In a weird turn of events, a Mahindra Scorpio N owner has installed an aftermarket panoramic sunroof on the SUV. Note that the Scorpio N comes with a smaller electric sunroof in its stock setting. However, it is not common for people to get a panoramic sunroof installed on a car which already comes with it from the factory. But the availability of aftermarket car modification shops makes it easy for car owners to perform any customizations on their vehicles. These might not always be the best or the most prudent choices. Let us take a look at the details of this latest case.
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First Mahindra Scorpio N with Aftermarket Panoramic Sunroof
The details of this strange occurrence come from sainimotorsrohtak on Instagram. It captures a massive cutout in the roof of the Mahindra Scorpio N parked in the workshop. The entire roof has been taken apart and a rectangular hole has been cut out to place a large panoramic sunroof. Now, there are tons of disadvantages to doing something like this. Firstly, the man could’ve opted for the XUV700 if he was looking for the larger sunroof. Apart from that, he could’ve settled for even the smaller sunroof. But to dig a hole in the aftermarket in the car is not the ideal scenario. Here are some adverse aspects of installing a sunroof in the aftermarket:
Compromised Safety
When the carmaker offers a sunroof in any model, there is a whole lot of engineering that goes into designing it. When you go for the sunroof in the aftermarket, the mechanics will directly rip apart the metal to make enough space to fit the glass. Since the roof is a critical component of the strength of the structure of a vehicle, the build quality of the car deteriorates. Every component of a car is designed to enable load transfer or absorption during a collision. When a huge chunk of the metal goes missing, it will make the vehicle behave in a perilous way during unfortunate incidents. Therefore, we would never recommend anyone going for such customizations.
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Leakages and External Noise
The truth of the matter is that aftermarket mechanics, regardless of how experienced they are, can’t match the training given to the mechanics by the car companies. Hence, if they undertake such a task of installing an entire component into a vehicle, chances are that the fit-and-finish will not be OEM-standard. This often results in water leakages and noise entering the cabin. This might not be the case immediately after the installation process, but over time, it could occur. You won’t be able to do anything thereafter.
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Sunlight and AC Effectiveness
Finally, we must understand that India is typically an extremely hot country. Having a large glass area will result in the sun entering the cabin and creating warmth. In order to dissipate that heat, the AC will need to work overtime. Hence, the AC could take more time to cool the cabin and exert more pressure on the engine. As a result, the fuel economy of the vehicle can take a hit. Also, since the sunroof adds a lot of weight, the mileage will degrade too.
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Legality
While having a sunroof is not illegal, hanging out of it while the car is in motion definitely is. Most people don’t realise that if they stand out of the sunroof of a moving car, they are blocking the view of other drivers on the road. In fact, we have reported many such cases on our roads. Some of them have even received hefty fines for doing so. Hence, it is an offence and must be avoided at all costs. Therefore, even after installing such a huge sunroof, you won’t actually be able to enjoy drives by standing out from it.
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Author’s Note
Having a sunroof in a hot country like India doesn’t inherently make any sense. Still, people are obsessed with it. It stems from the image of sunroof being associated with high-end luxury vehicles. Over the years, we have seen this feature only on the top-end premium cars. However, as is the case with most premium features, they trickle down to mass market cars. Hence, in today’s world, it is common even for compact cars like premium hatchbacks and compact SUVs to have an electric sunroof. Therefore, it is great if the sunroof comes from the factory. If not, we don’t recommend heading to the aftermarket to get it installed.
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