I am getting ready to install my rear carbon quarter panel flares and would like to know how do you remove the two mounting screws on the quarter fender below the halo.I have a 99 coupe. Thanks Rob

 

Those screws your referring to are not for the quarter panels. The only screws you need to worry about are along the doors, inner hatch, and the one's holding the rear bumper to the quarter panels.

 

Good info as usual from the forum.

 

...and the fuel tank access panel four screws too on the driver's side. If it is the same as the vert, the first screw towards the driver/passenger seat must be installed first as it sets the alignment.

 

Thanks

 

robs68, the guys seemed to answer your question well so I hope you don't mind if I hijack your thread. I guess you'll have to yell at me after I do so.

I'm in the decision mode where you've just been, get flares or quarters with flares. The problem I have is I don't get to see anyones' cars before I take on these projects. With flares there is the glasswork to blend them into the fenders. With quarters there is the work getting them to fit with the other panels while the factory quarters already fit perfectly.

What made you choose quarters and not just flares? What brand quarters did you buy and why? Do they appear to line up well and won't have any major fitment issues?

Maybe I should have emailed you so I hope you don't mind but other members might wonder a few of these things as well.

 

I don't want to put words into Robs mouth, but judging by his initial post he referred to the carbon quarter panels. As far as I know only forum vendor quick z06 sells them. These are flared panels as opposed to buying a flare and integrated a set of flares into the panels. Although an argument can be made, IMO it would be more cost effective to buy a flared panel as opposed to try and making your own. Panel price will vary. TPE, L5 sell for around 859 on a GB up to 899, or 999 with shipping. Quick z06 flares sell around the 550 mark. Regardless of what which one you buy they will all need prep work...some more then others.

Buying a set of aftermarket flares then attempting to integrate them to your OEM panels has pros and cons. Fit and finish will be exact since it is an OEM panel, but you would need to be perfect on the installation of the flare itself since it did not come from a mold. This IMO will take more prep work making it less cost effective, but it depends. Also, I don't know of any aftermarket flares made for our vettes that offer a 3/4 to 2" flare as they come with any of the after market guys.

If your handy you can save even more money by doing the prep work yourself. Many guys on the forum, including me have gone this route. It's a fun project and not that difficult but does require patience.

 

Thanks for your reply, stalion. Yeah, I didn't notice the carbon part. As for the prep work I'm fully capable as I've done this work at different times during my career. The issue I was trying to get at is how well the flared quarters fit "out of the box".

If they require a lot of fitting then maybe glassing in flares is a simpler way. I assume the quarters fit ok but I'm just raising the question to get some feedback to help with the decision. Good fitting quarters would clearly be the way to go as long as the aesthetics were nice.

I haven't been back on the forum for long but I don't get the sense that many c5's are carrying the quik z06 flares. I may be wrong and many sets have been sold, they may not have been available for long, they may not fit well or have other problems, or they may be great and simply overlooked. In any event I'd like to get more info from anyone who has them or installed them.

 

In recent months there have been a few post about L5 having issues. Some were with the quality of the flair while others had to do with their business practices. The TPE's look really good and not to many fitment issues from feedback I've received when doing my own research. You don't see many from quick z06 since they were released fairly recently this past year. I had the opportunity to do their test fitting with their prototype flare, meaning the first one out of the mold. I did a write up about it if your interested:

Initial install and prep stage:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-g...er-flares.html

Painted on the car:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-g...06-teaser.html

On another note, I recently had an opportunity to get a close look at a set of TPE flares locally. I thought the finish and fit were well done. Obviously the final product will also depend on who does the prep work and how well it was done. My body shop was not over fond of my flares, but then again they usually deal with higher end cars. That being said any issues that I found and informed Pete (quick z06) and gave as much feed back as I could so he can go back to the manufacturer to correct the problems. Keep in mind mine were the first set out of the mold. As you can see I did the majority of the prep work when it came to sanding and fitting, but did not do any prep for paint work. If I could do it again I would have also done this step. My painter found several pin holes that were hard to see but only showed up once the high build primer was sprayed. Also discovered were a couple of air pockets that needed to be fixed. Nothing major, but something you need to discover in any body work or else there can be potential damage to the paint in the long run. The panels needed some filler for some low spots that were not visible to the naked eye. Again this is somewhat "normal" and to be expected.

There are a few guys now who have the quick z06 flares so you may want to get them to chime in as well. I really couldn't complain as the price and support Pete offered me were great. If Pete didn't have his flares I would have went with TPE. If your handy and have some knowledge then I think you can make either one work. I also suggest you contact TPE ask questions and get feedback from other buyers. Contact quick z06 and see if the anomalies discovered during the test fitting were corrected. Once you have a tally of price, product finish, product support, and looks of course I think you can make an informed decision.

 

I didn't want to modify my stock fenders. As for the fit I will let you guys know how it goes. Rob

 

Great Info!

 

Pete's fenders installed.4hrs right side 5.5 left side.I am not a body guy but have some mechanical skills. This should answer all doubts and questions.You can also see where I cut inner lip for clearance.

 

Wow Rob, it looks really good. Are you leaving it bare or painting it?

 

I'm planning to order a set on Monday with some other parts.

 

They do look nice but I am going to paint them

 

Ok, they may need a thin coat of body filler to fill out the low spots. If you look at your first pic you can see the ripple effect in the sun. I didn't notice this on mine until they were painted an on the car. Don't get me wrong they still look fantastic but it is noticeable in certain lighting.

 

It may or may not actually. If you plan on painting them they obviously need to be sanded so the paint sticks, with that sanding you may get and slight waves out of them. That plus once you sand you would primer and most likely sand again so it shouldn't be bad.

Anyway, It looks great, thanks for posting the pix