US Patent 7410198 Automotive vehicle with repositionable D-pillar roof structure

An automotive vehicle body includes a tailgate and a repositionable D-pillar structure which is slidingly engaged with the body and movable from a first position adjacent the tailgate to a second position forward of the tailgate. A sliding backlite may either be retracted within the tailgate or carried upon and moved with the D-pillar structure. In one embodiment, quarter window panels, which may be either glass or other types of solid panels, are positionable within either the window openings of the D-pillar roof structure or within housings contained within the vehicle's quarter panels.