Patent ID: 6988766

Claim:
A sealing structure for sealing between a roof cover of a motor vehicle and a roof opening portion thereof, comprising: a plurality of panels including at least one sliding panel, wherein the panels form the roof cover and are arranged in a longitudinal direction of a vehicle roof; a frame member secured along the roof opening portion under the roof cover; and a weather strip attached to said frame member, said weather strip including a base portion for attachment to said frame member, and a tubular seal portion which is formed integrally with said base portion on the upper side thereof for providing a seal between said sliding panel and another of said panels, said tubular seal portion having a bridge part in an interior space thereof, wherein the bridge part curves toward an upper part of said tubular seal portion, one end of said bridge part being connected to said tubular seal portion at a position slightly below a position at which an edge of said sliding panel engages the tubular seal portion when said sliding panel is closed, and the other end of said bridge part being connected to said base portion, such that when said sliding panel is slid to a closed state and into engagement with said tubular seal portion, said bridge part supports said tubular seal portion to prevent deformation of a lower part of said tubular seal portion, and when said sliding panel is lowered into said tubular seal portion, said bridge part elastically flexes to enable said upper part of said tubular seal portion to elastically contact a lower surface of said sliding panel such that when said tubular seal portion is pushed by any force generated due to sliding and lowering of said sliding panel, said bridge part prevents abnormal tilting and deformation of said tubular seal portion, to form an effective seal between said sliding panel and said other panel.