[dmhines]

FYI .. not sure of all the specs of the cars having issue with rear cover but if its a 2014 A6 then there is a chance your rear bumper cover has been removed an then reinstalled by dealer. There was a Recall for the rear Transmission cooler on automatic cars and the cooler was replaced on all cars in dealer inventory. The dealer did not disclose this too me but when I called GM Customer service about a warranty question they told me that in the cars history they see the dealer replaced the cooler prior to it being sold to me.

 

[Z06 Owned]

I'm trying to get these two panels a little closer to one another. Anyone know the secret?

You can try loosening the screws under the rear hatch trim (it simply pulls out with gentle persuasion), then push against the cover while simultaneously re-tightening the screws...

You might end up with the dreaded side bumper bulge if you make that gap tight...just FYI.

 

[TNSQUIRE]

You can try loosening the screws under the rear hatch trim (it simply pulls out with gentle persuasion), then push against the cover while simultaneously re-tightening the screws...

You might end up with the dreaded side bumper bulge if you make that gap tight...just FYI.

I have already dealt with the bulge. The body shop had to replace the bracket under the two panels.

 

[Drezx6r]

So it seems from what I'm reading is that the bulge is only on cars that have had the rear end removed to put on the spoiler at the dealership. Anyone without a spoiler have the bulge?

 

[Drezx6r]

Body guy at my dealership posed a good question. He said he wonders if it's a problem with the shape of the spoiler that is pulling the rear out of shape.

 

[Z06 Owned]

So it seems from what I'm reading is that the bulge is only on cars that have had the rear end removed to put on the spoiler at the dealership. Anyone without a spoiler have the bulge?

Mine has the bulge from the factory. Some have said the bumper cover is too long at the mating line, so proper mounting often results in a bulge on one side. I've seen the issue on several brand new C7s, but not all, so the long bumper cover theory may be incorrect.

There is an inner retention tab molded to the side of the bumper cover where it bulges. The tab is screwed to a body mounted bracket through a spring clip. It can be accessed by removing the tail lamp bezel. When I have time, I'm going to elongate the hole on the retention tab, which should allow me to adjust the fit.

I've procrastinated, since I got mine to fit pretty good without drilling. But, it could be better.

 

[purpleRac3r]

Drezx6r, I tend to doubt that theory. I have the factory-installed Z51 spoiler with no fascia bulge whatsoever. Same goes for several other Z51s friends in my local club have, as well as a couple of Z06s I've been able to look at locally. I would also think if the spoiler were the culprit, the problem would be where it mounts to the fascia, not where the fascia mounts to the fenders.

I think Z06 Owner has the right idea. If the mounting holes accessible from behind the taillight bezels is a little bigger, or perhaps slotted, it would allow for more adjustment. I have to wonder if perhaps the screw hole in the retaining bracket isn't as precisely located as it should be, being right in some batches, but not so much in others. Maybe one of the molds is bad and the part manufacturer hasn't caught it yet.

 

[TucsonDave]

I had the bulge on my 2014 C7 and have not had the spoiler put on. I had my dealer look at it once, they said "we aligned it as best we could" - no real change. As soon as the weather got hot again - it bulged again. This last time I had the body shop look at it. They suceeded in moving the bumper facia back away from where it was pinching against the next body panel, but now the front lower edge "flaps" in and out. The service adviser claimed there was no bracket there, but I have now seen photos on this thread that prove that wrong. I'm going back to complain...

 

[TNSQUIRE]

I had the bulge on my 2014 C7 and have not had the spoiler put on. I had my dealer look at it once, they said "we aligned it as best we could" - no real change. As soon as the weather got hot again - it bulged again. This last time I had the body shop look at it. They suceeded in moving the bumper facia back away from where it was pinching against the next body panel, but now the front lower edge "flaps" in and out. The service adviser claimed there was no bracket there, but I have now seen photos on this thread that prove that wrong. I'm going back to complain...

They finally resolved my bulging panel by replacing the entire bracket between the quarter panel and the rear fascia. When I first went I with this issue, we walked their showroom and found 3 more with the same issue. My current issue is too much gap between the quarter panel and rear fascia. I would rather have that than the bulge though.

 

[SMKN C7]

I had this bulge on the driver's side rear panel. I was able to remove for what seems permantly by removing the rear tire mud flap, loosening the panel screws and realigning the lower portion of the panel. Retightened the screws and havent had an issue since. I found this process not to be intrusive and really simple. It was easier than taking the car back to the dealer and i got to tinker a bit.

My z51 spoiler was installed by the dealer. I assumed the misalignment was done then.

 

[Joeysride]

Hey you're not alone with this, my bumper cover is too far over to the right by about 1/8 an inch and it is noticeable too. And it also sticks up about a 1/16 of an inch in bith corners -I Didn't know this was a warranty thing- I will be checking with the dealership on the 22nd since I'm scheduled for service. Also my driver side headlight sticks up far too much when compared to the passenger side light. I'm hoping these are minor adjustments, I had a body shop look at this and he didn't wanna touch it. I'll report back once I get an answer. Good luck!

 

[TNSQUIRE]

I took my 2014 in today for a panel alignment on the rear quarter panels. It started as this:

And finished as this:

The shop foreman said they were able to get better alignment by switching fasteners. This is the factory fastener:

This is what they changed to:

If anyone else is having a similar panel alignment issue you may want to discuss changing the fasteners.

 

[Z06 Owned]

In the bottom photo, only 1 bolt is installed in that area from the factory. Wonder why they installed an extra bolt?

Those are older style "body bolts". They have more "clamping" power than the OEM torx bolt. Ready available, which is good.

Glad it looks good on the outside & the dealer's mod is hidden under the rear hatch trim.

 

[TNSQUIRE]

Did you loosen the new bolt (on right in bottom photo) to look underneath. Guessing they possibly opened the hole in the plastic (possibly creating slotted openings), requiring a bolt with washer to cover the wider hole.

In the bottom photo, only 1 bolt is installed in that area from the factory. Wonder why they installed an extra bolt. Guessing the bolt on the right was not holding well after widening the hole. Again, just a guess.

Those are older style "body bolts". Ready available, which is good.

Glad it looks good on the outside & the dealer's mod is hidden under the rear hatch trim.

I did not look under the panel. At this point I' just glad they were able to resolve the issue. They said they have seen a lot of these issues with the 2014 builds. Apparently GM resolved the issue with 2015+.

 

[Z06 Owned]

No. My 2015 has the same issue, dependent on temperature.

 

[cjenkinsC7]

Instead of getting it adjusted, I am going to wait for the temperature to drop. I think the rear fascia expands with the heat and humidity.

 

[cjenkinsC7]

When I bought it, the rear fascia was flush

 

[SG1ltzf1]

I agree with family and life events are more important,
However we all paid good money for theses cars and I feel GM needs slow down make them better. I changed out my grill to the Zo6 grill and as I took the grill off there was a pile of shims on one side. It's just frustrating. As much as I love the car I hate it just as much. As they say it is what it is.

 

[rdslon01]

Here is what a build finished in February 2016 looked like straight from the factory:

I had to take the rear fascia off anyway to swap the tail lights to red, so I fixed the above issue when we reinstalled the rear fascia. Because of information on this forum, I knew that there are tabs on the rear fascia which are meant to insert into slots attached to the car. By simply ensuring that all the tabs went into their respective slots, the bulge was resolved, thankfully.

 

[mjw930]

Poor panel fit was one of the reasons I sold mine........