andykhol23

http://www.justmorecars.com/ford/200...ng_glass_roof/

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Ford Mustang Glass Roof
The 2009 Ford Glass Roof Mustang provides a third roof option for customers and responds to their growing desire for more natural light. Production of large sunroofs has increased nearly 200 percent in North America since 2003, according to Just-auto. The growth is driven, in part, by consumers' daily commute time. The number of consumers with commutes lasting more than 60 minutes grew by almost 50 percent between 1990 and 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The new glass roof will be available as an option on both the V-6 Mustang and Mustang GT beginning next summer.
At $1,995, the new roof provides customers a less expensive option than a convertible, without compromising the coupe's versatility, headroom or climate-controlled environment.
"Mustang is an icon in our product lineup, and we are committed to keeping Mustang news fresh every year," said Derrick Kuzak, Ford's group vice president, Global Product Development. "As the automotive landscape becomes increasingly competitive, features such as a panoramic glass roof will help differentiate our products from the competition."
Nearly one out of every two sports cars sold in America is a Mustang, and it remains the best-selling convertible. The new glass roof addresses the fact that 62 percent of buyers in the sports car segment are interested in a sunroof or moonroof on their next vehicle, according to J.D. Power and Associates research.
Mustang's Glass Roof is made of tinted privacy glass, which reduces both infrared rays and vehicle cool-down time by 50 percent. A manual roller blind is built in, allowing owners to further control exposure on sunny days.
The specially formulated glass also protects interior fabric material from solar radiation deterioration and discoloration by reducing solar light transmittance. To help improve acoustics and Mustang's interior quietness, the glass also features a layer of vinyl that reduces noise, vibration and harshness.
The glass roof Mustang is built like a coupe and has been developed to maintain the structural integrity of Mustang. The glass itself is safety glass, meaning that it shatters without sharp or jagged edges, like other automotive glass.
Glass Roof Mustangs will be assembled at the Automotive Alliance International plant in Flat Rock, Mich. The unique glass is installed at Ford's adjacent vehicle personalization facility.
Like its coupe and convertible counterparts, the Glass Roof Mustang has endured a battery of tests measuring quality and craftsmanship.
During the development phase, production-level prototypes ran through a rigorous prove-out, including various water, air leakage, durability, squeak and rattle and vehicle dynamics tests. Top quality drives the development team - as evidenced by Mustang's first-in-its segment ranking in the 2007 J.D. Power and Associates IQS, VDS and APEAL studies.
"Quality is a continuous process. The whole team is passionate about it, which results in our paying attention to the smallest details," says Paul Randle, chief nameplate engineer. "Our owners have high expectations, and we always want to meet them - with strong features like this new roof option, quality and performance."

Dream Evil

Great article.

PennState

man imagine having a black car with that...it would be a good 150 degrees when you get in.

A_Drunken_Llama

^ more than that

I don't have a glass roof and it's still like a sauna in there

reginab

Wow. That's the prettiest thing evar! But it's not quite practical. I'm sure I have to think about form over function a little bit.


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Autopartswarehouse rocks!

Orion_240

even with the built-in sunshade?
Too bad it doesn't retract, like Porsche's. Might have to stick with cloth seats unless you like your thighs seared![:-]

flyinfunnyguy8

I have the glass roof and the black leather interior. Now pros and cons are all what you are thinking. Get in the car and have to turn the air on for at least 5 minutes or so, even if i'm going to drive with the windows open, to try to cool the interior down. The shade does block out a lot of light. Kinda like no light gets through, but you can see through it (almost a tight holed mesh). And it is retractable and .But for me, the view is just awesome. I almost want someone else driving so I can look out it. Get a bunch of looks from people when i'm parked. So does it heat up, hell yea, can you stand it, yea. Just remember to close the shade at night if you open it. I'm not gonna lie, I love telling people the roof is glass. So, if you are completely concerned about heat, dont get the glass roof. If not, go for it, and trust me, you'll catch yourself just looking out at the sky smiling

A_Drunken_Llama

^ epicly written

dillsrotary

Excellent first hand point of view.

Mustangmaster

It is what it is isn't it? Glass. You either buy it for the view and/or looks and looks you get or not. I haven't sat in one at a dealership yet. But want to.