Rear Quarter Window Rubber Replacement - I Have the Fix!!!

[t6dpilot]

I needed to replace the rubber trim on my rear quarter windows as they were the original pieces and looked terrible. I read a lot of threads started by guys who were saying it was an absolutely aweful job to do and it took forever. One guy even gave up and took them to a window glass expert who had the correct tools. After reading all this, I was really bummed about how long and difficult this was going to be, but I was determined to at least try it myself.

Well I took the windows out and removed the old weatherstipping. Boy was it in bad shape. Now was the moment of truth. I soaked the window and weatherstrip in hot water for about 5 or 10 minutes and sat down to get started. Well, guess how long it took me to do that first window... drum roll please... about 40 minutes, tops! The second window only took about 20 minutes.

Boy was I pumped. I want to share my success with everyone here, so we can end the days of struggling with these. Wanna know what the secret is? I used a paint can opener that the hardware store gives you when you buy a gallon of paint. It is perfectly set up with a loop on the handle end for stability and a flat area with a 90 degree bend on the "business end." That configuration fit perfectly for tucking in the weatherstipping.

Did I discover the Pot 'O Gold or is this an "old hat" solution that you guys have known about for years? I am going to post on the "other" Porsche site to share my success there as well.

Cheers!

[JimR]

Nice work, Scott. How 'bout a picture showing the correct tool placement for tucking in the weatherstripping, for the visualization-challenged guys like me?

[t6dpilot]

Will do. I knew that was going to be requested. I don't have it with me, but can post tonight when I get home.

[adam912]

Yeah! I just did this last week and traced the same path before I got the sense of how it goes. I will add one more thing, it's all about getting the feel as to where to press. It's on the outside surface, and when you get it right, it goes "POP".

One more thing, a dilute soap solution, "Orange Magic spray" or one of those, helps a lot too. Use it on the rubber after you get it nice and hot in the water bath.

Ah, one more discovery. My '66 has all narrow trim on front and rear bumpers. As you all know who've been down this road before, the rubber center strip in the trim shrinks over the years. Used to be I'd just go to one of our suppliers and get a new rubber strip and put it in. Apparently those days are over, nobody (including Stoddards) has the center narrow rubber any more. If all that's wrong with it is that the ends show from shrinkage, pull the rubber piece out, clean it well, make marks on a piece of cardboard or the like to show how long the piece is as a starting point. Then put the rubber in the oven at the lowest setting (180 on our oven) for about 10 minutes. Put gloves or other heat protection on your hands, then place the rubber piece on your cardbard and pull on it so it's a good 3 inches longer than the marks. Hold it there until it's reasonably cool and it will hold the length, just slightly shrinking. Reassemble it to the aluminum trim, and when it's cold again, trim to length. Looks like brand new.

Adam912.out.
'66 912, 480K miles, 2.2L T4 powered lightweight hotrod!

[Chris Tallon]

Scott

Thanks for sharing. I had no idea that it was a tough job. I just picked up new qtr window rubber last night and planned to do the job Sat. This tip has probably saved me hours of frustration. Did you level the locking harware on the frame while doing the soaking part or did you remove that prior to starting the process?

Again, Thanks very much for your trick.

CT

[RickS]

Due to the expansion of metal due to heat, you will find this trick works for almost all tight rubber to metal situations, such as the rockers, the squeege on the front windows, etc. The key is to get as hot as water as possible and to keep it hot.

A very nice trick.

[t6dpilot]

Adam, neat trick on the rubber trim. I will keep that in mind.

CT, good luck and glad I could help. One thing that I forgot to mention is that I put some liquid soap on my finger and ran it all around the rubber where it would attach to the frame. That helps the tool slide easier and the rubber go into the channel easier.

Here is the tool that I used