Aftermarket Sunroof?
 

Hey all,

I am thinking of putting a sunroof in my F-150, now i know alot of you will say its going to leak but I'm looking for feedback from people that either A. have a factory sunroof or B. have an aftermarket one. My thinking is this, there are 17 shops in Massachusetts (where I live) that do aftermarket sunroofs, if they suck so bad how do all these shops stay in business?

Don't do it! I don't care what they tell you or how good of a job they will do, it's a big mistake.

really? How so? Seen it go bad?

Yes, it will not look right, you will have headliner problems, the one time I had it done it leaked, and I had other types of issues. Get it factory installed or do not get it at all. The factory will also re-enforce the area around the sunroof which could make a difference if you roll the truck.

Not sure about Ford, but I looked at a factory Honda sunroof. They put drain tubes in there that go down the windshield pillars and out down below.

I don't think an aftermarket roof can do that. So, where, pray tell, does the water go that is in the track etc.?

I worked with a guy who was on the desk for Nissan warranty claims, quite a while back, but anyway he spent a lot of time explaining to furious callers about how the dealer-installed sunroof was not warrantied by Nissan, sorry you are having so much trouble, call the dealer who sold it to you, you already did....sorry..... and so on.

NOT worth the risk, imo.

Billy Bob's Sunroof Emporium is where you have to go for a warrenty claim. Don't do it!

I beg to disagree. I'm having one installed in my 06 Lariat in a couple of weeks. I read an exhaustive forum on this several weeks ago. Can't find it here so it might have been on one of the F150 websites.

Anyway, consensus there was the Webasto is best. They offer a 3-year, 36K mile warranty. You can check out their website at www.webasto.com. Look at sunroofs, then use the links to trucks and they show photos of an F150 install.

The other advice I have is call your Ford dealer and find who they use in your market for install. Not every Ford on the dealer's lot comes with a "factory" sun/moonroof -- many dealers have them installed after they're on their lot. So- ask your dealer who they use.

I found my local installer and went to visit them. They showed me a new F150 Limited they had just put a moonroof in and it looked as good as my factory roof in my previous 03 Expedition. And yes, they can install an electric type that rolls back into the roof.

Go for it.

I cannot comment on the F150, but the moonroof used in the Super Duty line definitely drains through the A-pillar. I had a leak around the grab handle in my '06 F250 that turned out to be the moonroof drain tube.

What, the screw for the grab handle go through the line? Damn the bad luck!

yep, slightly different spot, but there is a drain tube. and it works really well

my Sunroof is almost 2 years old and going strong. I use it pretty much every single day (in Hawaii in 80F weather). The past 1 1/2 years was spent in Washington near Seattle and yes, it does rain 90% of the time. I call it the perpetual mist. Never a drop of leakage, and the only maintenance I do is to wipe up any grime off the rubber seal

go for it. these companies wouldn't be in business unless their product was decent. check with your cities Better Business Bureau. alot of people are letter writers...more than you would think

also, I don't see any additional re-inforcement in my roof. and my truck is one of those "factory" installed sunroofs. the re-inforcement is in the pillars...just look at the thread from earlier this/last week about the guy who rolled his truck 7 times. truck held up pretty good IMO.

I totally agree with bama. I have a friend who installed an aftermarket sunroof put in on his...ehem Dodge Ram and he had all kinds of problems. He had it "professionally" installed and the seals folded over in less than 3 months!

Now of course, that was his situation. I've heard both cons and pros on aftermarket sunroofs so, it's your gamble. Good luck!

My father-in-law had one put into his new Tahoe and in the last year has had no issues with it. The install looked good and it worked fine.
But even with that being the case I couldn't let someone cut a hole in my roof and put some glass in it. It is just to much of a gamble for me.