[Staves]

I noticed my right rocker panel (I think that's what it's called) has a bigger gap then the left side and has some give when I push against it, unlike the left side which barely moves if I push.

Is there anything I can check without access to a lift or being able to raise my car? Otherwise I guess I can have the dealer check.

Thanks.

[Vaska]

Is this your first American vehicle, because panel gaps and terrible build quality is the standard. You buy the SS for the engine, trans and suspension, not the stuff around it.

[Staves]

No, it's like my 9th American vehicle and second Camaro. The gaps I know can be different on each side. It's just that I can push against one side and there is some pushback unlike the other side.

[UnknownJinX]

The rocker piece is made of plastic. Personally, I would just ignore it and keep driving.

My guess would be maybe a missing clip or something like that. You could try and jack the car up to take a look.

Originally Posted by Vaska

Is this your first American vehicle, because panel gaps and terrible build quality is the standard. You buy the SS for the engine, trans and suspension, not the stuff around it.

It's just the thing with any car built in America. When I had my first car, a 08 Honda Accord Coupe(built in the USA), the hood didn't sit 100% flush and is slightly raised on one side. No accidents on the car, or at least anything serious enough to cause this. I can't imagine an accident that causes this kind of issue gets repaired without going through insurance. I also see this getting reported on the new Accords that are built in the USA, so I am not alone.

[LT4Greg]

No worries Staves! My ZL1 has gaps in the panels too and like was said by forum members, our Camaros are not built perfect and never will be. I do understand your concerns though.

[s346k]

id get underneath it somehow and make sure the car hasn't been on a lift already with the resulting damage. other than that... ride on.

[Chutzpah]

Like others have said, it’s the norm for these cars to have uneven panel gaps. Sad to say, but that’s the way it is...

[Staves]

Originally Posted by Chutzpah

Like others have said, it’s the norm for these cars to have uneven panel gaps. Sad to say, but that’s the way it is...

I don't really mind the uneven gaps. It's just the one with the gap, I can push in a decent amount. I guess that's a result of the gap or there's missing clip somewhere. The left side with the smaller gap has virtually no play/movement at all when you push in on it.

[Aaron07]

It could've been improperly lifted at some point. These cars have pinch welds that require the use of lifting pads when lifting with a jack.

[Pupilbone]

I’m with Vaska and LT4Greg, think you’re fine.

The next time you take it in for service, point it out on delivery, and see what they say.

Good luck!

[ThirdGenNut]

You know you love your car when you are measuring panel gaps... Well done GM.

[CamaroSSStlfan]

Originally Posted by Vaska

Is this your first American vehicle, because panel gaps and terrible build quality is the standard. You buy the SS for the engine, trans and suspension, not the stuff around it.

Yea. Think thats bad look at the of the qc stuff on the new c8 corvettes. Gaps, poor stich pattern quality,etc.

[ember1205]

Just wait until you notice the paint wearing between the inside of the doors and the rockers because the rockers move....

On the down side, the parts are plastic and will not adhere to the same sort of expansion/contraction for temps as metal and they are fitted with "loose" clips that snap into place. On the up side, they're super easy to replace if you damage them.

[R8R1LE]

I ran over a tire with my '23 2ss 1le last week doing 65mph. Splitter exploded, trans cooler looks like a rainbow. I feel the radiator mounting is damaged in some way. a few of the bolds that stick down to secure under pans are bent other than that everything LOOKS good. diff cooler lines are intact, I've worried about those since I bought the car.
Runs and drives fine.

I noticed this morning the rocker was not flush with the door and gap looked a little bigger than I recall. Both sides I can push on they mover 1/2 inch or more, I'm pretty dang sure they didn't do that when I bought it (2500 miles). As a matter of fact, I KNOW I would have noticed it when I installed the jack blocks (I installed 6, the tire removed the rear from driver side one, hope it cleared the road and didn't take out multiple peoples tires!)

The nose flexed so much my driver side marker split and outside is gone. So I have 3 blackouts and a white one... I hope ???led's will sell me just 1 so I don't have to eat $200 to replace 1....

I have a feeling that the impact might have popped multiple clips on both rockers. That said, every week I would find another minor build quality issue. Now anything I find I won't know if it was that way before the incident or not.

Hoping I win raffle in July for new caman GT4 RS +25k. my '86 944 turbo I recently sold (on jackstands for last 20 years) sounded much more solid when the door closed than this camaro. But put her in track mode and let her rip and I forget about such things...