Chevrolet Corvette Recall: Removable Roof May Detach While Driving

More than 22,000 Chevrolet Corvettes with removable roofs are being recalled following reports that the roofs may come off while driving, potentially striking another vehicle and causing an accident, injury or property damage.

The Chevrolet Corvette roof recall was announced Monday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and General Motors Co. It affects 2005-2007 Corvette and 2006-2007 Corvette Z06 models with removable roofs.

According to GM, an adhesive between the roof panel and the frame can fail, causing them to separate. Although there have been no reports of injuries, this could pose a serious risk for an accident if the roof detaches while driving.

This is the second time GM has issued a recall for defective Corvette roof adhesive. In May 2006, GM recalled 30,793 Corvettes from model years 2005 and 2006, after finding that the adhesive could fail in hot and humid climates. The company added an adhesive foam to the recalled cars in an attempt to fix the problem.

A review of warranty claims data has found that there have been 108 claims of roof separation since the 2006 recall and adhesive foam fix. GM says that the problem is often detectable before the adhesive completely fails.

“If there is a partial separation, the driver may notice one or more symptoms, such as a snapping noise when driving over bumps, wind noise, poor roof panel fit, roof panel movement/bounce when a door or hatch is closed, or a water leak in the headliner,” the company stated in the recall notice.

Corvette owners with affected vehicles will be able to take the cars to a General Motors or Chevrolet dealer to have a new roof panel installed free of charge starting some time in January. Owners may contact Chevrolet at www.gmownercenter.com.