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Almost made a blunder this morning

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Old 03-24-2008, 09:12 AM
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loubob57
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Default Almost made a blunder this morning

As I left the house for work I thought the defroster sounded kind of loud. After getting about a mile from the house I realized the sound was coming from the top of the windshield. I hadn't latched the roof down! Fortunately I relized before I got on the highway.

So the roof won't fly off at 25-30 mph. What is the magic speed?
Old 03-24-2008, 09:15 AM
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wayback
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Don't know.

Why are you admitting this?
Old 03-24-2008, 09:15 AM
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dvilin
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Your lucky day as for the magic speed do not know and have no intentions of finding out.
Old 03-24-2008, 09:18 AM
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loubob57
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Originally Posted by wayback
Don't know.

Why are you admitting this?
I'm not proud. :o If you hear a rushing sound at the top of the windshield now you know what to check.
Old 03-24-2008, 09:22 AM
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wayback
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Originally Posted by loubob57
I'm not proud. :o If you hear a rushing sound at the top of the windshield now you know what to check.
I along with many others had the same problem with our 05 and 06s. Members of the flying roof club.
Old 03-24-2008, 09:24 AM
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LS3 Zeus
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True Story:


About 4 years ago I was driving on a one lane road and a red C4 was in front of me. All of a sudden his roof goes flying 30 feet in the air spinning and I went under it before it shattered like glass on the road. I wasn't going more than 50 the time it happened.
Old 03-24-2008, 09:27 AM
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RPOZ51
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Almost got to join the dreaded FRC - the Flying Roof Club.

That thing must make one heck of a frisbee.
Old 03-24-2008, 09:35 AM
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Uh, oh, a case for more warning stickers on the visors - WARNING: BE SURE ROOF IS SECURELY LATCHED BEFORE DRIVING!

Old 03-24-2008, 09:45 AM
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This was indeed your lucky day!!
Old 03-24-2008, 01:10 PM
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Originally Posted by FAÇADE-C6
This was indeed your lucky day!!
You should buy some lottery tickets today as well!
Old 03-24-2008, 01:27 PM
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UmCanesZ06
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I have a similiar story. This was back in the early 90's though. I was about 23 at the time. As unbelievable as this sounds, I swear on my eyes that it's true. I had a 90 LX 5.0 Mustang, it was an eleven second car. I was doing some work on it, so I just took the hood off, because it is easier to get in there and work with it off.

So, when I was finished, I of course wanted to take it out for a test drive. I figured I could just latch the hood and not bolt it back on and it would be fine for the test drive. I was on a very desolate 4 lane road. Two lanes each way separated by about a 15 foot median. And on the side of the road was about a 10 foot swell, then and then a 6 ft chain link fence. I got going pretty fast, and in an instant, the hood was
gone.

I was so pissed, so my friend and I get out and start to look for the hood. I just knew it was going to be destroyed. We looked everywhere and could not see it, mostly because it was getting dark. We were both dumbfounded, at the fact that we couldnt find it. I looked back about 50 yards, and couldnt believe my eyes. The hood flew off, sailed across the 15 foot median, two lanes of road the 10 foot swell, and landed gently on the fence, suspended by the hood latch, which hooked onto the top of the fence. It never touched the ground, and didnt have a scratch on it.
Old 03-24-2008, 01:29 PM
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Here is a visual re-enactment of what would have happened.

Old 03-24-2008, 01:30 PM
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adias
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Originally Posted by loubob57
As I left the house for work I thought the defroster sounded kind of loud. After getting about a mile from the house I realized the sound was coming from the top of the windshield. I hadn't latched the roof down! Fortunately I relized before I got on the highway.

So the roof won't fly off at 25-30 mph. What is the magic speed?

So now I have to watch for C6 drivers in front of me, in case they have not latched their roofs ?!?
Old 03-24-2008, 01:38 PM
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I did the same thing, heard the noise and realized in time what was going on. I wonder how much it would cost for Gm to have a warning light go off if roof was in but not latched and car was moving. They could maybe fix the roof's clattering noise at the same time.....
Old 03-24-2008, 01:49 PM
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Haha, my friend offered to buy a second roof so he could pop it off while driving and watch it fly.

I told him to stop watching The Fast and The Furious

But I tempted to let him if I knew for sure it would clear my car
Old 03-24-2008, 02:04 PM
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Originally Posted by UmCanesZ06
I have a similiar story. This was back in the early 90's though. I was about 23 at the time. As unbelievable as this sounds, I swear on my eyes that it's true. I had a 90 LX 5.0 Mustang, it was an eleven second car. I was doing some work on it, so I just took the hood off, because it is easier to get in there and work with it off.

So, when I was finished, I of course wanted to take it out for a test drive. I figured I could just latch the hood and not bolt it back on and it would be fine for the test drive. I was on a very desolate 4 lane road. Two lanes each way separated by about a 15 foot median. And on the side of the road was about a 10 foot swell, then and then a 6 ft chain link fence. I got going pretty fast, and in an instant, the hood was
gone.

I was so pissed, so my friend and I get out and start to look for the hood. I just knew it was going to be destroyed. We looked everywhere and could not see it, mostly because it was getting dark. We were both dumbfounded, at the fact that we couldnt find it. I looked back about 50 yards, and couldnt believe my eyes. The hood flew off, sailed across the 15 foot median, two lanes of road the 10 foot swell, and landed gently on the fence, suspended by the hood latch, which hooked onto the top of the fence. It never touched the ground, and didnt have a scratch on it.


Talk about someone who needs to buy a lotery ticket. You could have won the $183,000,000.00 by now.
Old 03-24-2008, 02:37 PM
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stabori
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The most horrifying and funniest post about the targa tops was posted on this forum a few years ago. It had started to rain so the driver stopped under an overpass and got his roof out of the hatch to put it on. As he held it up to put it on a large gust of wind caught the roof and pulled it ( and him ) into a lane of traffic. Just missed a truck. Now he was lucky.

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Old 03-24-2008, 02:43 PM
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Corvettes have tops???
Old 03-24-2008, 03:03 PM
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I did it in my 1966 MGB Roadster. Aluminum hood, two hinges at the rear. Before I sorted out the fuel system it would vapor lock in hot weather, so I would pull the hood release and prop the hood open on the safety latch. I parked for a while one afternoon, got in, was hitting third gear at about 30 mph, caught a breeze and the hood came over the windshield ripping out the driver-side hinge. I caught the hood with my left hand. No injury, just a permanent diagonal crease in the hood and some fresh non-OEM pop-rivets in the hinge.
Old 03-24-2008, 04:39 PM
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Originally Posted by johnodrake
Corvettes have tops???
Haha yes John, we all don't have nice verts like you


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