I mostly have bought used cars because I don't want to compromise. I want what I want.

I still have less than 1000 miles on mine, as I've yet made the first payment. From what few times I got to test out the panoramic roof, I'm very happy with it. Especially the feature that auto-closes the shade when you park and then re-opens it. I have had glass or panoramic roofs on my cars now since they got popular in the late 2000s and have no regrets. My other car is mostly a 'glass roof' with no shade/opening. I used to be a convertible only owner but those have fallen out of style and are hard to find.

 

Do you mean "new" cars? Otherwise, I'm not sure I'm following your logic.

 

My wife says she loves it and wouldn't want one without it

I think that's funny because the rare times I drive it, I never open it or even the shade.

So I feel like if I were to buy one for myself I'd probably go without it

Of course I DD a Wrangler, so if I want open roof feeling, well I have that available in spades and at a level I'd never get with the Defender anyway.

 

I opted NOT to have one. I have the oyster headliner and khaki leather and find the interior to be quite pleasant. In bright sunshine at certain angles the instruments and LED telltales on the steering wheel become nearly invisible as it is. I had a Wrangler with the removal panels for 10 years, almost never used the feature. My previous daily driver was a 2015 Mini Cooper S with a sunroof. Rarely used, and mostly annoying when it was in use. My wife never opens the sunroof on her Subaru. So as far I am concerned it was an expensive option that would likely be seldom used.

That said I have owned literally dozens of British roadsters, Alfa Spiders, and Miatas over the last 48 years of car ownership (not all at once!) so I do enjoy open top motoring in the proper setting. Current toy: 1967 TR4A.

 

Really it is totally personal preference. If my wife is in the car I never open it. She does not like the effect on her careful grooming. In her own car, which has one, she never retracts the sunshield. I almost never use mine, since my head, as it turns out, has almost no hair left on it. So excess sun is not something I am looking for. Where it comes in whoppingly useful is in über hot places. I leave it open with the sunshade backed down a bit to let hot air out. Of course it rather compromises security. Then again, once while living in Sicily, they broke the passenger side window to get a pair of jeans, while the driver's side was wide open. Go figure. I did use it the other day to center the roof while I was lifting off the rack under my hanger crane. Made it fairly straight forward to center the car. As for visibility, well you really cannot see out of it in the driving position, you kind of have to crane your head back a bit. It is nice for rear seat passengers to get a really nice view. My guests who for reasons that escape me, when they want to go to Sedona, I drive down 89 and they love the view (mine is usually a large slow moving RV).

If your wife likes her hair like she set it up, or you do not need additional sun on your head, never play canyon tour guide and look to avoid leaks later in the future, then pass. If you want to retain one item that tends to help sell the car downstream, then get it. Personally, none of them have ever leaked on me, even the '68 VW Squareback. I have heard stories of it happening and they never seem to be able to fix it. Somehow, my cars always have them and I never order them. I did own a Porsche Targa, it leaked like a recently depth charged U boat, even if it wasn't raining, but that was different and a really, really, really bad design. If some fool hadn't rocked up and took it off my hands, it was a serious candidate for an unexplained total loss by fire.

 

My last car didn’t have a sunroof, my current car does. I can’t see myself owning another car without the sunroof, at this point I think it’s a dealbreaker.

​​​​​​Do you have a sunroof now? If not and you don’t mind it then you’ll probably be fine in the Defender; the opposite is also true.

 

Before getting a Defender, I’ve had a LR4 for many years. The three sunroofs make it feel so nice and roomy. I was absolutely sure about getting the panoramic roof. I prefer the fresh air weather permitting.

However, if you’re planning to get the expedition roof rack - I don’t see the point in getting a panoramic roof since the rack blocks most of the light.

 

Expensive addition for sure but put me in the must have camp. I love the airy feeling in the cabin and around town it is not too loud for me even with the expedition rack. It’s a must have for me as I enjoy motoring with the sun roof open when I remember to open it!

 

its a "must have" like power windows

 

so an "all or nothing" approach!!! I like your style