Patent ID: 7537265

Claim:
A vehicle rear structure comprising: a tailgate adapted to openably cover a rear opening defined between a pair of right and left rear pillars formed in a rear of a vehicle body, the vehicle body having a front end and a rear end and longitudinal axis; a tonneau cover adapted to be disposed to cover an upper side of a rear cargo compartment located in front of said rear opening; a pull bar provided at a rear end of said tonneau cover; and a pair of right and left guide rails slidably supporting respective opposite right and left ends of said pull bar, wherein said pull bar is adapted to be slidingly displaced along said guide rails so as to allow the rear end of said tonneau cover to be moved upwardly and downwardly, wherein said right and left guide rails are parallel to each other; each of said guide rails has an upper end and a lower end, the guide rail extends linearly between the upper end and lower end, said upper end being located at a position overlapping a corresponding one of the rear pillars as seen directly at the pillar along the longitudinal axis of the vehicle from the rear end toward the front end of the vehicle, said upper end being position in front of said rear pillar as seen from a firect side view of said rear pillar of the vehicle, wherein the direct side view is a line of sight at said rear pillar and the line of sight intersects the longitudinal axis of the vehicle at about 90 degrees, and said lower end being located at a position overlapping said rear pillar as seen from the direct side view of the vehicle.