When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Convertible Windshield Frame Strong Enough to Protect Driver if Overturns Hwy Speed?
I have seen pictures of c5 convertibles upside down on the hwy that pancaked where the windshield completely collapsed and thus anyone inside was probably killed. I thought i read the C7 windshield frame was upgraded, but it appears to be the same as used on the coupe and have read both cars passed the federal roll over standard which i think is being able to support a static load of 3 times the vehicle empty weight. Obviously a moving car flipping may impose a much larger load than 3 times the vehicle empty weight on the windshield depending upon speed and surface conditions.
I read the vert doesn't have pop up roll bars like some of the european manufacturers verts do and that chevy decided the risk of a vert flipping was so small that any type of roll over protection besides the windshield frame was not needed.
So, anyone see a C7 vert upside down and did it appear the driver/passenger would have survived and about how fast did it appear the car was moving when it flipped? Any roll bars available for the C7 that attach to the frame?
In 2009, NHTSA required all cars sold in the U.S. to have A-pillars strong enough to withstand a minimum weight load of 3 times the vehicle weight. That includes both coupes and convertibles. I looked it up here in the Federal Register. I only know about this because my wife used to work in the insurance industry. So, that's the regulation. How well the automakers have followed it might be an open question.
FYI, most race sanctioning bodies and racing safety certifications require "rollover protection" to stand up to a load of 10 times the weight of the car from above plus loads from the front and from the sides (sliding ) of 3 to 5 times the weight of the car simultaneously.
While federal "safety standards " are a small step, I would not want to make a real world test by rolling one of these over at highway speed.
Should i take it to mean the lack of C7 vert rollover evidence from the corvette forum intelligentsia means the risk of C7 vert rollover is very low and therefore those without C7 vert rollover protection will have to hope the windshield frame is "good enough"?
Should i take it to mean the lack of C7 vert rollover evidence from the corvette forum intelligentsia means the risk of C7 vert rollover is very low and therefore those without C7 vert rollover protection will have to hope the windshield frame is "good enough"?
^^^ I wouldn't rely on the Forum's intelligentsia to provide critical safety information. While there are many well informed individuals, life safety engineering issues of GM vehicles are probably out of their realm of expertise.
I don't think the windshield would protect your noggin anyhow if the car rolled over at highway speed. Even if you are wearing your seatbelt, if you are anywhere over 6' tall, its pretty safe to say you won't need anymore haircuts if your Corvette flips over. You *might* fare better than you would have in a motorcycle accident, but not much. That's why I bought a coupe. Open air motoring with a significantly decreased risk of a permanent haircut. Just my $0.02.
Convertibles are death traps in many rollover accidents.
All it takes is sliding off the road and down an embankment and any uneven terrain would crush/take your head off. I can't understand why anyone that cared about their health would buy one.
In 2009, NHTSA required all cars sold in the U.S. to have A-pillars strong enough to withstand a minimum weight load of 3 times the vehicle weight. That includes both coupes and convertibles. I looked it up here in the Federal Register. I only know about this because my wife used to work in the insurance industry. So, that's the regulation. How well the automakers have followed it might be an open question.
They test them. It's literally called a roof-crush test.
As mentioned, the C6 and C7 windshield/frame is strong enough to meet the wimpy federal rollover standards.
On the C6, I did some checking and discovered that the coupe and 'vert use the same windshield/frame combo, so the halo on the coupe is all extra protection. Probably true for the C7 also.
Looking at pictures of real world rollovers, the majority of C6/C7 'verts shown upside down are squashed flat, the majority of the coupes are distorted but still leaving room for a belted driver. Trunk space and rollover protection for track use are the primary reasons all four of our modern Corvettes have been coupes.
But having said that, LimeRay's comment that "I can't understand why anyone that cared about their health would buy one." (convertible) strikes me as way overdone. The percentage of Corvette drivers who get killed in an otherwise-survivable rollover crash is vanishingly small, most of us could probably extend our lifespan more by going vegan and hitting the gym more, or putting a 70 mph speed limiter in the car.
Life is full of choices.
Convertibles are death traps in many rollover accidents.
All it takes is sliding off the road and down an embankment and any uneven terrain would crush/take your head off. I can't understand why anyone that cared about their health would buy one.
Convertibles are death traps in many rollover accidents.
All it takes is sliding off the road and down an embankment and any uneven terrain would crush/take your head off. I can't understand why anyone that cared about their health would buy one.
You should immediately sell your vette as its, like, super fast and will kill you in a fiery death trap crash.
If you draw a line from the top of the windshield frame to the back of the deck lid of the convertible (picture below), your head should be well below the A-pillar in a roll-over. Moreover, the steep slope of the windshield frame puts it pretty close to, and higher than, one's head position, almost a roll-bar of sorts. The shoulder harnesses should tighten enough to hold you there.
I'm 6'2", and my head is well below the windshield frame. I've examined the bare frame and trust the integrity of the A-frame in a roll-over.
Yes, I'm well aware of that, as well as the fact that a hard roof car is always going to provide more protection. I'd never track a convertible. However, in most street roll-over scenarios, I think the convertible provides sufficient protection.
The answer is YES, the windshield frame is strong enough to protect the driver.
This was my 1989 convertible after it was flipped right side up. A car thief took a turn at around 100 mph and flipped it upside down on railroad tracks with the wheels facing the sky. He got out of the car without a scratch. Made me feel better in that respect. Lol
This was my 1989 convertible after it was flipped right side up. A car thief took a turn at around 100 mph and flipped it upside down on railroad tracks with the wheels facing the sky. He got out of the car without a scratch. Made me feel better in that respect. Lol
It couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. He was pretty lucky, however.
Given that these are high performance vehicles you know that people are going to get into trouble in them. I'd rather see them come from the factory with roll protection sufficient to protect on a race track, even if it adds a few pounds and dollars.
Yes, and 1989 was 30 years ago. Structural rigidity has vastly improved.
So has the A-pillar requirement- by a lot. I think it was 1.75x when I was designing them back in 2005 or so.
It's 2018. You can't buy a death trap anymore. We've been through countless iterations of idiots vs idiot proofing. You can't even buy anything inherently dangerous anymore. The most dangerous thing you can buy is basically a Tide pod. Unless you're stupid enough to eat tide pods, I would t worry about anything being an unsafe design for the most part- certainly not a mass produced car made to federal crash test standards.
Last edited by village idiot; 01-19-2018 at 12:08 AM.
01-14-2018, 09:54 AM
Convertible Windshield Frame Strong Enough to Protect Driver if Overturns Hwy Speed?
Yep you nailed it.
You *might* fare better than you would have in a motorcycle accident, but not much. That's why I bought a coupe. Open air motoring with a significantly decreased risk of a permanent haircut. Just my $0.02.
