. The mesh sunshade is the best accessory ever for the Lucid Air with a glass roof.

 

[prgarg]

My car for 2 years is metal roof, my loaner the past month is glass. It would be a harder choice if it wasn’t a several thousand dollar option. Not a fan of the cabin heating and feeling like I have a sunburn after a long drive. What would tip the scale toward choosing glass was if they fixed the weird sun visor situation and let me store it to the side.

The sun visor situation sort of ruins the glass roof experience from the driver's seat

 

[petergottlieb]

The glass roof is beautiful, but I'm glad to have metal most of the time. It's quite a bit quieter (I've had a loaner with the glass roof to compare and contrast) and makes the idea of a chip on the window not quite as scary. The only downside to metal day-to-day is that Lucid's antennas for cellular coverage seem to suffer under it (so I was told by service).

 

[doubletwist]

The glass roof is beautiful, but I'm glad to have metal most of the time. It's quite a bit quieter (I've had a loaner with the glass roof to compare and contrast) and makes the idea of a chip on the window not quite as scary. The only downside to metal day-to-day is that Lucid's antennas for cellular coverage seem to suffer under it (so I was told by service).

I haven't had any cellular signal issues with my aluminum roof. And after 2 days of record breaking 109F heat here in a rental Volvo with a glass roof, I am confident I made the right choice going with the aluminum roof.