Door Edge Guards - 78 TA

[TonysTA]

Hi,

I am considering putting on door edge guards and would like to know if anyone else has used them if they like them? FBody has two types, plastic and metal. I am on the fence, this would be purely cosmetic. Thanks

[roadking77]

My cousin had them on his 81 trans am he bought new. At the time I thought they were pretty neat looking. But it was his daily driver. Personally I would not put them on my car now. If you do get them I would def go metal.

[Warren Seale]

My 79 has the factory installed metal guards.  I think they are better than plastic since they are crimped on instead of using adhesive that can degrade with time.  They are good to have if your car is a daily driver but if it is relegated for show duty or light use then I would leave them off since edge protection would not be as much of a big deal.

[Jack]

I think they might look ok depending on the color of the car and the guards. Maybe black on a dark car, otherwise I don't think they look good and IMO they cause more harm when it comes time to remove them.

[roadking77]

Good question, were they factory installed? I know the ones my cousin had were dealer installed. He bought the car brand new. I always assumed thats the way they came. Back in that era lots of dealer add-ons came with cars.

[Gene-73]

This discussion reminds me of when the second gen F-bodies first came out, my Dad would warn us not to park next to them to avoid door dings because their doors were so long.   

[3tas4me]

Door edge guards were optional on all second gen cars for every year.  The 1970 edge guards are unique as they attach with screws.  Factory door edge guards were made of stainless steel and did not rust.  My '74 is supposed to have them and I would like to put them back on.  If anyone here has a NOS set and wants to sell, please PM me.

[Wallington]

They help hide the large door to body gap.
They came as a set for 71-81 Firebird #995692.

[Maxthe222]

My 79 has the factory installed metal guards.  I think they are better than plastic since they are crimped on instead of using adhesive that can degrade with time.  They are good to have if your car is a daily driver but if it is relegated for show duty or light use then I would leave them off since edge protection would not be as much of a big deal.

Not factory, dealership installed the metal rivet style

[Maxthe222]

They are two styles,
One is the plastic/rubber/vinyl factory style that was RPO B84, Hitman sells them on ebay, not cheap but I like the look, quality is getting there but I am happy enough with them. He has the only ones that look any good close to factory. The factory did not rivet any holes into the body to stick on that option. If it is on the build sheet, it is stick on.

The other style is the metal with vinyl centre that has the bullet tips on every end, and is rivetted onto the car. This is not factory. This is only dealer installed. Many dealers installed them, they are very very common, leading it to be a common misconception

[stros]

I was going to install the OEM metal ones on my black T/A but decided against it as I thought they’d look odd.  Instead I just went with some generic cut to fit black door edge guards on Amazon. 

[Wallington]

Maxine, door edge guards, not body molds.

And those details are a bit hazy anyway. An original optioned car with B84 could end up with either, likewise a dealer could do either. Often a dealer would be supplied with parts or options to complete on delivery, like they did with spoilers and some trim, completing body molds seems to have been one and the most likely way an optioned car got the metal molds. Only the stick-on type appears in the GM parts manuals.

Quality is getting there? You'd hope so, Dawn Enterprises have made the originals with the same molds since 1973. The rivet-on style company also still exists as Custom Auto Trim, although their name was JC Whitney? something when they started in' 77. That's probably a good timeline for the 2 main brands also.

My 78 Formula with B84 was delivered with the riveted metal molds. Now welded up and have the stick-on type instead. Resto fail.

[Warren Seale]

My 79 has the factory installed metal guards.  I think they are better than plastic since they are crimped on instead of using adhesive that can degrade with time.  They are good to have if your car is a daily driver but if it is relegated for show duty or light use then I would leave them off since edge protection would not be as much of a big deal.

Not factory, dealership installed the metal rivet style

Correct but the OP was referring to edge guards not side molding.

[roadking77]

Just to clarify, I was referring to what I though the OP meant. The thin metal strip that installs vertically on the 'edge' of the door, not the rubber bump trim that runs horizontally along the high ridge of the door.
I may have a set of the former in my pile of parts. I remember seeing some funky metal stripping and thinking it was not for an fbody, the more I think about it, it may be edge guards. Will have to check them out now.

[Jack]

Also it was more of an appearance package that came with Espirt's. I think my 71 had it along with the rocker trim (which I thought was a good idea on a low car but I removed it anyways).

[Warren Seale]

Also it was more of an appearance package that came with Espirt's. I think my 71 had it along with the rocker trim (which I thought was a good idea on a low car but I removed it anyways).

The edge guard was a separate option.  It was $13 when my car was shipped in March of 79.

[Maxthe222]

Too many RPOs in the brain!!

Sowwy gang,

The stainless steel metal style are the factory ones, I believe there is a sticker at the top of OEM ones with a black, grey and red/orange sticker. I like to think the body side and door edge look good together with the chrome door handle and window edge bead! The plastic might be better as it may absorb the hits a bit better than the metal style!

[Wallington]

Haven't seen the OER version, hopefully it isn't just the short Camaro version marketed previously as to suit both.

Yes, apart from their slight function, they look good on dark cars that have a lot of the bright trim as contrast, then again look good on light cars as blend in, take your pic! Otherwise, the clear plastic slip-on type are probably perfect especially if you have careless kids or Mrs.

When I went to collect my Formula nearly 20 years ago, it was in the old guy's carport. His wife opened the LH door and bashed it on the pole, and it is still the only dent on the whole car, right on the crease and about 20 min into ownership. I would normally be so p*ssed, and I was, if it wasn't also for the fact that I now owned a Firebird and my mad grin probably scared her more than if I yelled the abuse I was thinking. Of course, if it still had the original body mold strips fitted, it wouldn't have left a mark. It may only happen every 20 years, but when it does..

[TonysTA]

Hi - I was referring to the vertical edge guards, not the horizontal guards that run along the middle of each door.  In light of the feedback, I opted to not to use them.  Thank-you all for your comments.

[81Blackbird]

Don't know about the metal guards but I imagine they are thin which is good.  The Mylar ones are nice but be careful of the thickness.  If they are too thick or the gap between the door edge and the rear quarter are not wide enough, you will have a clearance issue.