Best Hail-Proof Car Covers
What’s the point of an outdoor car cover if it can’t protect your vehicle from all of the elements? For much of the US, that means not just wind, rain, and snow, it means the likelihood of hail. Hail is the precipitation most likely to damage your vehicle, and it’s extremely difficult to repair that damage. You want to look at quality hail-proof car covers that can stop it.
Low-quality car covers offering only the most basic protection in light wind or rain, don’t offer best protection for your vehicle when it comes to more unforgiving weather conditions. What about in snow, ice and hail, which can do a real number — not just to the cover — but to your vehicle underneath?
To add insult to injury these poorly made car covers tend to rip and tear easily, offering poor value for the money and requiring replacements, sometimes seasonally.
For the best value, durability and long-lasting protection in all types of weather including snow, ice and hail, you’ll want the most durable, best hail-proof car cover you can afford. You want it manufactured specifically to fit and protect every curve of your specific vehicle make and model, and you want it at the best price so you can be sure you’re getting best value for your money.
With so many car cover options on the market, how do you know which one stands up to even golf-ball size hail, which can do serious damage to your car or truck? Which hail-proof car cover offers the best price, quality, value and warranty? We’ve researched and tested several, and we are here to help…
Table of contents
- Promoted Product: Seal Skin Covers Supreme Car Covers with Gore-Max
- Sojoy Anti-Hail Cover
- Hail Protector
- Altindal Hail Car Cover
- Morhept All-Weather Car Cover
- Oweeio Waterproof Car Cover
- iCarCover All Weather Cover
- Budge Protector V
- How Does a Hail-Proof Car Cover Work?
- Will A Car Cover Make My Car Moldy?
Promoted Product: Seal Skin Covers Supreme Car Covers with Gore-Max
Seal Skin Covers “Supreme Car Covers” is the most powerful hail-proof car cover available. Seal Skin Covers’ unique design innovation and GORE-MAX technology makes its “Supreme” car cover simply the best hail-proof vehicle protection available. You can’t go wrong with this one, especially when paired with the affordable price point.
Seal Skin Covers is able to sell this powerfully protective hail-proof cover at a supremely competitive price point because they manufacture direct, cutting out the middleman and passing the savings onto you.
It’s waterproof, durable, and provides excellent protection against not just hail but also against sun, rain and snow. GORE-MAX fabrics promote superior air circulation preventing mildew, odors, and paint damage. Seal Skin Covers “Supreme Car Covers” designed with GORE-MAX is an elite all-weather cover built to last.
These car covers offer a 10-year warranty and are UV resistant to prevent fading, wearing and discoloration. Made with anti-rot threading using ultrasonically welded seams to prevent premature wear, these ultra-tough car covers made from high-quality fabric, are durable yet gentle on your vehicle, offering the best waterproof and hail-proof protection for your car, truck or other vehicle in all weather conditions and seasons. No rubbing, no scratching. Just awesome all-year protection and peace of mind, even when it hails.
Designed to out-perform conventional five-layer covers and protect your vehicle from hail (up to the size of a golf ball), the soft fleece lining protects paint, while built-in elastic hems offer snug fit and hug every curve of your vehicle make and model, preventing rubs or scratches even where lesser covers fall short. Seal Skin Covers come with built-in reinforced grommets to secure the included lock and cable. The Seal Skin Supreme hail-proof car covers also come with an antenna patch kit that allows you to create a reinforced pass-through hole for your vehicle's antenna.
As an added bonus, you can save 15% on every Seal Skin cover storewide through the end of 2021 if you use the code "SEALDEAL" when you click on the "Check Price" link below.
Features
- Ultra-tough car covers, manufactured direct for the best price and value, strongest, toughest, most durable vehicle covers
- Best protection, price and value guaranteed.
- Full 10-year warranty
- Made with anti-rot threading, high-quality hand picked fabric, waterproof (yet breathable), hail-proof (up to golf ball size hail) protection. Protects in all weather conditions, all seasons.
- Guaranteed tight-fit make/model specific covers built to fit snugly around every line and curve of the vehicle for best protection
- Company was established 2005; 400k verified customers, 95k reviews
- User-friendly website, easy to use; just enter make/model/year and your tight-fit Seal Skin Cover is ready and waiting.
