NB68

I finally came across that combination of road kill taller than my front air splitter in a location where there was no opportunity to swerve around it.

I love how the front air splitter adds to the looks of the car but it's not all that practical for real world roads. There is a lot of stuff on the roads out there taller than the 4" or so it is off the ground that I'm constantly swerving to avoid, not to mention just the smallest dips going in and out of parking lots, driveways, etc..


On another note...
WTB: Carbon Flash painted front air splitter for 2014 C7.
Anyone know any deals or good quality place to get a new one?
I think I can replace it myself but it does look like the sides may be riveted.

millpond

Oops...what's for dinner?

Gearhead Jim

My doctor was hurrying to the ER at 2am and hit a stupid bunny rabbit.
$2000 damage to his M3.
Several years before, he hit a turkey at Road America. Cost unknown.

Steve_R

I have an expensive carbon fiber splitter on my '14, and it's lowered all the way on the stock bolts. I hit a rabbit last year that ran out in front of me on the highway. I figured the splitter was toast. Turns out the splitter apparently "scooped" it up into the grille, which was in pieces, and the splitter wasn't hurt. It was the perfect excuse to install a Z06 grille.

RapidC84B

Why not get a stage 1 splitter which is $120 and ABS plastic? That's what's in my garage getting ready to go on my car.

TEXHAWK0

The Stage 1 is the only practical one for the street... On my Stingray it has 6 inches clearance and will clear a 5 inch racoon with ease.

Johnp94

No rivets, approximately 12 screws that are on the vehicle. Remove those and fit splitter and reinstall. If their are any rivets drill them out and don’t use any afterward. The splitter won’t budge using stock screws. You don’t need double sided tape either. Getting ramps and tools out this will take 30 min. If everything is easy access, ramps, power drill ready. 15 min.

village idiot

I have a c7 carbon gtx splitter painted carbon flash. I just went with the stage 3 oem setup and never installed it.

Iconic

It's threads like there that solidify my decision to not purchase a beautiful stage 2 splitter and stay with my cheap *** poverty version. Between my 17 GS and several other daily drivers, i have run into and over more **** than i can recall. Deer, turkey, rabbit, raccoon, dog, skunk, birds, not to mention trash that people loose from pick up trucks like, wood, bedding, clothes, tarps, and other trash.

Notice the numerous full garbage bags you see on the shoulder once the adopt a highway folks clean up the ditch and wonder how much of that debris was once on the pavement and how many people ran over it before it got kicked off. I put a bull bar on my 17 Equinox earlier this year and I have already T- boned a deer with it. No damage to my SUV btw

NB68

Thinking about the Stage 1 just because of the slight additional clearance and price. I really like the look & additional matching curves \ paint of the stage 2 on it...but I don't want to spend the $$ for carbon fiber esp when it would be painted.
The one on there I believe is painted fiberglass \ composite. I have seen a few of those around for $400-$500 I think. But if the S1 is really < $150 I may have to consider it as the more practical option.

Even prior to this incident and with the splitter protective wrapped, the front edge was constantly getting chipped up from debris, (or parking lot concrete curbs and bumper stops whenever I misjudged the distance) which appeared white under the paint.
I had been "touching it up" every few months with a black Sharpie!

The rivets I see are where it appears to be riveted to the winglets. Going to try to pull it off this weekend and see.

Rebel Yell

That's ugly my friend. Will your insurance cover the damage?

Bill Dearborn

Hitting an animal on the road is covered by your comprehensive insurance so why not see about having insurance cover it? Comp claims don't raise your rates like a collision claim will.

Bill

JakeC7GS

Another vote for poverty splitters. Although I wish there was an aftermarket version, made from the same material with the same clearance, that followed the curves like the Stage 2/3.

NB68

I'll have to check if my comp deductible is different. I think mine is $1k so there would be no point unless there was more $ damage to the front or underneath.
You sure comp claims won't raise my cost next year?
I already have one comp claim from the beginning of the year when a ladder in the garage fell on the back quarter and slid down the side, doh!

FLATJ

Whacked a gopher tortoise on the Suncoast Pkwy. Managed to straddle him but he tore up my center air dam. Everything else was fine!

Iconic

Semi truck retread tires is another bad one that comes to mind. One blown tire = a dozen potentially damaging pieces. Those **** me off more than most of the other trash littering the highways.

BlueDevilZ51

My stage 1 splitter is a bit lower.

NB68

So, once I get this replaced, is there any way to protect it or more specifically the thin front edge, from debris chips?
I had it "wrapped" with xpel, but they did not actually wrap it, they just covered the top surface telling me because of the contours they could not wrap the thin front edge and under the bottom. So this left the front edge exposed and it was constantly getting little chips, (which appeared bright white under the paint) and I was doing sharpie touch ups.
​​​​Any way to better wrap or protect the new one?

TEXHAWK0

Looks like you would have a little trouble with a 5" raccoon alright.
(Mine is a little higher at the nose than on the side)

NB68

So, I took the splitter off this afternoon and to my surprise, it does not look like the thin lip replacement splitters I see for sale.
It is a one piece splitter \ under-panel combo, with what I assume is the factory under-panel, (just above it in the photo) that also fell out when I removed the splitter\panel.
20 screws, 4 pop rivets and 2 metal rivets securing it to the little winglet \ wheel well flare bits.. I had to drill those out. So not as simple a removal as I was expecting but not bad.

I'm assuming this is not the factory stock stage two splitter, (I'm the 2nd owner so it was not installed by me.), no?
Where do you get one of these?