Anybody know if the Moonroof will slide back completely? I don't care for Moonroof's, but a Sunroof would be great. I know somebody out there knows this....

-Nathan

93 RX7 R1 (sold)
93 Honda Prelude Si
04 RX8 R1 Type R Si Jspec (j/k)

I saw this on edmunds.com. It looks like this is as far back as it goes


http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com//pictures/VEHICLE/2004/Mazda/100222015/022282-E.jpg

so what's the difference between a sunroof and a moonroof? i know this is a stupid questions but my family never owned a car w/ neither of those before.
I remembered someone telling me that a moonroof is just a clear glass but a sunroof actually opens up?
does it actually worth the extra $1000 on top of the IMO semi-overpriced GT trim ( yes Canadian here)
so far the only sunroof i think that is actually worth the money is the $1250 one on the MB C230 coupe

I have allways thought the sunroof was a piece of glass and the moonroof as being solid roof that opens. The sunroof here tilts up and back, not inward so you will have less open area. It does have a visor you can push back and see the sky without opening it. Hope this helps

well this is a piece of glass that opens and mazda calls it a moonroof :)

Originally posted by dying_here
so what's the difference between a sunroof and a moonroof? i know this is a stupid questions but my family never owned a car w/ neither of those before.
I remembered someone telling me that a moonroof is just a clear glass but a sunroof actually opens up?
does it actually worth the extra $1000 on top of the IMO semi-overpriced GT trim ( yes Canadian here)
so far the only sunroof i think that is actually worth the money is the $1250 one on the MB C230 coupe

Sunroof is metal that slides (or tilts open), Moonroof is glass that slides (or tilts open). On the RX-8 the moonroof gives it a little more open feeling (see out the top through the glass) -- it seemed to add a little perception of space in the car -- and of course sun/wind in your face when you desire -- as per the pic above:D Nice option IMHO but not necessary for fun in this car. I think it has to go out (rather than slide under the roof) because it would have taken too much rear seat headroom given the slope of the roofline.

I agree with RXhusker
it is better that it slides up rather then down. To save on rear passanger head room. The bad side is that it will not open completely.

Sorry guys, this will probably confuse the issue even further, but I understood that a moonroof is a sunroof that has the piece that slides to cover the sunroof from the inside but still allows air to come into the car vs. just a piece of glass installed aftermarket.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Those two terms have been used so interchangeably for so long that there really isn't a right or wrong answer anymore.

---jps

That photo of the open sunroof sure is a let down. Takes away from the RX-8...

They assured me at the dealer and the Toronot car show that the sunroof would retract into the roof like all thier other models do.

What BS!!!!

I think it looks awful.:mad:

Isn't this exactly how the sunroof/moonroof opened on our beloved RX-7?

I probably don't actually open my moonroof more than a dozen times a year anyway.

I will open mine every day that it is not raining. I loved the moonroof in my Prelude, and it was almost exactly the same as this one pictured above.

Correct me if I am wrong. But have'nt all Rx-7 moonroof/sunroof
open like this??

I'd rather have this then not haveing at all. I will mostly just throw the visor back and leave the soonroof (NEW NAME) closed

Yeah, this is exactly how the sunroof in the RX-7 was. Aside from robbing less headroom, I read somewhere once that Mazda claims the tilt of the open sunroof adds downforce. I don't know if the downforce claim is true or not, but that's what I read and I thought it was interesting.

My last three cars all had sunroofs. I always keep the shade open when it's closed. Having the extra light shining in gives the car a more spacious feeling. Having it open in the summertime with all the windows down is a great feeling.

While I don't much care for the look of the sunroof in the pic above, how many people are going to be looking at their car from 30 feet in the air anyways. Side views of similar sunroofs look great. I think the days of leaking sunroofs on new cars are over as well.

Originally posted by rotory_it_up
My last three cars all had sunroofs. I always keep the shade open when it's closed. Having the extra light shining in gives the car a more spacious feeling. Having it open in the summertime with all the windows down is a great feeling.

While I don't much care for the look of the sunroof in the pic above, how many people are going to be looking at their car from 30 feet in the air anyways. Side views of similar sunroofs look great. I think the days of leaking sunroofs on new cars are over as well. I usually roll down the windows and tilt the sunroof, it's the perfect flow of air in the Millenia I own... The RX-8 hopefully will be the same way :)

I am in fact in the process of selling the 'sunroof' from my former beloved RX-7. It is white and metal. This piece came from my 84 GSL-SE. On the 1st gens, the sunroof could tilt or be removed, that was the only two choices. I had replaced this one with a glass sunroof. I think of a moonroof as a glass sunroof that has a shade to keep the sun out on hot sunny days - those of you in Dallas and Houston can relate I'm quite sure - yet you can slide the shade back to let in light when the moon is out.

Well, I was asking because I really wanted the slide back sunroof. But a slide back moonroof will do the trick just as well. I just hope it comes with a sunshade. Sometimes the sun can be too much out in SoCal. ;)

Originally posted by mostron8
Well, ... I just hope it comes with a sunshade. Sometimes the sun can be too much out in SoCal. ;)

It definitely has a sliding sunshade.

Dont worry about the sun visor mostron8 I have seen in some pics that it will have the sun visor.

Ohhh just look

http://home.att.net/~superotter/202-0083_IMG.JPG

Excellent! Thanks for the pics guys!

I don't know, but I've deisred roofs (the 2 names just don't make anysense to me now, and I'll just define them as a roof) and my first car didn't have one, 91 Camry DX, then my second car, WRX didn't have one either, then I totalled the WRX and got me a 2nd gen Integra, and the roof on that thing made me go from :( to :D because theres nothing else like it!!

The 2nd gen Integra got the roof that opens up between the roof sheet metal and the interior linning. IMO from the inside it looks wonderful and flush, but it looks mad ugly from the outside because you see this ghetto hole in your roof, the RX-8 has a very good looking slide roof. Nonetheless, an ugly roof is better than no roof, and as dull as the stock 90 LS Integra is, the roof makes my driving better during the day AND the nights!! Seeing stars at night rock also!!

Just my 2 cents

The poorly trained Mazda rep , at the Ft Worth auto show, told me that the sunroof slid into the car roof....sure it does!! not!!

Anyone know how much room you lose with the moonroof? I'm a bit concerned because I'm 6'1, and more often than not, cars with moonroofs are a tight fit :(

I don't expect this style sunroof to rob much room at all. You loose headroom on traditional sunroofs because of the channel or pocket that the panel slides back into. The way the RX-8's panel pops up and slides back eliminates the need for the headroom robbing pocket.

I think some people may be missing an important aspect while complaining about the way the roof panel slides. We've been told that there are heavy-duty reinforcements in the roof, spanning the points where the leading edge of the rear doors close. These are essential to the car's structural integrity and enable it to withstand side impacts. It would be impossible to have a traditional sunroof with those key structural beam there.

did anyone notice that the visor had cutouts in it, most likely to minimize weight?
________
Kitchen Measures (http://kitchenmeasures.com/)

I cannot believe how anal some of our members are about the weight of the RX-8. ;)

The cut-outs are to let fresh air in while the sunroof is open and the sunshade is closed.

Originally posted by Sputnik
Those two terms have been used so interchangeably for so long that there really isn't a right or wrong answer anymore.

---jps

I must agree with you. The roof looks like a last minute thing!!

C'mon Mazda..... this car is gonna be a future classic !!