Chevrolet Recalls 22,000 Corvettes Because Roof Could Fly Off

2007 Chevrolet Corvette.

General Motors recently recalled 22,000 Corvettes because the roof might fly off, and what do you think kicked the company into action? Complaints on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Web site from owners? Was it the safety agency itself, worried about the complaints? Concerns raised by the Federal Aviation Administration?

Nope. It was the Japanese Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport, unhappy about the problem on imported Corvettes, according to a letter from G.M. to the safety agency. That prompted G.M. to examine the problem in the United States and eventually inform the N.H.T.S.A. that it planned a recall.

The recall covers 2005-7 Corvettes and the 2006-7 Z06, all with a body-colored, painted roof. Chevy says the adhesive is not strong enough and may allow the roof panel to pull away from the frame. Chevy will replace the panel with a new design of a different material.

In part this is a recall of another recall. In 2006, G.M. recalled about 31,000 2005-6 Corvettes because, yes, the roof panel might peel away from the vehicle’s frame. Alan Adler, a spokesman for G.M., said the fix was to use a foam adhesive. That foam was then briefly used as vehicles were assembled in Bowling Green, Ky.