Abstract

A protective cover for a vehicle formed of a sheet of protective material having a plurality of magnetic portions distributed at intervals throughout the sheet to secure the cover to the vehicle. The sheet is pleated or otherwise adapted to be disposed in a closed storage configuration. Adjacent magnets correspond spatially to one another so as to be magnetically attracted to one another when the sheet is folded or otherwise disposed in its storage configuration. Adjacent pairs of magnets are further separated from subsequent pairs of magnets to minimize overlap of the magnets and corresponding width of the folded sheet.Preferably, the sheet is formed of a plastic material, such as a nonwettable polyethylene material. Further, to adequately protect the vehicle from sunlight, the sheet should have an optical opacity of at least 80%.The invention is attached to a vehicle by initially attaching a portion of the cover to a portion of the vehicle using at least one of the plurality of magnets. Further portions are secured to the vehicle as the cover is placed over the vehicle. Thus, the sheet-like protective cover is initially provided in a closed storage configuration and further portions of the vehicle are covered as the cover is opened.