Protect Your Vehicle During Hailstone Season with Hail Cover

As the seasons change and hailstone season is now upon us in Australia, it is crucial to protect your vehicle during hailstone season with hail cover. Hail season in Australia typically falls between September and February. This brings with it the risk of large hailstones wreaking havoc on vehicles left exposed to the elements.

Understanding the Causes of Hailstorms

Hail is small blocks of ice falling from the sky and as it is ice, many people think that hailstorms are a winter phenomenon. Hailstorms occur when strong updrafts in thunderstorms carry raindrops into extremely cold areas in the atmosphere. This causes them to freeze and form hailstones. This only happens in warm or hot humid conditions. These hailstones can range in size from pea size or smaller to large chunks as big as tennis balls. This poses a significant threat to vehicles, properties, and crops. One of the largest recorded natural disasters, causing billions of dollars of damage was a hailstorm that hit Sydney back in October 1999.

Benefits of Hail Cover Protection for Your Car

Hail cover protection serves as a shield against hailstones. They protect the exterior of your car from dents, scratches, and other damages. By using a quality product, you can minimise the risk of costly repairs and maintain the pristine condition of your vehicle. Those unfortunates who have experienced hail damage know that hail-damaged vehicles, even after repair, lose much of their re-sale value. Most drivers have at least an $800 dollar excess on their vehicle insurance. Hail damage is an excessive cost to pay. You also have the hidden cost of having a vehicle off the road for a time while someone repairs it! A large product for a big Ute may cost over $400.00 but it is money well spent it saves your vehicle from hail damage.

How Good Hail Protection Covers Work

Your car is protected from hail damage by a good hail protection cover, which absorbs the impact of hailstones. A cover described as ‘hail protection” just because it has 4 or 5 layers of materials will not withstand an Australian hailstorm. Durable materials are used to make these cheaper products, providing a few layers of defense for your vehicle.

Key Features of a Quality

When choosing a hail cover for your car, it is important to look for certain features that enhance its effectiveness. A good product MUST have a layer of padding to absorb impact, as well as a secure fit to ensure it stays in place during storms. Additionally, selecting one designed specifically for Australian conditions will ensure optimal protection against hailstorms.

A hail protection cover should also be waterproof and protect against the sun’s powerful UV rays. Anti-Condensation air breathers need to be fitted on the cover to enable it to breathe properly. Also important is a non-abrasive backing fabric to protect your vehicle’s paint work.

Hail Protection Covers

Hail protection covers are designed to protect against hailstorms, as indicated by their name. A good product will be waterproof, and UV protected but it is NOT designed for every-day use. You are to use them to protect your car from imminent hailstorms, as their name suggests. A vehicle that needs long-term protection should use a Stormguard cover on top of the hail protection cover if it is to be stored outside for months under the Australian sun.

Autotecnica: A Leading Hail Cover Brand in Australia

The best-selling hail cover brand in Australia is the Autotecnica range. During hailstorms, these covers provide reliable protection, are known for their high-quality construction, and offer durability. Autotecnica shields your car from potential hail damage so there is no need to worry.

There are three ranges from Autotecnica.

The Hail Proof Cover

The Premium Hail Proof Cover

The Ultimate Hail Proof Cover.

All covers have a completely padded top. The Premium Hail Cover has a padded top and padding down to below the side windows but the Ultimate Hail Protection Cover is completely padded all over. You will find a cover to fit most vehicle types in Australia. A large sedan cover will fit a Single Cab Ute, the Premium range has a cover for vans and people movers. The Ultimate Range has a cover for large Double-Cab Utes. We will always suggest a Premium Hail Cover for most Australians as it has all the protection needed for most hail conditions.

What Does a Good Hail protection Cover look like?

A good hail protection cover will be bulky. It has 6mm compressed polyester between layers. The Ultimate cover is like a bit like two large doonas sewn together. They are not particularly heavy, although the largest Ultimate cover is just under 10kg in weight. They have a silver-coloured exterior to reflect the sun’s rays and a non-abrasive backing fabric to protect paint work. No matter what size of vehicle you have, an Ultimate cover is likely to take up around half your boot space. In smaller cars, size is obviously a lot smaller, but it will still take around half the boot space.

Hail Armour Cover

Recently introduced to Australia and designed for Australian conditions is the Hail Armour Cover. In emergency situations, this Australian design is useful. Place the cover over your car,

plug into your 12v, ( cigarette lighter), car accessory and it blows up in a few minutes. The Hail Armour cover guarantees to give 100% protection against all hailstorms and it comes in sizes to fit nearly all vehicles.

Summary

As hailstone season is now upon us (November 2024), taking proactive measures to protect your car with a quality hail cover is a smart investment. By choosing a reputable brand like Autotecnica and ensuring your cover has the necessary features for effective protection, you can safeguard your vehicle and enjoy greater peace of mind during periods of hailstorm activity. When you look for a good hail cover on Google, ensure that you are choosing supply from an Australian business. Look at a business like Car Covers and Shelter. We would suggest you read the reviews of businesses like Australia Car Covers; a business based in the USA. You can read their reviews here.