Sunroof: To Wait or Not To Wait?

My fiance’ and I have one car (a 2000 Chevy S10 truck), which just died on us for good. We live in a small town and both bike to work (2 miles), as well as to the essentials (grocery, etc.). However, we occassionally (once a week or so) drive longer distances, mostly for pleasure – to go surfing, to concert venues, to go camping, on roadtrips, etc.

We decided we wanted to get a nice roadtrip car (good mpg) that would also meet our outdoorsy needs. After a lot of research and test driving a ton, we fell in love with the new 2015 Jeep Renegade. This is the car we want. However, one of the coolest features of the car is the My Sky roof, which allows two panels to be removed from the roof, opening up the car in a sort of sunroof/convertible mind meld. (We live on the central California Coast, so we like the idea of driving down highway 1, below redwoods, with the roof open.)

However, apparently there were some early issues with this My Sky, so production was delayed. It looks like if we want a Renegade with the My Sky option, we’ll have to wait 6 months. If we go without, we can get one today.

So the question is, given what you know about sunroofs (and Jeep’s track record with them), what would you do?

A.) Wait the 6 months and get the My Sky option.
B.) Get the car now, without the My Sky.
C.) Get the car now and purchase an aftermarket panoramic sunroof option.
D.) None of the above because you have a better idea!

Any advice or insight is much appreciated. Thanks!!!

C is a terrible idea. You are almost guaranteed to be unhappy with aftermarket work like that done to your vehicle. Look at it this way: Someone who is not the car’s designer is cutting a hole in the roof that was never meant to be there, and you have to hope he does a good enough job so that you don’t get wet every time it rains.

I personally would wait the 6 months if it was something I really wanted and I wouldn’t suffer too much for the waiting. It sucks to compromise on something because you don’t want to wait, because then when you see vehicles driving around with the thing you wanted, you get jealous. If you can get around without a vehicle for 6 months, or you can get that S10 to limp along for a little while longer (what’s wrong with it? Maybe we can help) that’s the route I’d take.

D.) None of the above. I’d get just about anything besides that Jeep. It’s new, untested, probably will have some first year problems, will be overpriced because of first year demand, and Jeeps overall are some of the least reliable vehicles out there. I’d get a Mazda CX-5 with a sunroof.

Jeeps have very bad reliability according to CU, I agree with texases, get something else.

Jeep has the second lowest score of all brands, only beat by Fiat.

b

And the Renegade is a rebodied Fiat!

If you really want it, wait for it, you won’t be happy with anything else. Buying something you don’t like is a waste of money. BUT, I’d keep looking around, you might find something you like better while waiting, but sleep on any decision, get what you really want. Thats true for everything in life.

If you start putting the monthly payment in the bank while waiting, you will have a bigger down payment and can lower your monthly payment. If you can’t do that, then you can’t afford the vehicle in the first place and should look for something in your budget.

Get what you really want, If the open roof is really important to you it’s worth the wait.

I like option A, b/c that’s exactly the configuration what you want.

My old VW Rabbit had a sunroof and never leaked, so it is possible to have a dry car and a sunroof. The problem I had w/the sunroof though was the cloth material on the roof – forget what they call it, started to unravel at the corners of the sunroof, which made for an unattractive visual effect.

But hey, you only live once, so if you want a sunroof, get one. & no harm done to be proactive about the fact that it almost certainly need some kind of maintenance which would otherwise not have been needed without a sunroof, so save up a little extra $$ in the bank for when that day occurs. Meanwhile, enjoy that seemingly forever sunny and mild central coast drive

I’d stay away from an aftermarket sunroof. The chance of problems is too high. You might even reduce the resale value when the time comes.

Not only reduce the resale value, but reduce the resalability. When I’m shopping for a used car I immediately walk away from any car that has holes in the roof that were not there when it left the factory.

Since the My Sky option will not be available until the 2016 model year, maybe you should wait for the 2018 model year to decide whether you want it. That gives you some time to see if FC worked thy bugs out of it. My guess is that the roof leaks, and if it were me, I would want to make sure that particulars issue is solved first. If you really want a sun roof, other brands have it now. If you really want the Renegade and can’t wait 2.5 years, buy it without My Sky.

