Best Sunshade?

[sequence]

I purchased one from MiniMania 4 years ago for my R53, and it never really fit all that good, had to put down the shades to keep it in. However, it fits my R56 perfectly, go figure!

[leevitup2god]

Originally Posted by MCS_Addict

I am currently an owner of a 2003 Mini Cooper S, fully equip with all the bells and whistles and best of all it has the dual glass sunroof. I live in Viva Las Vegas and with our excruciating 115 degree heat my poor Mini Cooper has a difficult time keeping the cabin cold with the A/C. This is due to the fact that the Mini Cooper's sunroof is only equip with a see through mesh screen, rather than a solid screen, used to cover up the cabin from the sun.

By now I am entirely fed up with my sunroof, so I went online searching for some kind of sunroof sunshade to protect my interior, and I was only able to find 2 companies that produce a good quality sun shade.

Company #1:
http://www.stratmosphere.com/mini_interior.htm

Company #2:
http://zippeegear.com/

They both look like very good quality products, but I'd like to hear some reviews of which one is better. Has anyone here on this blog done any comparison and/or owned either one of these sun shades? So far I am leaning towards the Zippee one, since it looks very nice, and compliments the black trim of my sunroof. It also is made of that foldable material which I like a lot and priced a lot less than the Stratmosphere. Please let me know your opinion.

I took your advice and bought the one from Zippee Shade and just received it yesterday. I really like it a lot since it's got a very sleek design, very easy to install, it folds up nicely and stows away into its own pouch, and uses suction cups to adhere to the glass on the sunroof. I also like how I can tilt my sunroof up, while the Zippee Shade is still in place, however the website specifically says don't open the sunroof without first removing the sun shade. Just in case it blows away. I can't wait til the summertime to see how much cooler my A/C gets. I am very pleased and would highly recommend this over my previous cardboard insert, kudos Zippee Gear.

[Minidrivr]

I have both the Mini OEM sunshade and the Stratmosphere shades (windshield and sun roof).

The OEM shade is a hard cardboard type material that folds like an accordion. That fit the windshield exactly and worked great. However it was a little hard to get around the mirror and wouldn't fit past my radar detector.

The Stratmosphere fits perfectly and rolls up nice and small. Much smaller the the OEM shade.

[StLouieLo]

Originally Posted by leevitup2god

I took your advice and bought the one from Zippee Shade and just received it yesterday. I really like it a lot since it's got a very sleek design, very easy to install, it folds up nicely and stows away into its own pouch, and uses suction cups to adhere to the glass on the sunroof. I also like how I can tilt my sunroof up, while the Zippee Shade is still in place, however the website specifically says don't open the sunroof without first removing the sun shade. Just in case it blows away. I can't wait til the summertime to see how much cooler my A/C gets. I am very pleased and would highly recommend this over my previous cardboard insert, kudos Zippee Gear.

Just ordered the Zippee Shade based on your advice C'mon summer

Lois

[TRIPLENET]

Originally Posted by 1825vine

I wonder if I should get the Mini sunshade for $50 or there is something better that you guys can recommend. Thank you all.

If you are still looking for a Sunroof Shade, you should check out ZIPPEESHADE. You can find it at Moss Mini, Mini Mania or even their website ZippeeGear.com. It's like $45 bucks. Google it and see whats up. I got one and I'm extremely happy with it.

[PhantomMC]

I just got a Zippeeshade, too. It seems very well made, folds up nicely, and fills the sunroof space well. The thing that sold me, though, was the fact that the rear shade can be installed and just left in place, even if the rear sunroof is cracked open. I like that, and it means that when I get it installed, it will stay installed for the summer (most likely).

I have the Stratmosphere windshield shade and love it, but they said their rear sunroof shade should not be left in place if the roof is opened.

I'll also put in a plug for the Zippeebag, a black bag that hangs on the back of the seat and holds whatever you need it to hold. They advertise it for trash, but I'm using it for hats, microfiber cloths, etc. - all the junk that would otherwise be all over the back seat.

[miniemee]

My two cents is that 50.00 for a window sunshade is insanity when you can get one for 5.00 on sale that fits reasonably well. If you want suction cups you can find them for cheap and glue them on.
As far as sunroof covers, buy a cheap silvered window sunshade and cut them to fit with a scissors. It works fine does the job and instead of paying 80.00, it costs about 10.00 total if that.

[TRIPLENET]

Originally Posted by miniemee

My two cents is that 50.00 for a window sunshade is insanity when you can get one for 5.00 on sale that fits reasonably well. If you want suction cups you can find them for cheap and glue them on.
As far as sunroof covers, buy a cheap silvered window sunshade and cut them to fit with a scissors. It works fine does the job and instead of paying 80.00, it costs about 10.00 total if that.

Are you kidding me? Your making your MINI sound like an ugly step child that gets all the handme-downs..LOL. I would rather spend the $45 bucks on the Zippee shade, oh wait, I did and it works perfectly. BTW: I went to the Zippeegear website today to purchase one of their Zippeebags and I noticed that they are saying that their shade stays in place even if you opened your sunroof completely-without having to remove it each time you opened your sunroof. They got some kind of no-fly away guarantee. I think that's pretty awesome I'm going to test mine out this weekend. I hope the weather is good. Besides I've got nothing to lose. They said the Zippeeshade was freeway approved to 90mph with the sunroof wide open and the shade installed. I'l like to see if your $5.00 cardboard shade and glued on suction cups will hold up to that... that's my 2 cents.