# sun roof vs. moon roof **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 21, 2004, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442 "2004-05-21T22:12:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mr\_soze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@mr\_soze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mr_soze)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/1 "2004-05-21T22:12:49Z")
Does anybody know if there is a difference between a sunroof and a moonroof? I have heard three theories on the matter: The difference is the presence or absence of tinting, The difference is how/ if the device may be opened, And that there is no difference. Any help will be appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![daffyduck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ec9cab/32.png) [@daffyduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/daffyduck)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/2 "2004-05-21T22:24:21Z")
As I remember, the moon roof started in So Cal VW customizing circles as a low cost alternative to the more expensive sun roofs. At that time, the main difference was that a moon roof would only hinge open to allow air flow but you couldn’t actually slide it open like a sun roof. However, once the name caught on, the mainstream car makers took it over for their own purposes and have used it simply as a marketing tool and they have their own ideas about what constitutes a moon roof. ---
**Author:** ![zoltar7](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b38774/32.png) [@zoltar7](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoltar7)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/3 "2004-05-21T22:29:11Z")
My understanding has always been that a sunroof is metal and painted the same as the car, while a moonroof is glass. Under this definition, most (all?) modern cars have moonroofs. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/4 "2004-05-21T23:14:36Z")
> [@zoltar7](#): > > My understanding has always been that a sunroof is metal and painted the same as the car, while a moonroof is glass. Yup. Amazingly hard to search the internet for a good answer–probably because few people know the difference. Anyone got an OED handy? ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/5 "2004-05-21T23:18:45Z")
> [@Inigo Montoya](#): > > Yup. Amazingly hard to search the internet for a good answer- Really? _“difference between” sunroof moonroof_ gave the following: [http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20030617.html](http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20030617.html) [http://www.sunroofs.org/faq.htm](http://www.sunroofs.org/faq.htm) Basically, they’re interchangeable, ‘moonroof’ being invented by Ford in the 70s ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/6 "2004-05-21T23:52:42Z")
> [@zoltar7](#): > > My understanding has always been that a sunroof is metal and painted the same as the car, while a moonroof is glass. Under this definition, most (all?) modern cars have moonroofs. That’s pretty much the way the terms are used in this here neck of the woods. Sunroofs-\> Metal, moonroofs -\> glass. I’ve never heard it any other way, but apparently, after looking at some other sites, the two mean different things to different people. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/7 "2004-05-21T23:59:06Z")
Sunroof - Glass car roofs that would hinge open for air, but could not be removed. Moonroof - Glass car roofs that could be completely removed so the passenger could stick their bare ass out and moon everyone. Come on! Get with the program! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/8 "2004-05-22T00:00:19Z")
FWIW, actually using the term ‘moonroof’ in the UK would get some verrrrry strange looks. Anything that opens is a sunroof. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/9 "2004-05-22T00:40:39Z")
If you’re a stoner and like to drive around all night gettin’ blazed, it’s a “Moon Roof”. If you’re a good, law-abiding citizen, that goes to work during the day and stays at home and watches Must-See-TV or porn all night, then it’s a “Sun Roof”. I won’t state which one I have on my car… ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/10 "2004-05-22T02:40:13Z")
> [@zoltar7](#): > > My understanding has always been that a sunroof is metal and painted the same as the car, OK, feel free to call me stupid, but… HUH? 😕 If it’s metal and painted the same color as the car, isn’t that a roof? How does the sun shine through a sunroof as you’ve defined it? ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/11 "2004-05-22T02:45:23Z")
Sunroofs and moonroofs both _open_. A sunroof is opaque when it’s closed, while a moonroof, being made of glass, lets light in. Moonlight, for instance, when one wants the experience of a sunroof on a cold night. Most (all?) moonroofs have an opaque shade on the inside, for those times when you don’t want the sun shining in. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sun-roof-vs-moon-roof/246442/12 "2004-05-22T02:46:32Z")
Whoops – I forgot! “Stupid!”