Fellow TR types-
I recently shelled out the buckeroos for a "major" weather strip kit for
the GT6. I received a box of rubber bits, but no real clue as to which was
which. But, hey, how tough could it be ? Well I tried fitting the first
pieces this weekend. I started with the waist and door glass seals. The
inner metal/fuzzy pieces were too long, no problem, I trimmed them to fit
and they went right in. So far, so good. Then I went for the outer rubber
seals. The old ones were as hard as a rock and the new ones were very soft
rubber. What a b*tch of a time I had gettin those things in evenly. After
about 2 hours of pushin and proddin (not to mention really sore thumbs),
they were in and looked great. I should have just stopped and admired them,
but no, I had to wind the window up and down a few times just to check.
Well the second trip up, the window pulled the seal up with it. Grrrrr !
Back to the old ones to see if there's a trick here, and lo and behold, the
old ones have a metal strap embedded in them. So now I spend another coupla
hours with a razor blade detaching said metal. And I thought my thumbs were
sore before. Now I have to attach this metal bar to the offending rubber
piece. No problem, I'll just glue it in. Another coupla hours makin a jig
to hold the metal and rubber together over their entire length. I glue the
pieces together and ingest major amounts of Redtail Ale while I let them
set until tomorrow. Next day I again ruin my thumbs gettin the new unit
onto the car. Oh, and did I mention it is about 100 degrees out and the
aforementioned Redtails are exacting revenge ? But of course you knew that.
When I finally get the whole magilla onto the car, it looks like cr*p. All
wrinkly and not sealing at all well, and to top it off the finger slicin
clips are touching the glass.
I decide maybe it's time to move on to another facet of this project. I now
attack the infamous "fuzzy seal" around the door openings. Well, it doesn't
attach like the old stuff, in fact, it doesn't attach at all. Where the
original merely slid over the edges, this stuff has only the hint of a
groove, and must be glued in place. Now you may think that the ole Nickster
is a little slow on the uptake, but no fool I, I cut off a small piece to
use as a trial. On goes the glue, hold it in place with some tape and let
it dry. More Redtails. After a bit, I check it out. Yep, holdin in place,
but hey, the rubber side of the seal that is supposed to seal against the
door and the glass is so thin that it doesn't even touch either component.
Perhaps some of you may not have gotten the idea that I am not happy with
these products. Lemme spell it out. J U N K !
In fairness I will say that the seal at the bonnet/fascia looks like it
will work just fine.
Has anyone found any repro weather-strips for their GT that actually
fit/worked, unlike these beauties ?
Red thumbs and Redtails in Nor Cal...
Nick
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