Tape up the scoops?

[Penforhire]

I was chatting with some fellow C5 racers at my Z's first auto-x. They suggested I tape areas in and around the scoops of the front quarter panels. It was said if you whack a cone hard enough there the panel can crack

I can see how we could take a hit there. I was, that night in fact, crossed up in front of a slalom cone heading toward that very location.

Any first-hand knowledge of such damage here? And what tape do you use that improves the strength of this area? I already found out ordinary masking tape won't stick well to a Zaino finish. Does that mean I need to strip the finish at each event?

[FiveOJoe]

Would a bra serve the same purpose, or are you talking behind the wheels???

[azzkiknZO6]

http://zo6vette.com/forums/showthrea...threadid=30687

this should help you

[Penforhire]

FiveO, yes we're talking about the scoop area behind the front wheels (below the Z06 badge) so a bra does nothing for it.

Thank you Azzkikn. I saw that thread but the subject was paint chips and general finish damage. I could find no specific reference to cracking the panel on this site.

Will racer's tape will add structural rigidity to protect against the impact I mentioned? Is a real issue? If it is real then perhaps some taped-on foam bumpers or a soccer-player's shin guard would do it better than tape?

[Mark Olson]

I have cleand lots of kone scars of that area and have had no ill effect on the panel, Generaly the tire makes contact first anyway. But if it makes you feel better and will let you relax when Auto-Xing do it.