Sunroof help

Hi all,<br><br>I need your help. Latest news is that I probably won't receive my Tribute for a month. However, the dealer has offered me a Tribute that will be coming in next week. It has everything I ordered except the sunroof. They said that they could install a sunroof. The dealership said that the sunroof they install is better (in their opinion) than the factory installed. I can't verify this since I haven't looked closely at either.<br><br>My question is how different are the after-market sunroofs and the Tribute's factory sunroof? Should I go with the after-market install or wait a month for the factory installed one?<br><br>Thanks!

I investigated an after-market moonroof for my previous vehicle (a Pontiac Gran Prix), but sold it to my nephew before pursuing it further. <br><br>The dealer I spoke with said it would come with a lifetime manufacturer's warranty (for the original purchaser), and it had several features that the Tribute moonroof doesn't have. <br><br>One feature is a moisture sensor that will automatically close the moonroof if water is detected. Great if it starts raining while you're away from the car.<br><br>The second feature was an instant reverse if the roof encountered any resistance while closing, such as a child's head or neck. That way if by some chance a child was playing with the moonroof, they couldn't accidentally kill or injure themself.<br><br>This particular dealer does after-market sunroofs and moonroofs for the local Cadillac, Mercedes, Lincoln, and other high-end dealers, and handles dealerships for a 100 mile radius. Apparently they do a pretty good job.<br><br>If you need any other info, write me at bclamb@... and I'll get you whatever you need.

I would wait for the factory install. Of course the dealer is going to push for the aftermarket one because they will charge at least double the cost of the regular installation. Unless you can get a written guarantee that they will install the sunroof for the cost of the one from the factory, I would wait.

Several years ago, a friend bought a Taurus SHO w/o a sun roof and had the dealer put one. It functioned well and had no leaks, but I really did not like the heavy rubber gasket used to cover over the raw cut metal edge left when they cut through the roof. When the factory makes a sun roof, the hole in the sheet metal is stamped out and a smooth rolled metal edge is made, and this leaves a very low neat profile when the roof is open. Make sure you know exactly what type of system they will use for your roof. Would you be happy with a large ugly rubber gasket up on the roof?

Or perhaps - if the dealer is just going to pawn you off on the aftermarket one, but up the price, just take the Trib w/o the sunroof, and go there yourself.

One other thing I forgot to mention, that once they cut into the roof, there is a greater chance of moisture getting in between the seal and the roof. Once that happens, those raw metal edges will rust and the galvanealed protected coating will no longer protect from rust. It could, potentially, void your rust through warranty. I have seen many an aftermarket sunroof get surrounded by rust in a few years. The warranty the dealer gives you will certainly cover the mechanism itself, but what about the modifications they made to the car to put it in there? Those of us that live in Texas know how humid it stays here. Around Houston it is above 75% year round! Just a thought.

Thanks to all who responded to my questions on the sunroof. I've decided to remain patient and wait for the Tribute I ordered. I've never been a real fan of after-market sunroofs for some of the reasons mentioned. You've reminded me of that. Boy, it sure was tempting though. It seems like I've been waiting forever. By the time I finally get my Tribute, I'll have wait 6 1/2 months from when I originally ordered it! Fortunately my 91 Mercury Tracer LTS has been working great (another Mazda/Ford partnership vehicle). <br><br>Zoom on!

I'm not sure what the factory sunroof does but I had my dealer (Concord, NC) arrange to have a sunroof installed. The company they used installed a foreign model (Hollandia & it appears to be top of the line). The roof had memory settings that can be programmed for one touch operation and has an automatic close feature that closes it when the ignition is turned off. I like this feature a lot and it can be overridden if needed.<br><br>I was very apprehensive about having the roof installed by the dealer but I have been very happy with it.