gm roof rack owners
- Thread starter iraqivet
- Start date
LorbeerTLC
Member
Old "Torque Wrench" Inaccurate
I bought a GM Removable Rack for my 2012 Sonic LTZ Hatchback last year. I tightened it per specs and didn't even get to 3.0 Nm before I saw a distortion in the paint.
It crimped all four corners! I freaked out & called my Chevrolet dealer. I spoke to the Operations Manager and he listen to my story and said to bring in my car with the racks. Upon inspection, he reinstalled it and noticed that around 2.5 to 3.0 Nm it was over-stressing the corners.
We went to his office and called a GM representative explaining everything, agreeing with me that this shouldn't have happened. He got the OK from GM to repair and repaint all the damaged sections on my car, 100% totally free! "WHEW!" :banana:
My car looks like new and I decided to have the Perrycraft SportQuest Roof Rack (OEM Rack Style Bars) installed instead. They're permanent but look like a factory installed option.
SportQuest
It's been almost a year since I've had them installed and I've used them several times without any problems. I've been very happy with them.
BTW: I've noticed even Thule has yet to offer a removable roof rack for the Sonic.
I bought a GM Removable Rack for my 2012 Sonic LTZ Hatchback last year. I tightened it per specs and didn't even get to 3.0 Nm before I saw a distortion in the paint.
It crimped all four corners! I freaked out & called my Chevrolet dealer. I spoke to the Operations Manager and he listen to my story and said to bring in my car with the racks. Upon inspection, he reinstalled it and noticed that around 2.5 to 3.0 Nm it was over-stressing the corners.
We went to his office and called a GM representative explaining everything, agreeing with me that this shouldn't have happened. He got the OK from GM to repair and repaint all the damaged sections on my car, 100% totally free! "WHEW!" :banana:
My car looks like new and I decided to have the Perrycraft SportQuest Roof Rack (OEM Rack Style Bars) installed instead. They're permanent but look like a factory installed option.
SportQuest
It's been almost a year since I've had them installed and I've used them several times without any problems. I've been very happy with them.
BTW: I've noticed even Thule has yet to offer a removable roof rack for the Sonic.
Javiero
New member
I removed my GM for the first time since it was installed to wash and wax my care. Then I noticed the door jam was bulged from being over tighten.
I never touched it after it was installed. Stopped in the body shop at the dealer and they are willing to fix the dents since they installed the roof rack. I will be going in tomorrow with my copy of the service ticket and scheduling a time. I've always had roof racks on my cars and have installed them on customers cars at work, but I have never seen a dented door jam like this. Someone had their Wheaties that day. I'll borrow a torq wrench from work when I install it back on.
I never touched it after it was installed. Stopped in the body shop at the dealer and they are willing to fix the dents since they installed the roof rack. I will be going in tomorrow with my copy of the service ticket and scheduling a time. I've always had roof racks on my cars and have installed them on customers cars at work, but I have never seen a dented door jam like this. Someone had their Wheaties that day. I'll borrow a torq wrench from work when I install it back on.
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LorbeerTLC
Member
Javiero,
I highly recommend that you have your dealer re-install your roof rack to protect you for liability in case this should happen again. I understand THULE abandoned trying to fit the Sonic after several attempts due to the way the Sonic was designed. It wouldn't surprise me if they were also having stress issues or the racks wouldn't sit securely on the roof.
Also, you might want to check with your dealer and ask how long will it take for your paint to completely cure before trying to re-install your roof rack. My car has the Crystal Red Metallic Tintcoat color and my dealer said it would take up to 90 days before I could install my roof rack. I waited for 90 days thinking THULE would surely offer a removable roof rack by then, but they didn't. That's why I went with Perrycraft instead.
Was it a bad torque wrench that wasn't calibrated properly (hence, the new design)? Possibly. But I know I'll never try that again! If GM had not picked-up the tab to fix my car, it would have cost me about $1,000 to fix and repaint my roof like new. It wasn't worth trying to re-attach it.
lambertsonic
New member
Thanks for the heads up guys ! I was going to order a kit , but now I will probably wait for a better option to hot the market .
blackberry
New member
is there any racks out for a sedan ?
LorbeerTLC
Member
Sure!
It's the Perrycraft SportsQuest Pad-Mount model (OEM Rack Style Bars).
They're heavy-duty with a maximum load capacity of 180lbs. They look sharp like they were from the factory. Here's a link to a prior post I made:
http://www.sonicownersforum.com/forum/post50261-99/
This will have pictures of my car and links to Perrycraft and other sites.
@blackberry, They only list the Sonic Hatchback, but I'd check out the link and give them a call and ask.
BTW: I had this installed by a preferred Perrycraft dealer.
Good Luck!
iraqivet
Banned
no my dealer is going to try the dent dr. first to see if you can fix it without haveing a repaint.
and 60 days there out of there mind.
2-3 weeks at the most
LorbeerTLC
Member
90 Day Cure Time
Hey Gang,
The reason (as explained to me), why I was told it would take about 90 days to have the paint completely cure before installing a removable rack (which I decided to get a permanent one instead), was because of two reasons:
1) I live in the Pacific Northwest and this happened during our "Rainy Season." The higher humidity extends the amount of time it take for paint to completely cure.
2) I have that expensive Crystal Red Metallic Tintcoat paint on my car. The Body Shop manager said you want to make sure it's 100% completely dry and it has reached its maximum hardening strength before you attach a clamping type device like a removable roof rack. If the paint isn't completely hardened, it can compress and show a slight indentation. The metal roof may not bend, but because the paint compressed, it'll give the appearance that it did and look slightly dented.
Since GM picked-up the tab on repairing my car, I followed their instructions 100% to the letter. Because had I decided to use the removable roof rack again and if I tried it before my 90 days were up and it dented a second time, I didn't want GM to use this as an excuse to not pay for any damage.
Hey Gang,
The reason (as explained to me), why I was told it would take about 90 days to have the paint completely cure before installing a removable rack (which I decided to get a permanent one instead), was because of two reasons:
1) I live in the Pacific Northwest and this happened during our "Rainy Season." The higher humidity extends the amount of time it take for paint to completely cure.
2) I have that expensive Crystal Red Metallic Tintcoat paint on my car. The Body Shop manager said you want to make sure it's 100% completely dry and it has reached its maximum hardening strength before you attach a clamping type device like a removable roof rack. If the paint isn't completely hardened, it can compress and show a slight indentation. The metal roof may not bend, but because the paint compressed, it'll give the appearance that it did and look slightly dented.
Since GM picked-up the tab on repairing my car, I followed their instructions 100% to the letter. Because had I decided to use the removable roof rack again and if I tried it before my 90 days were up and it dented a second time, I didn't want GM to use this as an excuse to not pay for any damage.
ZachTullier
New member
You should get the antenna shaved while they are doing to roof work.