Directions to remove this cover aren't in the Owner's Manual, but it needs to come off to access the battery that starts the car. GM considers that a dealer maintenance item; however, it's not unusual for people to replace their own 12-volt car batteries. On my ERay, I also saw something my Stingray didn't have! People have accidentally broken the plastic tabs on this cover, so this post describes how to easily remove it without breaking anything... and to show you the new discovery!
The battery cover is located underneath the front lid, between the frunk (front trunk) and the windshield. Here's the main cover photographed leaning against a door for size comparison, but even though it's large, it's light and easy to handle.
These are the three pieces, arranged the way they fit on the car, but flipped over so you can see the clips. Each side piece has 4 clips, and the center piece has 5 with two different types. The 2 yellow ones are at the front of the car, and the narrow ends of the side pieces fit back around the frunk lid hinges (on the outside of the hinges).
Notice that three metal clips on each side piece are facing the same direction, and the 2 others on the wider ends are different.
The removal procedure is to start at the front of the side pieces, pulling towards the center of the car but also at a 45º angle up. Once that first clip has popped loose, you can run your hand down between the plastic and the car body to push the remaining clips straight towards the centerline of the car and release them, one by one. Remove both side pieces first.
For the large center piece, start by pulling up and popping out the yellow fasteners on each side. Then you can slide your hand underneath, push straight up, and release the 3 metal clips. I try to get my hand as close as I can to each clip, but before doing any of that, I recommend you look at how all the pieces fit into the other bodywork. Even take a photo, if you want, so it's easy to remember "what slides under or over what" when you go to reinstall it. This photo shows that the cover slides in underneath the water outlet by the windshield wiper, allowing water to flow from the bottom of the windshield out over this cover to be channeled away.
Please remember, I don't think it's a good idea to get the car wet with this cover off. In other words, I wouldn't drive your C8 Corvette (any of the three models) in the rain or wash it with the frunk/battery cover off. I've never heard of anyone having problems, but it doesn't seem like a good idea to have lots of water funneled off the windshield and then be dumped out near your positive battery terminal. The cover is probably there for a reason!
Here's a closer look at the clips themselves, and you can see they aren't all angled the same way. If you pull up on the side pieces, you could possibly break the tabs that hold the clips.
Now for the surprise finding! There's another 5-PSI cap up front, like I discussed in my Public Service Announcement (PSA) post in the "How-To" section. That's something all ERay buyers/owners should be aware of, so please read that next — and watch the video — if you haven't already, and let me know if yours was loose too!
The cap in the front is located on the passenger side and comes off the same way as I described in my PSA post — not that I'm suggesting you take it off, because I'm not — but there's a trick to it.
Please note: The above procedure is the same for all C8 Corvette models at the time of this writing, including ERay, Z06, and Stingray. Obviously, only the ERay has these two 5-PSI caps. The system in the front cools the electric drive motor and some control modules — per Harlan Charles, Corvette Product Marketing Manager.
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