Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This review applies to all Coolaroo sun shades, regardless of size or style. While the fabric is great, a number of critical parts are cheap brittle plastic that crack after a year or so. One of these parts is a sort of plastic spring known as an "idle end clip". When it cracks (and it will), you won't be able to raise/lower the shade correctly. They last about a year (even in full shade 24/7), so it's best to order a dozen or so from Coolaroo (currently two dollars per clip). While you're doing that, you might as well lay in a store of "bottom rail end caps" (currently a dollar fifty per cap). There's no reason why these parts couldn't be made of a material suitable for hot sunny outdoor environments (e.g., aluminum). But I imagine this would eat into Coolaroo's brisk spare parts sales. Moreover, so long as others continue to give Coolaroo glowing reviews, there's no incentive for them to change their business model. So, yes, by all means buy a Coolaroo if you're willing to spend another forty dollars or so for spare parts over the lifetime of the shade. HINT: You can avoid annually replacing Coolaroo's plastic rail end caps by using metal hole plugs instead. Lowes sells Hillman Group 3/4" chrome hole plugs that will fit (although you'll need to tap them in with a hammer). These are the sort of end cap solutions Coolaroo should have used in the first place.