[The Wait Isn't Over]

Summer is here and with it comes all the thunderstorms, some with large hail. Just curious if anyone has endured hail to their C7 or previous generation Vette and what the effects were. I don't think carbon fiber and fiberglass can dent, but if you open the hood on the C7 and feel how flimsy it is it would be a wonder if it didn't get damaged.

 

[spaceaholic]

Very beneficial ....for body shops

 

[smajicek]

C7 has no fiberglass, it is composite plastic and carbon fiber from what I heard? Corrections are welcome from the experts

Correct that the C7 panels are composite, technically known as "sheet molded compound" (SMC). Exception, as we know, the carbon fiber hood, and on a coupe, a carbon fiber roof.

On the C7, the amount of fiberglass material within the SMC went down from 24.8% in the C6, to 20.8%. Might not seem like much, but this helped in reducing weight, and more importantly, allowed the body panels gaps for the C7 to be reduced by 40% -- which not only looks nicer, reduces aero drag, and also susceptibility to cracking from large-sized hail (less glass in the skin, more flexibility in the C7's panels).

http://www.stingrayforums.com/forum/stingray-corvette-news/615-c7-body-panel-gaps-40-narrower.html

 

[ronkh]

Might crack the paint

 

[Dasyatis]

I think it really depends on the size of the hail. Pea size, likely not a problem. Grapefruit size, that's going to suck.

 

[Chip]

I think it really depends on the size of the hail. Pea size, likely not a problem. Grapefruit size, that's going to suck.

Sadly about the only thing that would survive "grapefruit sized" hail is an M1A1 Abrams Tank! That is excepting Jim Cantore...

 

[Liner Boy]

Living in Texas where spring hail storms are a way of life, anything bigger than quarter size hail is going to be ugly. From personal experience, the hail not only pings the top panels, it will scuff the side panels as well when the hail is wind driven. Last hail repair job on a Lexus RX350, was 3 weeks in the body shop and about 5 grand. Mine was one of the easy ones to fix.


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