[melgish]

Ever since the lovely Mrs. Melgish left the half-breed in the airport parking lot for a week, my sun-shade (a PriusChat group purchase, I believe) has been sagging in the middle. It’s getting worse day by day.

First, I thought about getting a dashboard statuette of Jesus, or Mary to help prop it up, but that may be considered irreverent, or even sacrilegious. It may even make my dear Prius the target of international terrorism.

I tried flipping it over and putting the white side out, and that helps some, but it still sags. The truth of the matter is that it needs to be replaced.

Now I figure that there must have been great progress in sun-shade manufacture since August 2004, and there should be more options available. (Also, I’ve clean forgotten where I ordered the original 2004 sun-shade)

So, who can recommend a good replacement?

 

[DanMan32]

Was it you that came up with the idea of inserting sticks to increase the integrity of the sun-shades?

I know someone did anyway. However the thread could have been lost in the crashes.

 

[richard schumacher]

When I bought mine the IntroTech custom shade sold by [email protected] [email protected] was cheaper, a better fit, and better made than the Canvas Works shade (the IT strap was stitched; glued-on straps can soften and pull off in summer heat).

Both of them sag in the middle over time. I used a prop for a while but an internal support is more convenient. I installed one thusly (of course the shade design may have changed since, which may require modifying these instructions):

Get a 3/16”” x 36” wooden dowel. (Hobby Lobby sells them for $0.25.)
Roll out the shade on a table white side up.
Position the dowel vertically in the middle of the shade. (When installed the dowel will extend from the space between the dash and the windsh!eld, and point up to the rear view mirror.)
Draw a line on the shade. (The line will guide you while inserting the dowel. The dowel must be inserted accurately enough [close enough to vertical] so that the shade will still roll up easily.)
Cut the dowel 1/2” shorter than the vertical height of the shade. (The dowel must fit inside between the lower and upper seams.)
Carve a blunt point on one end of the dowel. (This will aid insertion of the dowel inside the shade between the insulation layer and the white plastic. Don’t make the point very sharp or it will be easy for it to puncture the shade while you’re inserting the dowel.)
Cut a 1/2” horizontal slit in the white plastic at one end of the guide line, close to the seam in the shade. Use a razor blade or sharp knife and be careful not to cut all the way through the shade.
Insert the pointed end of the dowel in the slit and carefully work it up, following the guide line. Pulling the shade material past the tip of the dowel may work better than pushing the dowel.

Alternate method (the result may look less tidy but the work is much easier): Cut the dowel to length and tape it in place using some wide tape like duct tape or cloth tape. I didn’t try this because it gets hot enough here that some tape adhesives soften and pull loose, but there must be some that will work.

 

[Tideland Prius]

Was it you that came up with the idea of inserting sticks to increase the integrity of the sun-shades?

I know someone did anyway. However the thread could have been lost in the crashes.

It was Evan who did surgery on his sunshade.

 

[melgish]

While I can't believe John Cleese would approve of using pointed sticks, the low cost of the solution makes it worth a try.

More news as it breaks.

 

[DanMan32]

It was Evan who did surgery on his sunshade.

Ah yes, that's right.

 

[SYNCMASTER]

I never liked the unroll type of sun shield so I bought the fold up type from autoanything.com

here is the link:
http://www.autoanything.com/driving-acc ... 88078.aspx

I think it is easier to handle and is has not warped so far (1 year old now)

 

[richard schumacher]

Hmm, I may have to buy this or another fold-up type to compare to the rollups. The fold-ups look as though they should never sag, but the comments from some buyers about gaps give me pause.

 

[efusco]

Yup, it was me a bit over a year ago and I'm pretty happy with my solution. No more sagging, the shade still folds up nicely.

Basicly what I did was make 2 1cm slits at the top inside (white side facing inside the car) of the shade. I cut a fiberglass rod to length and inserted it through the holes to add rigidity.

 

[Hep]

Think I could slip a couple of those puppies in my shirt so I don't sag in the middle? :roll:

 

[KTPhil]

I think Evan invented the WonderShade!

 

[David Beale]

I'm dissapointed - he didn't use a scalpel.

 

[GaryW]

low tech sun shade fix

My solution for a sagging roll-up shade was even more low tech.

I have a small pillow that I wedge between the center speaker and the shade. The center of the shade is now pushed up tight against the glass. The very edges are something that I'd like to duplicate the stick trick if I could to make them block more sunlight.

Plus, if the Missus ever makes me wait in the car while she shops I'll have a pillow ready to be pressed into service for a nap. The shade, if needed, can just sag in that case.

 

[RG]

Dr. Fusco,
Kind of reminds me of intermedulary rods! :lol:

 

[Sanny]

Think I could slip a couple of those puppies in my shirt so I don't sag in the middle? :roll:

I'd need more than a couple. And they'd have to go cross wise in some places! Way too much like work - I think I'll just be happy with the sagging.

 

[pirateprius]

I have the one from AutoAnything like Syncmaster posted pictures of and like it so far. No problem to set up and take down - just takes seconds - and not difficult to store.

 

[Picasso Moon]

I have the one from AutoAnything like Syncmaster posted pictures of and like it so far. No problem to set up and take down - just takes seconds - and not difficult to store.

Another vote for the CoverCraft UVS100 from AutoAnything. Best sunshade I have ever used and I've tried most types at one time or another. This is the 4th one I owned for various cars I've had and would not hesitate to buy it again. Well worth the money since I use it every day all year round. Outstanding fit, easy to install/remove, easy to store, won't sag and lasts a long time.