A First Coast woman is trying to piece together why the roof panel of her car detached without warning while she drove down a school zone road.
Francesca Giannini told First Coast News her 2005 Cadillac XLR was purchased new and never showed structure problems during maintenance checks.
On Sunday June 3, however, the convertible's hard top panel flew off while she drove down Roberts Road near Cunningham Creek Elementary School. The area's speed limit is 35 mph.
"I [usually drive] daily on I-95 and I'm glad this wasn't during the week," Giannini said. "I don't want to think about what would have happened with all the traffic downtown."
Witnesses in one of the cars behind Giannini said the airborne roof narrowly missed other cars.
"The next thing you know we saw it flying off to the right and it avoided us and went flat into the grass," said Lauren Egleston who was two cars behind Giannini. "My husband said, we've got to stop her."
Lauren and her husband Harry Egleston said they flagged Giannini down and another person propped the over four foot wide panel up on a tree away from traffic.
"It literally separated as she came around the corner from the stop sign," Harry said. "I've never heard of a panel coming off of a convertible roof, I personally feel it should warrant an investigation by the motor company."
Giannini said she was quoted $3,100 to replace her roof but was told that her car's warranty had expired and any repairs had to be paid out of pocket.
First Coast News reached out to representatives of Cadillac Headquarters explaining Giannini's situation and asking for a response on why a roof would separate from a vehicle.
The representative said Cadillac no longer makes the XLR model and referred First Coast News back to the local dealership and suggested Giannini contact an insurance agent.
First Coast News has not yet received a response from the dealership Giannini initially contacted.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the 2005 Cadillac XLR is under no recalls for problems with its roof.
There are 21 recorded complaints by consumers with NHTSA for the same year, make and model.
Of the six complaints about the XLR's structure, five consumers reported their roof detached from the car's body.
Two local mechanics told First Coast News a roof panel fly off is extremely rare.
Giannini said she can no longer drive the car due to the exposed roof and still has few answers on why her otherwise functional car came apart at the seams. She believes Cadillac should be responsible for the cost of replacing the roof.
"It's got to be a defect on their end, something's definitely wrong," Giannini said. "Roofs don't just fly off on a daily basis. I'm just glad no one was injured."