Rate the Fit & Finish on your ZO6

[EB$Z06]

Florida orange with 4 wheels and a fat fast engine for 50G....... only in America......we've let all the other countries kick our ass in the workmanship and pride we are suppose to be known for !!!!!! Lazy Ass workers and the power of the all mighty dollar rules the work force now, low pay means shity products.......... only in America Yeah we're bad .......... .........

[corvette184]

not bad but this is my first brand new car.... had sml crack in left 1/4 door jamb still waiting for warranty rep to get back from vacation .... anybody else had this same crack.... upper 1/4 skin 1/2inch long

[drpipes]

I have the exact same crack but barely noticeable.

[Tailbiter]

I believe it's a quality control issue with U.S. manufacturers and possibly a lack of pride in workmanship. A German or Japanese luxury car builder would not let a car leave their plant with noticeable defects. I'm sure a few do, but overall, their fit and finish is better.

[gaijin]

Very satisfied with my '03 Z06. The fact that I decided to go with probably one of the toughest exterior finish, black puts a whole lot of weight with this statement.

This is my eight Corvette which includes a $60+ ZR-1 (1990). And by far, this is the best one yet.

I've also owned (and still own) imports. And I would surely put my Z06 against them too.

Bottomline....as Corvette moves forward with its engineering, design and build....it gets better. Can't wait until the time is right for another "new" Corvette....perhaps a next gen? Only time will tell.

[IT L GO]

Originally posted by Jacob
My experience has been that if you're really concerned about fit and finish, don't buy a Corvette. If you want a great performance value, it's hard to beat a Z06.

I am convinced that if GM decided fit and finish was causing a significant reduction in Corvette sales, we would soon see an improvement. You only have to look at the interior of most new Cadillacs to be persuaded that GM is capable of doing a respectable interior.

It's not related to price point either. Look at the fit and finish of a Volkswagen beetle, a vehicle that sells for 1/3 of a Corvette. I expect Volkswagen would lose significant market share if they allowed their fit and finish to drop to that of GM.

I think orange peel is a separate problem, brought on largely by environmental pressures to reduce solvent based paints. BMW has serious orange peel problems as well. Somehow, the Japanese have figured out a better way to paint cars. Perhaps the cars made in Japan are not subject to the same restrictions as Europe and North America.

It would be nice to hear from someone in the industry with an informed opinion.

I have read hundreds of comments about the fit and finish on Corvette's.

Sir you have hit the NAIL ON THE HEAD with your comments. My hat is off to you. I request that you immediately be promoted to Chairman of the Board

As I have said before and I'll say again I Love my Corvette, but as the title of the thread said. How would you rate the fit and finish. not how satified are you. I'm satisfied but I only rate the quaility of paint and materials as FAIR as best. Until we band to together and demand better the General will keep giving us what we have.

Thank you
Rick

[Zrod]

I'd say average compared to other American autos I've owned. For me fit and finish wasn't important. I can accept the Z's short commings in favor of its awsome power and handling characteristics. There isn't anything like a Z inspired grin!

[d96eddie]

Originally posted by AWSM_06
This car is tight. All my memories of riding in Vettes in high school..... nothing but a bucket of bolts. Not this thing! It is Rock solid and not a rattle to be heard. The fit on the body parts is par with my past experience with all GM cars. The paint literally Sucks.

I have to say, it aint a Lexus. I have owned 3 of them, all Black. And the fit/ finish on those cars is nothing less than Perfect! Absolutely NO Orange Peel. And the 3 Lexi I owned all cost less than this baby.

But, not one of those Lexi ........gave me half the Woody this thing does!!!!!

I agree the later C5's are a quantum leap better re. being 'tight' vs earlier Corvettes. That in my opinion is a major improvement for the General and sets the stage for me as a potential buyer. The panel alignment is uniform but a bit widely gaped overall on my particular specimen. Better that than variable.

The door rubber seals are terrible/variable as others have noted......good on the driver's side and way beyond being reasonable on the passenger's. This is a small point but reflective of the fit and finish overall, especially the paint, being two light years away from my '00 Lexus LS400. As much as I love my Z, warts and all, the subject of this thread is fit and finish not the 'Woody' parameter.

