Door Seals ....

[Chevybrit]

As my daily 1009 racks up the mileage I get to spend a few hours per day gazing at not only the beautiful North Carolina country side but also the interior of 'Trooper'.
Glancing at all the little jobs that need doing minus the limited time, I've started a mental priority list.
The dead fuel gauge has been addressed by CUCVRUS but another job that has shot to the top is the leaking doors .. especially the drivers which drips on the seat
The big exterior rubbers have been replaced at some not to distant past but the PO skimped on the internal ones fixed to the doors themselves....


LMC do a cab seal kit for $149 is this a good buy and can anyone comment ?
Shame tho the inner rubbers are an additional 34 each so its no small change although its a saving
on buying individually. I have a leak that comes down onto and drips off my park brake release handle
so maybe its the hood to cowl seal or the windshield rubber?

Anyways ... 2 cents please

 

[cucvrus]

You may be surprised at what you find when you remove the windshield. The pinch weld stays wet for a month after it is in the garage. Ask me how I know that. But anyway. If it has been wet for 30+ years imagine what it looks like in there. I would remove the windshield and the dash pad and sand and clean that entire pinch weld. Then get a good window guy to reinstall it and seal it really well and go around and seal it under the rubber. I have seen very few CUCV's that don't leak. Very few. I have been successful with sealing up most. But time takes it's toll on sealers and nothing will ever stop the rust. Nothing.

 

[FrankenCub]

I worked at an upholstery shop that also did windows, a little trick to track down hard to find leaks is to sprinkle baby powder around the windshield seal and body seams in the area. Then go inside with an air hose and blow nozzle, blowing at the seal everywhere you put baby powder on the other side. You'll most likely find a spot where the powder has been blown away or streaked. We had a 2 year old car come in the a dealer couldn't find the leak and told the customer it would dry up. Took me 5 hours but persistence payed off. This case it wasn't the windshield seal, it was a seam in the body just below that wasn't totally sealed correctly right from GM.
I've used the baby powder trick on door seals that looked in good condition also, but still leaked. Just use less air pressure.

 

[Chevybrit]

Great tips ... Thank you both ..
Not sure how I'll tackle the Windshield issue because if Rick is correct then I'll find rust and it'll take some time to sort that before the glass goes back in ..
Tell me or show me a pic if you have one of the rebate where the glass sits .. I'm guessing one gets the mobile windshield guy to come to the property, or drive without it fitted to the shop ??
With it being used so often I wonder how feasible it'll be to knock out quickly.. hmmmmm

 

[cucvrus]

Another alternative is to remove the tightening rubber and go around with black sealer and seal it up real well. Then reinstall the lightener rubber. That is not advised it will seal the rust in there really well but it will stop the leak. Been there and done it on plow trucks. And I have scrapped several CUCV's into the scrap bins. They were rusted thru everywhere. Even the axle tubes were rusted. Good Luck. Sorry that is your daily driver, I wouldn't like that. But I have been there, No more. Happy Holidays.

 

[iacucv]

If you are unable to tackle the job, I would contact a good local body shop. I have been a bodyman off and on for years, the rusty windshield pinch weld would not be a big deal unless it is so far gone it needs completely refabricated. I would guess pull the windshield, stripping wheel the pinch weld, spot blast the pitted areas, then coat it with a good pinch weld primer. Reinstall windshield with new gasket. Not sure on price of the windshield gasket itself, but if my guess on rust cleanup is right I'd say 2-3hrs labor at a shop. Shop rates vary from 55-75 bucks an hr, I'd say if they want more than 200 bucks they saw ya comin. Sounds like if you schedule it with the shop, they should be able to handle it in a day, but you should let them get eyes on it and have them give you an idea.

We deal with rusty pinch welds on much newer cars around here, and it's not a big deal with urethane set windshields. The older you get, the more surprises you find as well so that's why I recommend letting a good body shop look at it before assuming what I say is what you'll get. Can't tell what's what over the inter webs very well. Good luck!

 

[FrankenCub]

If you find it is leaking at the windshield, I would have to go with iacucv's recommendation of having a body shop look at it. Unless you have a mig welder to make possible repairs to the pinch weld and a free weekend. I have seen a couple where enough of the pinch weld was rotted away that they needed extensive work to fix, most however weren't so bad. Maybe a 1/4" of the pinch weld gone where a tab could be fashioned to weld into the missing part. The pinch weld primer works really well and dries fast after you prepped the area well. Pitting is generally always a problem in the older vehicles. In which case I always used Urethane windshield adhesive before I installed the gasket just to be sure it sealed up.
You may be able to pry up enough of the gasket in the area, if you find it leaking there, and see enough to get an idea of how rusted it is.
Don't hesitate to have a local body shop look at it if you're unsure. Don't go to a glass shop, I don't think many have the capability to handle much of a pinch weld repair.

 

[dependable]

Having replaced seals in several of these from different suppliers, I have found the best fit and quality to be Precision Mfg's products. This goes for door seals as well as windshield etc. LMC used to supply Precision seals with their kits, but the last one I got was from Thailand or something, and did not fit well. Now I order directly from Precision.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...www.prp.com/&usg=AOvVaw1CJsdiTDqtnApMUlqrN8Ss

 

[TGP (IL)]

I installed Door Drip rails from LMC after I changed the door seals.
Made a huge difference when opening the door in foul weather.
Most all civilian trucks came with them as part of a option package.

I scuffed up the chrome and painted OD.

You can barely see them in the picture.
Tom