Referred to as a ‘sucker’ shade, given they are applied with plastic suction cups that stick to the glass, this solution is one of the cheapest options on the market at around £10 for a pack of 2. They come in a set size and usually collapse down into a small handy storage bag. They are also often available with printed characters on them to help keep little ones amused in the back.
Being a universal fit means sucker shades don’t cover all of the glass, therefore allowing the sun to still come through part of the window and into little eyes which can irritate them and make life stressful for others, including the driver.
They are very easy to fit, all you have to do is stick them on to your window, but as quickly as they are applied, they are also just as easily removed, especially by small hands and wandering fingers, and can easily lose suction and fall off of their own accord, which is not ideal.
Because they are applied to the glass, it means that you aren’t able to lower the windows whilst they are in place, which can be difficult if any passengers in the back start to feel a little queasy and you want to get some fresh air into the car quickly. You also have to be aware of accidentally pressing the wrong window button, the last thing you want is Peppa Pig popping off and cart wheeling down the motorway behind you!
While considerably less money, sucker shades don’t always last long due to the flimsy nature of the product and therefore can need replacing more frequently.
‘Window socks’ are an affordable and practical car blind, that offers full coverage of the passenger windows, and is at a similar price point to a ‘sucker’ shade. Window socks are also supplied in packs of 2 to cover just the rear passenger windows.
As the name suggests, these are like a sock that fits over the top of the entire door which means you have material on the outside of the door as well as inside, which does help provide a good level of shade.
Fitting is quick and quite straight forward, however many makes are supplied with straps at the bottom that need to be fastened or hooked on to the door somewhere to secure and tighten the shade, but the straps are prone to getting trapped in the door and catching the paintwork. You can however still operate the window whilst they are in place to allow air in to the car when required.
The big drawback with this solution is the appearance, given they are a universal size they don’t always fit the door tightly and therefore can be baggy and flap considerably when travelling, – especially at high speeds! This can be distracting and annoying for everyone, and when it rains, no one likes a soggy wet sock!
This solution is arguably the most comparable to Car Shades as they cover the window perfectly, and are applied to all rear windows of a vehicle.
Many new vehicles today are often supplied with tints already in place, so we often get asked “why would we need Car Shades when our windows are already tinted?”. Although the tint you have in place may offer you sufficient protection, many tints are only a partial tint, for example 30%. Therefore the addition of a Car Shade can really increase the sun protection for the those in the back, as well as further enhancing the appearance of the vehicle as it makes the window tints look even darker. The big difference is in the operation of the window, as soon as you lower the window, you no longer have any sun protection, unlike Car Shades that remain in place.
If you want to retro fit window tints to your car, this can be quite costly at around £100 upwards and is usually best fitted by a garage, although they can be fitted at home if you’re confident to get a perfect finish.
We like to think that Car Shades take the positives from all of the other solutions and combine them into one great car sun blind.
Firstly, they are vehicle specific and have been made to fit the size of your rear car windows perfectly as they have been made and sewn by hand at our factory in Nottinghamshire.
Our full sets of Car Shades come with shades to cover all rear windows of your car, including the boot,which are notorious for letting light into the vehicle for children and babies that you have rear facing.
Independent lab tests concluded that a Car Shade offers a 72% reduction in light compared to windows that did not have any sun protection in place, but it’s important to note that given Car Shades use a mesh fabric like sucker shades and window socks, so they do not offer a total blackout solution.
Fitting is easy too. You can easily do this at home in around 10 minutes, and they fit using our special clips. This means the shades aren’t stuck to the glass, therefore you can still wind the window down, get some fresh air into the car – all whilst keeping the shade in place and stopping any nasty bugs from getting in as you continue on with your journey!
If you did want to remove your shades, for example if you were travelling at night and wanted to remove the tailgate shades, they pop out in seconds and are easily stored in the storage bag that is supplied as standard with all sets.
And finally, we really care that you love your Car Shades, so we offer a 30 day money guarantee – meaning if you don’t love them for any reason, you can simply return them for a full refund!
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