For those reviewing this thread for the first time here is the real bottom line for this specific topic as Rick 'IT L GO' has recently stated:

Originally posted by Jacob
"My experience has been that if you're really concerned about fit and finish, don't buy a Corvette. If you want a great performance value, it's hard to beat a Z06.

I am convinced that if GM decided fit and finish was causing a significant reduction in Corvette sales, we would soon see an improvement. You only have to look at the interior of most new Cadillacs to be persuaded that GM is capable of doing a respectable interior.

It's not related to price point either. Look at the fit and finish of a Volkswagen beetle, a vehicle that sells for 1/3 of a Corvette. I expect Volkswagen would lose significant market share if they allowed their fit and finish to drop to that of GM.

I think orange peel is a separate problem, brought on largely by environmental pressures to reduce solvent based paints. BMW has serious orange peel problems as well. Somehow, the Japanese have figured out a better way to paint cars. Perhaps the cars made in Japan are not subject to the same restrictions as Europe and North America.

It would be nice to hear from someone in the industry with an informed opinion."

Again, I love my Z and would love it even more if it was produced with fewer fit and finish flaws. Would it cost that much more to come closer to the competition in current production? The world wonders.

Michael

[tmelita]

As a new Z06 owner, I absolutely love my car. As a supplier to the General and it's tier 2 and 3 suppliers, the level of expectation is zero defects, and that's the bottom line. I believe if they option ed to error proof the assembly process and imposed zero defects as well then we would probably never see the post. Since we are dealing with a human factor in the assembly process, we have variability which shows it's ugly face on occasion with panels that don't quite match, tail pipes that don't align and the occasional carpet that fails to lay down flat, but not on every Z. I still think it's important that every car Mfg needs to know how they stack up, that's an important part of the process tool to measure how they rate and to further focus on continual improvement. So whether the Z is a great Value, which it is, it is still important to evaluate. My wife who works for Cadillac would frequently bring home vehicles and I would evaluate every little imperfection I could. When she returned the vehicle, there was a team that went over the list of items that I had found. They used this information to help improve the vehicles assembly process. So be critical, it only helps the General and the end result the consumer. Just my thoughts and I can say, I absolutely love my Z, but there is room for fit and finish improvements.

[rwd]

The paint issues are pretty universal and result from difficulty in meeting EPA regs while using composite body panels. Comparing C5 paint (or late C3's and all C4's) to that on metal-bodied cars is comparing apples to tractors.

This is a long-known issue, and from what I've read, the parts and process are being heavily revised due to pressure from Cadillac, so the C6 may well be different.

The Z isn't a luxo tourer, and making it one voids the purpose of the car. That's more the domain of the coupe/vert. What the effect of having a luxo tourer C6 will be on a next generation Z remains to be seen.

[CARMEN96]

I think i got lucky(sort of). There's no orange peel on my Z, however, when they took the plastic off from around the rear window and roof, they burned the paint trying to get the glue from around the trim off.

[smws6z06]

There's no excuse for the waviness when lookin down the side of these cars (especially noticeable on the darker cars).

[ED03Z]

Well I've washed the Z twice and haven't seen many paint imperfections. Overall I think they did a good job, and it's EB.

[mikem67]

I agree with SMWS6Z06 regarding the wavy ripples down the sides of the car especially the rear quarters. I have found that most people can not see these imperfections therefore that is maybe why the General dosn't do anything about them. I decided to contact GM and really press the issue on mine. They offered to repaint or $2500 for my troubles. I took the money, if they repainted it would have ruined the car.

[smws6z06]

Damn MIke, I should have kept complaining like you. The problem is that it takes a discerning eye to notice (at least in some cases where the problem is not as apparent) I believe that the molded pastic quarter panels, doors, front fenders, are not being finished (sanded to a smoother finish before installation on the vehicle). Hey GM, I'd be more than happy to pay an extra grand (since I already paid 50 to begin with ) to have those body parts final sanded before painting