Need a sun shield

There is a company called Heatshield that makes excellent sunshades. Theres a custom fit one in every one of the 6 cars in my garage/driveway. The dealers out here sell them in the parts departments. You can try checking on the floor in the parts department or seeing if you would be able to special order one. Costs about $30 last time I bought one.

Here is an example of what I'm talking about.

http://www.afterthoughtsauto.com/cahe1.html

 

You should find them for sale in the PriusChat store. That's where I got mine.

 

If you want the custom fit HeatShield, you can get it at the PriusChat Store for $30 delivered:

PriusChat Shop : Toyota Prius HeatShield Sunshade - Front - $30.00

If you don't want to spend so much, then I recommend measuring the approximate width and height of the windshield and going to an auto parts store to get one of the generic folding shields in the closest size. That's what I did, and the shield works substantially as well as the HeatShield, is probably easier to use and may last longer than the HeatShield (from what I hear), and costs a lot less -- only about $10 regularly, and $6 or $7 on sale.

The other inexpensive shield I like are those with spring wire. One big advantage of these spring wire shields is that they fold into a little square that you can tuck into a front seatback pocket or under the front seats. But these are a little harder to find. Someone gave me mine, and it happened to also be the right fit for my Prius.

 

I recommend HeatShield too. I first used a cheap generic model and I ended up with a distorted dash display, described here, that the shade might have contributed to.

The only minor drawback to the HeatShield shade is that it tends to sag in the middle. Some (Efusco, for example) have reinforced theirs by inserting a stiff thin rod or two (wood or fiberglass, IIRC) between the layers. To keep her legs warm in the winter, my fiancee keeps a lightweight blanket stored in a plastic bag beneath the front passenger seat, so I just grab the bag and place in the middle of the dash to prevent the shade from sagging.

 

I got the one from the PriusChat store and I extended the strap on it so I don't have to roll it up so tight when storing it

 

I bought the stiff folding one from International Autosport. It is custom fitted to the Prius, and works much better than the roll up ones. It is more expensive, but should last longer and is a delight to use after struggling with my old off-the-shelf one for years, which started to come apart, and never fit right in the first place.

They take about 2 weeks to get to you since they are custom made.

 

If you go full custom I'd suggest a fold-up. The rollups tend to sag, and if their straps are glued on the glue can melt in the window heat.

 

That's true. One of mine came loose, but an easy fix was stapling it back into place. I had forgotten that because the fix has been effective.

 

This one does not sag, not yet anyway. I'm not sure if it's different than the one offered for $30 in this Forum. This one will be a little more than $30 with shipping charge (and sales tax if you're in Calif)

Toyota Prius 2002-2003 Custom Sun Shade Sunshade - NEW!:eBay Motors (item 130141875520 end time Jul-28-09 13:06:16 PDT)

 

Wrong model years.

 

Try here: AutoSport Catalog - Sun Shades & Visors 800-953-0814

 

That one seems much better than the HeatShield, and might be worth the $49 price (not to me, but to someone in sunny, hot weather states).

 

See post #5.

 

Heatshield for sure, very happy with mine

-Matt

 

Referring to the Autosport site: I have the Introtech and am not not entirely happy with it. I may dump it and get the "Ultraviolet Heat Shield":
AutoSport Catalog - Ultraviolet Heat Shield 800-953-0814

 

Yes, the Ultraviolet Heat Shield was the one that seemed OK to me too -- much better than the HeatShield -- and just might be worth its high price of $49.

 

Question, is the heat shield on PC reflective, i.e. aluminum foil like on the exposed side?