jsanders7120

well, im a prod owner of a 2014 velocity yellow corvette for 7 months... second vette i've owned over the years.... The reason for this post is not to get more embarrassed than i already am but to just warn people out there that you must be very carefull not to forget to latch the top down after re-enstall (sounds like a no brainer!) I'm reffering to the targa top. well, i got side tracked the other day and forgot. I took off like a bat out of hell with the windows down and whooshhh!!! top came flying off at 80mph!!! So, whatever little ritual you can do to remind yourself i recommend you stick to it.... example... maybe before install, push visors toward windshield (this way before you drive you will maybe say hmmm why are the visors forward and will notice the latches unlocked. maybe tie a string to one latch that hangs down on drivers side and wrap around latch right before locking.... or you could not worry about it and simply lock latches without forgetting like i have in the past over 600 times.... either way, it only takes one time to forget and you will end up in my situation. luckily no one was injured (only my pride and wallet). That being said, believe it or not the top survived rather well (gotta love carbon fiber) minor scratches and chips. part of the interior frame where lock handle mounts to the underpanel is cracked. top fitted right back on, latched the locks, and was on my way! if this even only saves one other corvette owner from going through this i will feel this post served its purpose......

P.s. just incase you are wondering im only 42 years old!! So, go out there and drive your vette like you stole it!!! thats what corvettes are designed to do! JUst make sure you lock your top down before doing so!!!

seel2000

Ummmm. Wow

Papas02C5

Welcome to the "Flying Roof Club" I personally am not a member but over the years I have read a lot of threads like this one...... This is one club I don't want to join.. Sorry about your roof. That would suck....

jsanders7120

I know this may sound lame, but a sensor light and chime would be nice! hell, cars let you know is the hatch of trunk isnt fully shut, or door for that matter, all of which arent nearly as dangerous as the top flying off!! lol!

ArcticC7

At the Chevrolet launch of the C7 Chevrolet invited the Corvette clubs to the Chicago auto show for a private showing of the C7. The first question I asked was if the new car included a top warning light and a front curb warning system. You know the answer and the look I got from the engineering people there.

jsanders7120

my new pre drive check list...only addition is #4

1. track mode on!
2. radar detector on!
3. traction and stability contol off!
4. latches on top locked (if top is on anyway!)

ahhh, oh well, have to just laugh at it now... whats done is done...

jsanders7120

I'm in on the front crub sensor too... lol. seeing as i lower ever car i own.

WKMCD

My last Vette was a convertible. This one's a coupe. I just got in the habit of checking every time I got in the car even if I just ran into the 7/11. **** but I never became a member of the FRC - Flying Roof Club.

davidtcpa

Wow. Did the car get messed up?

bradc6

Lacoven

repo czar

I am a member of the Flying Roof Club. We were on a bridge over water going 50 mph in the 2008 Atomic Orange C6.
Amazingly the top landed on the road and not in the water. There was a lot of traffic but it didn't hit anyone. The car behind us stopped traffic as my wife ran back to get it. Even more amazing it landed with the painted side up and didn't have a scratch on it. The impact of the landing broke the frame of the top but it still fit on the car.
I have the same routine mentioned above when I get in the car to make sure the latches are tight.

rothchilds

wow, that sucks. Was anyone behind you? I know that would scare the **** outta me if I was behind a car and I saw the roof come flying at me.

rcooper

Never had the problem, thankfully. Wife's Camaro SS had the passenger side T top frisbee on IH 35 at 80 mph, we circled back around, got it, two marks on it, landed in the grass top up. When we put it back on the car you could not see the damage.
Sorry that you had lost your top.

1KULC7

I see no reason why the GM/Chevy engineers could not put a microswitch or sensor like they have for doors or truck open for the roof panel. This would really help when you start the car.

repo czar

Yes the road was full of traffic. The car behind me stopped and it fortunately fell in front of her. She stopped traffic for us so we could go back and get it. It was a two lane bridge.

alienranch

Sorry to hear about that. I always wondered what would happen if the rear latch was secure, but not the front. Would it flip backwards and rip the hinge off?

sycraft

Had a friend forget to latch his t top after attaching his gopro..

StingerBG

Did you at least get out afterwards, climb onto the hood, and then jump onto a moving tractor trailer like in the first "Fast and the Furious"?!! I believe I would have to just so it looked like it was meant to happen!

11B250

Too funny!

My trans am had T tops, and luckily it never went out flying lol. Thanks for the reminder though! lol...