Sojoy Anti-Hail Cover
This is a three-layer car cover that works to protect your vehicle from UV radiation as well as dirt, dust, and industrial fall-out. Everything a car cover is designed to do. Where it differs from standard covers is in the extra padding and protection on the top portion of the cover. The maker claims that this will protect from hailstorms of up to H6 on the Torro scale, defined as when shingle roofs can be breached and metal roofs are scored. Offered in two sizes to fit a wide range of vehicles, the hail-proof car cover is held by two straps that attach under the car to make sure it isn't blown away. Unlike some covers, this isn't meant to keep out all water, instead, it offers ventilation that helps to keep your vehicle's interior from overheating. That makes it a poor choice if your vehicle leaks or has similar damage issues.
Pros | Padded for hail cover, sized to fit many vehicles, allows vehicle ventilation |
Cons | No padding on sides, buckles can be fragile, doesn't keep water off of vehicle |
Hail Protector
Any cover that rests against the surface of the vehicle can only protect from a certain amount of hail damage. To add more protection, you need to add more space, and that's what the Hail Protector does. The manufacturer says it can protect against any size of hail because it inflates to offer a thick layer of pressurized air around your vehicle. Install the cover if there is a risk of a storm, then use the included remote to inflate it when the storm arrives. The blower motors can run on AA batteries for shorter lengths of time, on your vehicle's 12V battery for hours, or plug into a wall outlet and it can run as long as needed. This isn't a small cover, even when folded (about the size of a sleeping bag), but there's little that compares to it as far as hail protection. The cover also comes with an early warning weather app for your smartphone to make sure you always know when hail is on the way.
Pros | Pressurized air protects vehicle, remote-control operation, comes with weather app |
Cons | Protection comes with a price, more difficult to install than conventional covers, bulky to store when not in use |
Altindal Hail Car Cover
Rather than taking a traditional car cover design and making it thicker to protect from hail, Altindal went with a more focused approach. This cover isn't meant to protect your vehicle from dust, dirt, and bird poo, though it will likely still help with those, it is designed to stop damage from impact. It has a top layer of water-repellant outdoor fabric, but under that is a 6mm layer of ethylene-vinyl acetate. That's a very elastic plastic product that can stand up to low temperatures, stress cracks, and UV radiation. In prosthetics and orthotics, it's used for its durability and softness, and those properties work to protect your vehicle from damage caused by hail. A total of 16 straps hold the cover securely in place during the high winds that often accompany hailstorms, and an inner layer of soft fabric helps protect the paint from scratches. This cover offers a 3mm layer on the upper sides of the vehicle, so it can protect from hail impact on an angle, not just from the top.
Pros | 6mm plastic hail protection, 16 straps to resist wind, offers side protection |
Cons | Not for leave-on use, doesn't protect vehicle from dust and dirt |
Morhept All-Weather Car Cover
A more conventional cover than the last few on this list, this is still a rugged and durable offering. It is designed for everyday car cover use, protecting from rain, UV, and bird droppings in the summer, leaves and tree droppings in the fall, and snow and frost in the winter. It will also protect from small hail, keeping the ice from cracking windshields and denting and damaging your bodywork. Reflective strips help make it easier to see your covered vehicle in the dark. The reflective aluminum outer layer blocks the sun from baking the inside of your vehicle while a soft cotton lining protects the paint from abrasion and rubbing. Central straps that run under your vehicle help keep the cover in place, but for added protection, there are four straps that each attach to one of the wheels of the vehicle. That can help keep the cover firmly in place in nearly any storm. The cover is not made for a single make and model, helping to keep it affordable, but Morhept does offer six sizes, which makes it a much closer fit than many covers that only come in one or two different sizes.
Pros | Wheel straps, reflective strips, comes in six sizes |
Cons | Not as much protection as thicker hail-proof car covers, no included locking cable, not offered in custom fit |
Oweeio Waterproof Car Cover
Six layers of fabric provide protection for your vehicle from the elements in this car cover. That starts with PE and EVA layers with the second one helping to give you that protection against smaller hailstones you're looking for. The weatherproof cover has adjustable center buckles and four over the top of the cover and car straps to keep it in place, along with an elastic hem. Built-in mirror pockets also have an elastic hem, while reflective strips help make your vehicle visible, even at night when parked on the street. One feature that really sets this cover apart is the zipper to give you access to the cabin. It unzips so you can open the driver's door, letting you take items out of the car, or just check on it without removing the whole cover. The cover is offered in two sizes, letting you pick for large or small cars.
