Weather Strip

[MrHeat]

When it rains my 1986 coupe is starting to drip thru the top,what i want to know is ,,is it hard to replace it myself or would it be better to let a body shop do it or if i can find a good corvette shop here on the west coast of florida out side of tampa any suggestions would be appreciated

 

[johnny80]

Mr Heat,

Depends on how much time you have and how much patience. There are great kits availible from Ecklers or Mid America. You can buy the piece that you want or a whole kit. Beware, they are replica kits and are a bit thicker but will do just fine. Takes a bit of time and a steady hand but can be done. Just be patient though and don't rush through it. I had all of mine replaced. Bought the car from Arizona and the all of the seals were cracked and split badly. Had some serious leaks not only from the top but the windows too. After replacing, no probs at all. Plus, I live in Western WA, rains every other day. Good test for the seals for me. Regardless, call around if you are going to let a mechanic do it. Can be pricey because of the labor.

 

[GeorgeT]

I just replaced all the weather stripping in my '93. It's an aggrevating job, particularly the hatch seal. It took two days but could be done in one by someone more proficient than me. The hatch and windshield weatherstrips are the hardest to do, the rear roof and removalble panel strips are the easiest.

 

[bohms]

Need to replace stripping on the '93

Since we are on the subject does anyone recall in the months past someone had found web sights to buy new stripping at a great price and talked about installing it. I've searched the forums and found nothing on it.:confused The person was talking about the stripping being a little differant but was going to let us know how it tuned out.. would love to find that post and that link

thanks

Dan

 

[firedawg]

Getting ready to replace the windshield weatherstripping and the window channel felt/rubber strip on my coupe, but I read somewhere that you may need to remove the windshield to replace the windshield weatherstripping, is this correct? I am wanting to replace the piece that goes from the door, along the top of the windshield (between that and the removable top) down to the other door. Also, would this be the correct piece?

Windshield Weatherstripping

Anyone have to do this before? How hard is it?

 

[paintdaddy]

No you dont have to remove the window to replace that.whoever told you that must have been talking about the rubber seal at the bottom of the glass.The ws you are speaking sits in a track and is glued in also.

 

[firedawg]

Thanks Paintdaddy, I was kind of thinking that, but wanted to be sure before I attempted this. How hard would this project be for the amature?

 

[paintdaddy]

Not hard at all.The best tool I found for this is a common Bondo speader.Pull the old one out.There will be some adhesive and crud left in the track when you are done.If you have one use a small plastic scraper to scrape the rest of the glue and crud out of the track,a screwdriver will do if you dont have a plastic scraper.After that take a wire brush and run it up and down the track to try to clean and remove even more of the adhesive.Blow it out when finished to remove the lose particles.Squirt some glue on the track and spread it thin with your finger.Do the same with the weatherstrip(you may need help holding it).Then start in the middle of the top of the windshieldwith the middle of the weatherstrip and lay it in the track the best you can.Work your way out to the corner of the windshield and down the pillar.If it looks like you are going to come op short at the end of the pillar ,stretch it as needed and push it in to the track.Then using the bondo spreader press the edges in to the edges of the track.After all is done install the top and roll up the windows to press the weatherstrip in to the trak more and let it sit for a few days if possible.Hope this helps.

 

[AnytownUSA]

Hey Paintdaddy,
What glue are you using for that? I got some 3M Super Weatherstrip Adhesive and the stuff won't run out of the tube (I actually bought two thinking the first was bad). It comes out in clumps and stretches but then lets go of the car/strip. It sticks to itself but does not seem to want to stick to the car or the 'strip. I had cleaned the surfaces with body solvent so I know they were clean. It takes a a lot of pressure to get the adhesive out in the first place, the stuff is REALLY thick.

I need to "reseat" my hatch 'strip - it isn't torn but it has worked it's way loose in one of the corners. Incidentally, My drivers window drips on my knee. Any way to "expand" the existing uncraked 'strip without replacing it? Or just tighten up the glass-to-gasket interface? Thanks for the help.

I have a fellow I work with that ragged about getting my vette, "everybody I know that has ever had one has had all kinds of trouble out of them." He would ask me every now and then if I'd had any work done on it yet. After two years of ownership ( and no down time), it almost broke my heart to explain the wet knee when I got to the office last week. He just grinned ear-to-ear. But when I congratulated him on his Ford Focus not leaking, he just turned around and walked off. I'm not sure what his problem was but I felt a lot better!
Mike

 

[paintdaddy]

That sucks .I know what you mean by having to defend owning a corvette.Its just part of the ownership.

As far as the glue I think your using the right stuff it just sounds old.Try buying some from a different store or try a different brand.I use transtar brand.Usually available at paintstores ,its clear so if I have any ooze out it doest show up.