Cars And The Craze Indians Have For Sunroofs: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

Heres a story of the 26-year-old Mahesh, who has just decided to buy his dream car. And guess the biggest priority he was seeking in this car. An engine that feels smooth as silk? No. An earth-shattering audio system? No. An air conditioning system powerful enough to chill the deepest-rooted bone or tissue? No. But a large glass panel over his head that opens up as much as possible. We are talking about the most glorified feature of new cars - a sunroof.

And just like Mahesh, there are thousands of other new-car buyers every year in India who prioritise a sunroof over every other highlight in a new car. This over-fascination, or truth be told  the idol worshipping - of sunroofs has become common among people of all ages and genders. The lust for sunroofs is so compelling that kids in a family become adamant about not having their dinner if their dad doesnt bring home a new car with a sunroof! Well, almost& 

It is not a cooked-up story but a fact that is evident even in new car launches and strategies carmakers are adapting involving sunroofs. A feature erstwhile restricted to only premium cars costing Rs 30 lakh or upwards is now available in more than half of the compact and midsize cars and SUVs costing below Rs 30 lakh. A variant might be missing out on an audio system  a feature regarded as a must-have thing but is coming equipped with a sunroof. Carmakers who were stubborn about not offering a sunroof are also finally offering one, at least in the highest-spec variants of their products. Even the upcoming, adventure ready Armada 4x4 (Thar 5-door) will come with one!

The question is  does a sunroof deserve the yearning and popularity it has among new car buyers? This retractable panel, or even fixed one in some cases, on the roof of a car has some benefits one cant ignore, but there are some disadvantages to which people are simply turning a blind eye. Here, we will be discussing how and why this fancying for sunroofs has reached the height it is currently at, their pros and cons and most importantly  whether we need one.

The Emergence Of Sunroofs In Cars: Where It All Began

It started globally with the Nash car in 1937, the first vehicle to technically have a sunroof. It was more of a basic cloth cover that could slide out to make the cabin feel airy from the top. However, as time passed, elite carmakers like Mercedes-Benz, Rolls-Royce and Betley started offering bespoke sunroof options, making the transition from cloth covers to metal panels with glass roofs.  

In India, sunroofs gained popularity in the late 90s and early 2000s, with premium brands like Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW offering them in their high-end models. A few years later, brands like Skoda, Opel and Chevrolet also started offering them in their flagship models. Cars like the Skoda Octavia, Opel Astra and Chevrolet Optra started coming with sunroofs in their highest-spec variants.

However, the variants of these cars with sunroofs were pretty expensive for their time and still out of reach for many car buyers. In 2008, Hyundai became the first carmaker to offer a sunroof in a hatchback, with the first-generation versions i10 (see above!) and i20 having one in their top-spec Asta variants.

The Moment When Sunroof Started Gaining Popularity: When And Why?

By the end of the 2010s and in the early 2010s, many cars started coming with a sunroof, but it was never the element of desirability as how it is today. More models, particularly midsize sedans and SUVs from brands like Hyundai, Volkswagen, Skoda, Honda and Mahindra, joined the bandwagon. But still, the sunroof was nowhere near being a deciding factor when buying a new car.

RELATED - Cars with panoramic sunroof under Rs 15 lakh!

Then, in 2020, COVID-19 happened, and much like our lives and perceptions, the automobile industry also witnessed a massive transition. During this time, the transition to BS-6 emission norms happened, so diesel cars started getting step-motherly treatment. However, the more prominent shift was in consumer priorities when buying a new car.

The devastating and unforgettable after-effects of COVID-19 taught many of us a deeper meaning of YOLO (you only live once). It changed the perceptions and deciding factors when buying cars - people wanted to feel as special and pampered as possible. Buyers started looking beyond entry-level hatchbacks and started considering feature-loaded compact SUVs as their first cars. Midsize SUVs started gaining never-seen-before popularity and eating up competition, including D-segment sedans.

This massive transition also brought features like ventilated seats, wireless chargers, and panoramic sunroofs to affordable compact and midsize cars, which were once seen only in expensive luxury cars. Among all these features, sunroofs became the most desirable. The increasing use and presence of social media made sunroofs more popular among the masses, especially among kids and teenagers, who started being major decision influencers in new car purchasing decisions.

To make engaging (in most cases, cringe) reels on Instagram and make the iconic Titanic pose while popping out of sunroofs, more and more people, especially youngsters, started buying cars with retractable roof glass panels. However, contrary to these, which might shock many people, sunroofs have a different utility altogether.

Benefits Of Sunroof: The Actual Purpose 

Car sunroofs are designed to improve ventilation and visibility of the surroundings and sky above. An additional overhead glass panel makes the vehicle's cabin feel airier and more spacious, even without completely opening it.

Also, sunroofs can be beneficial when driving in cooler and cleaner places - to feel the fresh air entering the cabin. Another hidden purpose of a sunroof is that it can be used as a window to escape in case doors and windows get jammed in case of an accident or hazard. Do you agree? Share your thoughts in our official 91Wheels WhatsApp Group community.

Disadvantages Of Sunroof: Yes, There Are Some

To many peoples dismay, there are some cons to owning cars with sunroofs. Ignorance might be bliss at times, but not always. The foolishness of popping your head or even your entire body out of it invites the risk of physical harm and bruises if the brakes of the vehicle are applied all of a sudden or due to external elements. For example, in an alarming incident a few years ago, a child died when she was popping out of a sunroof of a moving car, and a kite string slit her throat. Sadly enough, this wake-up call was not alarming enough for many people.

Besides the possibility of physical risk, sunroofs have some other technical disadvantages. Cars with sunroofs are known to have reduced headroom and fuel efficiency due to the added weight of the glass panel and mechanism. In some cases, sunroofs are also prone to leakage and expensive repairs once they attract defects in their mechanism. 

Should You Buy A Car With Sunroof?

The answer to this question is debatable, for the sunroofs are not loved for their actual purpose but for some funny and silly antics. Sunroofs give many people a sense of contentment and joy, but sadly, in disguise of misuse. There are no strict rules to prohibit people from misusing a sunroof by popping their heads or bodies out of it while the vehicle is in motion. And thats fueling the problem even more. 

Instead of using sunroofs for silly antics and risking themselves for momentary joy, people should use them for what they are designed for, and only if it is genuinely required. But in a tropical country like India, where most places suffer from alarmingly high levels of air pollution, the actual purpose of sunroofs almost becomes halved.

Sunroofs can be a great way to make the cabin feel airier even when they are closed with their curtains opened. However, variants with sunroofs usually cost almost Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh higher than the variants without one. Is that much money worth for a sunroof in our climatic conditions?

If you ask us, its a tug-of-war between want and need. Sunroofs might be almost irrelevant in tropical countries like India, but many still want one for its sheer novelty and fanciness. This premium for a sunroof is subjective to ones desire and contentment with having it  after all, many of us put our hearts above our brains while buying a new car. However, all that contentment makes sense, even emotionally, only if the sunroof is used sensibly and carefully.