What Is A Corvette Birdcage??
How Are Corvettes Made?
Corvette bodies are constructed from several individual body panels that are glued together. Each panel added makes the total assembly of the body stronger. But fiberglass alone isn't enough to support the body and to prevent the doors from sagging when opened or to protect the body from being fatigued cracked during it's life on the road.
Corvette DNA
The solution is to give the Corvette a framework for the body nicknamed the "Birdcage". A Birdcage in a Corvette body is like the skeleton in your body. The Birdcage is the steel foundation that gives the fiberglass body something to attach to. It fully supports the windshield, door hinges, steering column, and the cage helps secure the body to the chassis.
Joining the Birdcage to Fiberglass
From the factory all fiberglass that directly interfaces with the birdcage is either bolted, solid rivet, or pop riveted in place. GM used thin bonding strips to attach to the birdcage and then used glue to attach the body panel to the substructure. Originally no fiberglass panels were glued directly to the steel. Check out my videos where I go into detail explaining the process more.