Pros | Driver door zipper, straps go over the cover, six layers |
Cons | Only two sizes, mirror flaps might not line up |
iCarCover All Weather Cover
With 100 layers in a thin cover, this will help protect your vehicle from moderate hail, say users who have reviewed it. Protect your vehicle from birds and animals as well as dust, UV rays, and everything that falls from trees as well as that hail. The cover uses breathable layers to help stop heat and moisture buildup inside your parked car. It also offers reinforced grommets to help make sure the three windproof straps stay securely in place without tearing over time. Offering front, middle, and rear straps help the cover stay in place in even severe storms, and make sure it keeps your vehicle secure. Many covers only offer front and rear straps. The cover also comes with antenna patches to let your vehicle's antenna poke out (if you still have one) and a zippered storage bag for when you aren't covering your vehicle. Finally, there are grommets on the bottom of the cover that let you attach the two sides with a lock and cable or thin chain, preventing theft of the cover while it is on your car.
Pros | 100-layer cover, moderate hail protection, three undercar straps |
Cons | Comes in just two sizes, no wheel straps |
Budge Protector V
Budge says it has been making car covers since 1940 and this is the thickest one the company has built yet. It's an all-weather cover that puts three polypropylene layers on top of a dully waterproof membrane. That works to keep out the elements and while hail isn't mentioned specifically, this thick cover should help protect your paint, glass, and sheet metal from at least light hail. The inner layer is a soft nonabrasive fleece material that protects your paint from scratches if you rub up against the cover. It offers a fully elastic hem to help keep the bottom securely under your vehicle. It also offers straps and buckles to keep it fixed in place and built-in grommets to let you lock the cover safely to your vehicle. The Protector V comes with a seven-year warranty, letting you know it will protect your car for the long haul. The warranty covers the full thing, including stitching and grommets, sometimes left out of lesser warranties.
Pros | Seven-year warranty, thick cover for extra padding, all-weather protection |
Cons | Doesn't fit low enough on taller vehicles, no storage bag |
How Does a Hail-Proof Car Cover Work?
A hail-proof car cover works by putting an impact-absorbing layer between the hailstones and the bodywork of your car or truck. Like putting on knee pads, but for your vehicle. Some on this list offer thinner layers of protection, enough to protect from smaller hailstones and lower-impact storms, while others add a much thicker layer. Some through thicker padding, some by adding a layer of air, giving the cover precious feet of air gap to slow down the hailstones before they can damage your vehicle.
This extra padding is what makes a hail-proof car cover. Other covers are thinner, offering little or no padded protection.
The better job the cover does of protecting from hail, the bulkier it likely is, making it tougher to put on and remove before and after a storm. For that reason, some of these covers are best used only when a hailstorm is expected or about to arrive, while others can be used at all times.
Will A Car Cover Make My Car Moldy?
A car cover protects your vehicle from mold and mildew in two main ways. The first is the waterproof outer layer, which stops water from even reaching your vehicle in the first place. Dry paint and a dry interior make it tougher for mold or mildew to form. The second is through a series of breathable layers. These layers ensure that the air can circulate in and around your vehicle. This lets out any moisture from the air that enters your vehicle and helps keep the air fresher. Reflective covers also offer a level of temperature control in the vehicle, reducing inside temperature changes day and night, and this helps prevent moisture from condensing into water in your interior too.
We are committed to finding, researching, and recommending the best products. We earn commissions from purchases you make using the retail links in our product reviews. Learn more about how this works.
Photo credit: John-Fs-Pic / Shutterstock.com
Evan moved from engineering to automotive journalism 10 years ago (it turns out cars are more interesting than fibreglass pipes), but has been following the auto industry for his entire life. Evan is an award-winning automotive writer and photographer and is the current President of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada. You'll find him behind his keyboard, behind the wheel, or complaining that tiny sports cars are too small for his XXXL frame.
More by Evan Williams
Comments
Join the conversation
Most of the covers on this list are just fabric. That's not going to cut it for larger hail, which is what people are worried about. This calls into question the entire point of this article, and specifically why it began with "Whats the point of an outdoor car cover if it cant protect your vehicle from all of the elements?"