aaronazevedo

guys - I've searched the forum for an hour and must be looking for the wrong words......anyway, I'm trying to replace the rubber trim that runs on the outside of the window frame. The back part of mine - the part that lies flush with the b-pillar area when the door is closed, has some dry rot and is beginning to crack.

I have the parts, and went out into the garage tonight for a simple swap, but I can't get the old one off without ripping it.

Someone else must have done this before. Love your thoughts.

Thanks.

CarmG993

If it is ripping it must be pretty dry rotted. Also must have plenty of adhesive.
It should come right out, if any pcs are left behind, use a plastic spackle knife and some 3M adhesive remover to clean it up before putting on the new seal
When I did this, I didn't use much weatherstripping adhesive when reinstalling.

aaronazevedo

Maybe I wasn't clear enough. There doesn't seem to be an adhesive used at all. It seems to me that the weather stripping is set in a channel. This channel runs the perimeter of the outside of the window frame, and the down the vertical rear part of the window frame.

The rubber is pretty oxidized, and has a small crack in it. The rubber seems to slide in it's channel. I just didn't want to go in there and give it a pull without knowing a little more first.

How did you re-install your door seal?

Just for clarity, I'm not talking about the seal on the inside (where the window sets into), but rather the seal that seals between the window frame and the body of the car when the door is closed.

CarmG993

Is it the seal that goes around the entire frame? If it is, you can just remove. If it is falling apart, it's just brittle. I installed by putting a dab of weather stripping here and there and proceeding to put in the channel that it sits in.
Took about 20 minutes. Make sure you clean any residue left from the old weather stripping.

aaronazevedo

Got it, I think. Did you slide the the weather stripping out from one end or the other? or just pull it out.

Did the new one slide in from one side or the other, or just jam it in? any rubber lubricant to help it in?

thanks again

aaronazevedo

Carmen - upon reading your thread again, I may have been mistaken. The rubber trim I'm talking about does not go all the way around the door as well, but rather only goes around the black thin window surround. Say up from the rear view mirror, back up over the outside of the door, and then back down the back of the window surreound and stops before the door.

I'm just double checking before I pull the old rubber out of the channel in the window surround.

Thanks, Aaron

Kevin R.

Aaron,

Was this matter resolved by just ripping it out of the channel and then prying the new one into the empty channel. It seems that to do it properly would require removing the window frame and sliding it through the channel from the beginning of one end or the other.

I tried to do what you said on a 1997 993 and found at the front there is a portion of the weatherstripping that surrounds (wraps around) the front of the frame and is stuck underneath the frame and cannot be reached to be removed without removing the frame itself. On the MY 1997 the outside door window stripping is all one piece.

What did you do? Thanks.

Kevin

mike cap

Guys,

The rubber trim/seal part you're discussing slides into a channel in the aluminim window surround. No need to remove anything on the door.

The 'end' near the rearview mirror is held down with adhesive - I used black silicone 'glue' after everything is aligned. You can use stir sticks, wedges and duct tape to keep the rubber laying flat till the silicone dries.

The other end, near the door latch, has to be trimmed a bit. You can use the original seal as a guide.

The REAL tough part if installing this trim is where the piece turns the corner from horiz to vertical at the aft end of the window surround. There is a plastic pin and 'C' clip that have to be installed. A real pain - it's difficult to get the pin aligned without snapping it off and the 'C' clip is micro sized. A helper, magnifying glass, good lighting and some very small needle nose pliers are a necessity.

Pound for pound this was the most frustrating thing I've ever done on my car.