Stop at the local bookstore, pick up a copy of Consumer Reports New Car Preview, and use that for a guide. From there you can take test drives of the ones that look good to you. You’ll substantially improve your odds of being happy with your choice.

You would be much better off getting a more reliable car with a sunroof. I sugest a compact SUV in either 2 or 4 wd…which ever you prefer, with a sunroof. Just about any moden compact SUV will be more reliable then a Jeep. I would look for a used as you don’t seem to need the use or the low mileage of something new. If you were happy with a Pickup, try a Used Tacoma.

I have a different view. Personally, I tend to buy the most reliable car, based on Consumer’s Report as I can. Assuming it’s a Toyota, heh, heh.

But, I also understand the other approach. Even a Fiat will run some of the time.

Of course I am being facetious. Even a Fiat will probably need much fewer repairs than my 1953 Chevrolet and I drove that thing across the US twice.And, a lot of miles otherwise, even up Mt. Rainier several times to the south resort area. Today, you couldn’t give me a 1953 Chevrolet, for free.

As long as you understand the Jeep thingie you really, really want will take more repairs, maybe a lot more repairs, IF YOU CAN AFFORD THOSE REPAIRS, and you still want it, go for it.

Read on here proper maintenance procedures for that vehicle and if anything over-maintain it. That doesn’t mean it won’t need a lot of repairs, but it means you won’t be making unnecessary repairs caused by lack of maintenance, in addition to those related to poor construction.

Money isn’t everything. That is something I did not fully understand until I was well into my 40’s.

I thought I was smarter than my wife. I shopped at K-mart; Target; and such places. On Saturday by the time those stores got done with me I’d be red in the face and stressed out.

My wife would go to the high priced department store downtown. They knew all the employees so Saturday was dealing with friends. She and our daughter would take the bus down there, and visit with people they knew as they bought their needs. They ate a peaceful lunch in the store cafeteria and chatted with people, including store employees they had known for years.

It cost them maybe $25 more for their day’s shopping. They would come home happy and smiling. And, i’d come home, well, I can’t tell you the mood I was in.

I finally realized she was making much better use of her money that I was.

If you really want that jeep, I say understand the cost, but also understand what you get for the extra repairs. If you indeed have some great days on your favorite highway, it may be cheap at the price.

At the worst, you will know not to do it again. But, I also guarantee you it will almost certainly not be the biggest mistake you ever made in your life. It it turns out to be a mistake, that is. It is your satisfaction that counts not ours.

I well know what the biggest mistake of my life was, and I know what it cost me. I measure all decisions as to how they compare to that biggest mistake.

Sure, think it over, but don’t agonize over it. If that sunroof appeals to you, and you can afford that car, with some extra repairs IF they happen, I say go for it.

“You would be much better off getting a more reliable car with a sunroof”

…which would be almost anything…other than a Fiat that has been rebadged as a Jeep.
Those two names are clustered at the absolute bottom of the barrel when it comes to reliability, along with Land Rover.

Ahhhhh, the Fiat 128 and the Yugo…tells it all. A Fiat. " design"
http://www.midwest-bayless.com/storefrontprofiles/deluxeSFshop.aspx?sid=1&sfid=208227&c=192463

In Serbia as late as 2008…

Thanks so much for all the insights – about both the My Sky and the Jeep. We’ve spent a lot of time with Consumer Reports and other reviews (so far, just a “first look” at the Renegade, so it’s a big risk).

We’re still trying to decide but, thanks to all of you, aftermarket sunroof is definitely out of the picture. Appreciate the time and thought!

It’s interesting that those that dis Fiat are likely doing it based on the Fiat of the 1960s and 1970s. Asian cars in the U.S. Weren’t much better at that time, but we did see them improve over time. That opportunity wasn’t available with Fiat.

Nope. Current Fiat reliability is poor.

This brings up the CR ratings thing, and we don’t need to rehash our differences again on that subject.