Vehicle with a protective sun shade in the roof

A motor vehicle comprising:

• a vehicle body having a roof which includes an exterior dimensionally stable roof skin and an interior headliner, said roof skin and headliner defining an interior roof space, at least one downwardly extending window adjoining the roof, said roof having at least one interior window shade slit communicating with the interior roof space, a flexible window shade web extending through the window shade slit and being at least partially retractable into the interior roof space, a drive system housed in the interior roof space for moving the window shade web back and forth between a retracted position and an extended position in which the window shade extends downwardly at least partially in front of an interior side of the window, said drive system including a mechanical drive for operating said drive system and moving the window shade web between said retracted and extended positions, said window shade having a stiffening rod at a leading edge that is movable with the web away from said slit during movement of said web to the extended position, said drive system including at least one bendable connecting member attached to said stiffening rod and being movable in outward relation to said slit in response to said operation of mechanical drive for pushing said stiffening rod and web toward said extended position, and said at least one connecting member being sufficiently rigid to force the stiffening rod and web to said extended position and being sufficiently flexible to bend downwardly from said roof slit during movement of said web to said extended position for biasing the web into close relation to the interior side of the window during movement to said extended position.