Exterior
Window Seal Replacement
OK Gentlemen, I admit I'm not sure how to proceed with replacing the outer window seals in
my doors....
I bought new ones (expensive!) since the old ones are starting to show cracks and looking
old. Went into the doors since I had to troubleshoot and repair the power door locks anyway.
Studied the service manual, and now this is looking like the job from heck... :-(
Do you really have to remove the outer window trim pieces to change these seals?
Not to mention scratching the paint, ruining clips, etc. Add feeling like a moron because I
don't know whatever the tricks are the pros use....
(The service manual says only to remove them, no hint of how.)
-Larry
82 auto (Moss Green Metallic)
928OC charter member
Florida plate: "V8 SHARK"
You can put the window seals in without removing the trim. You need some seal compatible
lubricant. I use sil-glide (silicone gel in a tube). You start at one end and work the small ridge
in the gasket into the small outer groove in the trim. The rest just falls in after you've gotten
the groove part started. It is fiddly work and if you try to hurry you will wreck the seal. I have
a dull, polished butter knife that I use to aid such procedures. If you use a metal balde to help
install the seal you need to make sure you hold it at an angle that doesn't scrape any metal
parts. If you do you will need to mask and spray with SEM satin black trim paint to restore.
This is all alot easier than it sounds.
Try and look that up in your owner's manual! heh heh
Jay K.
Having worked in an aerospace paint shop, I shuddered when I read this. Silicone kills paint
adhesion wherever it touches. I would suggest using a non-silicone lube.
Wally
I have used this stuff for a long time. If you apply it to the seal beforeinstallation it helps to
keep the rubber slippery. I use it instead of petroleum products (the other large group of
lubricants that are readily available) because it won't degrade the seal or blister paint over
time. I do agree with you that silicone is a bad thing around areas that are being prepped for
paint but I don't think they are bad around properly painted components. I use it because it is
compatible with most rubber sealcomponents. More compatible than petroleum based.
Probably the best stuff to use is surgical (water based) jelly but I don't keep that stuff around
my shop.
I too have been around commercially applied finishes my entire adult life. That includes
powder coating as well as wet electrolytic finishes and currently Teflon finishes. I have been
designing products and been responsible for specifying finishes and adhesives in more than a
few industries including aerospace. What I have found is that silicone adhesives, when they
cure, are almost impossible to get off of a surface that is being prepped for paint. Old style
RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanization) windshield caulk is a prime example of this. Silicone
adhesives (caulks) have powerful surfactants (vinegar smell) in them that etch into surfaces to
enhance bonding. Silicone lubricants do not!
I have applied wax and trim paint after using silicone jelly. I wipe up the area with cheap
rubbing alcohol from the Grand Union down the street and a lint free cloth. I normally steel
wool or lightly sand the area that will be touched up with paint. I then can apply trim paint
(SEM primerless satin black) and it doesn't come up over time. You can tell immediately if the
surface is contaminated because the paint won't sheet (flow) over the bad spot.
Jay Kempf
79 US 5 speed