3C-SiC single crystal epitaxial layers, 6H-SiC single crystal plates and α-SiC Hexoloy sinters were irradiated with 4.0 MeV Xe or 4.0 MeV Au ions at room temperature. Mechanical and dimensional evolutions of silicon carbide are studied by means of nano-indentation and step-height measurements which are correlated with Rutherford backscattering spectrometry and channelling (RBS/C) data in single crystals. Irradiation with Xe ions induces a total lattice disorder related to amorphization for a fluence of 1 × 1015 cm−2 in both polytypes. When complete amorphization is reached, around the same values of Young's modulus (~350 GPa) and Berkovich hardness (~27 GPa) are found in both polytypes. The out-of-plane expansion increases with irradiation dose and the saturation value measured in the amorphous layer (normalized to the projected range of the ions) is close to 20-25%. Modifications of macroscopic properties are mainly governed by the disordered fraction of the material in a two-step damage process. A similar behaviour of material evolution is found for the cubic and hexagonal polytypes, either in single crystals or sintered polycrystalline samples. Calculations of Young's modulus and volume swelling are carried out using the analytical (Reuss and Voigt) models of homogenization.