Good first step, see what they say.
Graphite Roof defects
Thread Starter
7th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 7
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Graphite Roof defects
I just purchased a new 2016 C7 with the graphite roof option two days ago. The car was outside on the dealers lot and had been rained on prior to my purchase. Long story short I brought the car home and began to hand wash in my garage when I noticed that there were several small areas where the graphite weave was resin starved leaving imperfections under the clear coat. I have spent the last 30 plus years working with graphite composites so I am very aware of this problem. How this slipped past the Quality Assurance inspectors I have no idea. Will this be covered under my warranty and what is the best solution for this problem. A repaint will not solve the problem because of the resin starvation well below the surface. As an option costing $1995.00 extra this is definitely not acceptable. Any contact information would be helpful.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Team Owner
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Safety Car
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How it slipped by the supplier is the question that should be asked. The car is under warranty, take it to the dealer and get a replacement roof.
There is no way that it can be fixed, clear coat goes away and the fiber will fray, GM will send it back to the supplier and get credit for it or a replacement roof panel. All GM will be out is for the latches and headliner, seals and stuff.
Let us know how it turns out.
There is no way that it can be fixed, clear coat goes away and the fiber will fray, GM will send it back to the supplier and get credit for it or a replacement roof panel. All GM will be out is for the latches and headliner, seals and stuff.
Let us know how it turns out.
Intermediate
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 40
Likes: 1
From: weatherford texas
Have a early 2014 that has blemish similar to your description over the driver area. Dealership consulted with GM and was told it was not bad enough to be replaced. I didn't push it. Hope you have better success.
gm
gm
I just purchased a new 2016 C7 with the graphite roof option two days ago. The car was outside on the dealers lot and had been rained on prior to my purchase. Long story short I brought the car home and began to hand wash in my garage when I noticed that there were several small areas where the graphite weave was resin starved leaving imperfections under the clear coat. I have spent the last 30 plus years working with graphite composites so I am very aware of this problem. How this slipped past the Quality Assurance inspectors I have no idea. Will this be covered under my warranty and what is the best solution for this problem. A repaint will not solve the problem because of the resin starvation well below the surface. As an option costing $1995.00 extra this is definitely not acceptable. Any contact information would be helpful.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Instructor
Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 146
Likes: 29
I work at a chevy.
Im not sure what the rain has to do with it, all 80 of our vettes are outside.
The best thing you can do is be calm about it. Call ahead and say what you found. Ask to bring the car in so sales can put eyes on it. Compare it to the other tops they have in stock, if its abnormal they should take care of it no questions.
Im not sure what the rain has to do with it, all 80 of our vettes are outside.
The best thing you can do is be calm about it. Call ahead and say what you found. Ask to bring the car in so sales can put eyes on it. Compare it to the other tops they have in stock, if its abnormal they should take care of it no questions.
Last edited by revilingfool; Oct 9, 2016 at 04:37 PM.
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Thread Starter
7th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
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Thanks for the information, I just mentioned the rain portion because the dried rain spots helped to hide the defects. Once cleaned they were evident. The first two people that came to view the car thought there were a couple of bird droppings.
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I would certainly push for a warranty replacement. An option costing that much should be perfect.
Thread Starter
7th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Thanks for your comment.
Thread Starter
7th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Better explanation of rain concealing defects
I work at a chevy.
Im not sure what the rain has to do with it, all 80 of our vettes are outside.
The best thing you can do is be calm about it. Call ahead and say what you found. Ask to bring the car in so sales can put eyes on it. Compare it to the other tops they have in stock, if its abnormal they should take care of it no questions.
Im not sure what the rain has to do with it, all 80 of our vettes are outside.
The best thing you can do is be calm about it. Call ahead and say what you found. Ask to bring the car in so sales can put eyes on it. Compare it to the other tops they have in stock, if its abnormal they should take care of it no questions.
Thread Starter
7th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Graphite roof defects
Thanks for your comment. Please look at the reply to revilingfool and the attachment. This may help to see why I did not see the defects until the next morning. In hindsight I should have gone over every inch of the car a second time before accepting. I also would have thought that this type of defect would have been caught during the MFG process. This defect would have been immediately rejected in any painted panel but is less noticeable on the graphite without direct sunlight.
Thread Starter
7th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Just an update on the Graphite roof with defects and the follow up replacement for anyone with a similar problem.
I called GM who issued a case number and said that I would need to visit the dealer who sold the car and they would make an assessment. Now the good part. I stopped at the dealer the next day. The service manager immediately ordered a new roof, it arrived in about 10 days, was inspected and sent to a paint shop to measure and match the original roof outline (apparently the roofs come unpainted as replacements). They compared the new replacement roof to the roof with defects, took measurements, painted the new roof on the edges. A few days later the dealership called to bring in my car, made some small adjustments to align the roof and now I have a defect free gorgeous graphite roof. Bottom line these defects were small but very noticeable and the dealership was awesome to deal with, no problems what-so ever. I'm sure it depends on the dealership and service department in a situation like this. This is the best experience I have ever had at any dealership!
I called GM who issued a case number and said that I would need to visit the dealer who sold the car and they would make an assessment. Now the good part. I stopped at the dealer the next day. The service manager immediately ordered a new roof, it arrived in about 10 days, was inspected and sent to a paint shop to measure and match the original roof outline (apparently the roofs come unpainted as replacements). They compared the new replacement roof to the roof with defects, took measurements, painted the new roof on the edges. A few days later the dealership called to bring in my car, made some small adjustments to align the roof and now I have a defect free gorgeous graphite roof. Bottom line these defects were small but very noticeable and the dealership was awesome to deal with, no problems what-so ever. I'm sure it depends on the dealership and service department in a situation like this. This is the best experience I have ever had at any dealership!