diitto

Hi... First of all, I just took delivery of my first corvette yesterday, a new 2012 Grand Sport Convertible, Crystal Red, Black Top, Black Interior... I will post pictures soon...

Before I bought the car I did lots of reading and listening regarding the low clearance (3 1/2 inches) three piece front air dam these cars have... I even borrowed a Grand Sport to see how bad it would drag on my sloped driveway (with permission to do the test)... And yes it drug... I know it's normal and even discussed in the owner's manual but oh my, it sounds like you're tearing the bottom off the car... I will try to get used to it but I'm not sure how that's going to go...

I've heard lots of people say they've removed the entire air dame with no issues... Some say they've removed just the side pieces with no issues... And I've heard others say it's important for both aerodynamics and for cooling to leave the entire air dam on...

I need to learn what the real facts are... I will not be tracking this car or driving at excessive speeds so becoming an airplane with poor wings is not an issue for me... With that in mind, can folks please share their experience with removing either the entire air dam (all three pieces) or, more likely what I am thinking of doing, just remove the two side pieces.... Those are the pieces I drag even when entering or leaving the driveway at as much angle as is absolutely possible... And it's far worse backing out of the driveway than it is pulling in... I think that's because I am dragging against the L shape of the air dam pieces...

Can I take the side pieces off and be ok, especially since I am not taking the car to the track or driving at way high speeds???

Any feedback would be much appreciated... thanks.... bob...

petermj

Keep it, better to find out you are scraping the cheap air dam than the front lip spoiler or the bumper itself.

okie08vette

I would not because they direct air up to the radiator but have no experience with removing them. Have you though about this product, don't know if it really works or not but if the scraping is that bad it may be worth a try.
http://www.westcoastcorvette.com/p-2...-3-pc-set.aspx

EVRose

Just leave it on. I've been hearing mine scrape for a year and a half and since I know its not hurting anything I just live with it. You get used to it.

petermj

GS is like other C6, a front feeder, thus, I do not think you will affect the cooling aspect, just aerodynamics and early warning system.

designerRob

They serve purposes already mentioned. GM didn't put them on for fun.
They're made to scrape.
They're cheap to replace if you wear them out.

When I lowered my car about an inch I did trim these pieces an inch and have seen no adverse effects.

TommyV

I took the side pieces off a while ago. Much less scraping and no ill effects.

mgtr

My experience exactly. I don't track the car, and now have about 17K miles on the car with side pieces removed. The only difference? Quieter on driveways and speed bumps.
By the way, the side pieces are curved, and therefore rigid on the car. The front piece (which I left on) is straight, so it will move some if you do hit a high place.

wide one

Same here, no problems

marc8090

Many posts about no issues at normal road speeds removing the side pieces or trimming all 3 pieces up to 1 inch. Do NOT remove the center piece. Even though the C6 is mainly a front breather there is more going on aerodynamic wise than you may realize. The airdam causes high pressure in front of it which also causes low pressure behind it, under the engine, to help pull heat out the bottom of the engine compartment. Plus the middle piece is a much more flexible rubber compared to the plastic side pieces so if it does scrape it won't sound anywhere near as bad.

BLEKVET

Side pieces direct air to cool brakes. Unless you track the car, you should have no worries. As long as you don't have a plate in front or other items blocking the air dam, you should be fine if you remove the center piece. Though, you might see some stability change at high speeds.

Vettin08

This. I took my corners off on my '08 back at my old house w/ a steep driveway turn in. Never any ill effects when it came to cooling, or higher speed aerodynamics (within reason, 90 or so is all I ever saw). The side pieces don't affect radiator cooling, they serve to divert airflow around the front tires at speed, and to create a high pressure area in front of them for the ducts above which cool the front brakes. Never noticed any braking issues either.

vetteright

I'd take 'em off. I'm quite positive that the GM engineers had absolutely no reason at all for including them in the first place.

Rich Mickol

I thought only the center one was functional. Corners, not so sure.

diitto

If I decide to take off the side pieces, can I do so with having to have the car on a lift or jacked up???? Can I just reach under on my garage floor, find the screws and remove those side pieces??? Tools required??? How many screws hold each side piece on??? thanks.... bob...

TommyV

Just get a low profile jack. (Harbor Freight about $80) A hockey puck, to save your rocker panel, and use the front frame rail jacking point. I think there are three screws holding it up.

My car is lowered, so I would never fit under there without lifting it.

Vettin08

No need to raise it. As I recall, was about 5 screws on each side, using a small socket head. Takes about 1-2 minutes per side.

mgtr

I agree. You don't need to get under the car. If you cannot see the screws, a mirror and flashlight will fix that.

marc8090

3 screws and 1 pushpin per side.

mikez51c6

thats what i did