Best hardtop roofrail (window) seals

[b_hill_86]

I know it’s been discussed some in the past but I’m going to ask again, specific for hardtops.

What is the best upper roofrail (or window seal)? I know there have been mentions of particular brands but I’ve done some reading and there seems to be some varying opinions on them. The other issue five found is several retailers don’t list the brand so I’m hoping someone can chime in with a success story or two from having purchased a good set.

I replaced mine back when I had the car painted 8 or so years ago. The doors have always closed a bit tough with the windows up. The passenger side closes better than the drivers. Both close easily with the new-at-that-time door seals. Neither door will allow the (power) windows to go all the way up without opening the door. I never worried about it until I got the air conditioning working and now that I’d like to roll the windows up here and there I’m tired of opening the doors to do so.

Yes the glass could  need a bit of adjustment. Both windows went up and down fine with the old weatherstripping. I think the paint shop played with the drivers side glass but not the passenger. Both upper seals (don’t remember the brand) have hard spots such as the bottom of the a pillar and the corner of the c pillar/sail panel area. I feel like both areas contribute to the windows not wanting to go up all the way.

So far I’m considering the “latex” set from the parts place  https://www.thepartsplaceinc.com/part/1977/firebird-transam/weatherstripping-rubber-bumpers/roofrail-weatherstripping-rubber

or a set from https://www.steelerubber.com/hardtop-roof-rail-weatherstrip-82-0012-68

Thanks.

[b_hill_86]

Here are some pictures. As you can see, the glass sits on the outer edge of the weatherstripping whereas I seem to recall the old stuff had an impression more so in the center. My problem areas are the corner circled in red being much harder than the areas outside of that and up by the a pillar where I actually got annoyed and cut some material out to see if it made any difference. It’s very hard in that area too though cutting material away seemed to help a little.

[silver78]

I also have a hard top and was very impressed with Steelerubber brand seals for the roof rail and door seal.  For exterior window sweeps I used Fairchild brand and they matched very nicely to the original sweeps.  The new OER brand I had too went straight to the garbage can after I installed the Fairchild window sweeps. 

[b_hill_86]

I also have a hard top and was very impressed with Steelerubber brand seals for the roof rail and door seal.  For exterior window sweeps I used Fairchild brand and they matched very nicely to the original sweeps.  The new OER brand I had too went straight to the garbage can after I installed the Fairchild window sweeps.

Thanks for your response. Have you had any issues with your windows closing with the doors closed?

[silver78]

No issues with closing door or windows.

[firebirdparts]

I did not, but you know well that you have to have low expectations about those window sweeps.  There was, to my knowledge, nothing available aftermarket that was bent enough.  If somebody said one was as good as NOS I'd sure stick to it.

[Wallington]

I also have a hard top and was very impressed with Steelerubber brand seals for the roof rail and door seal.  For exterior window sweeps I used Fairchild brand and they matched very nicely to the original sweeps.  The new OER brand I had too went straight to the garbage can after I installed the Fairchild window sweeps.

Can you confirm if your Steele Rubber door seals included the brass inserts each end as per their website listing below? I had a closer look at mine when doing a comparison with NOS. I can't take a trick lately, no brass, flimsy rubber tabs. And yes, cost a fair amount more than the regular door seals, plus international shipping. It came from a stockist who is playing dumb as to the details, I've emailed SR direct for comment. I can imagine it may be older stock sent to me, if so, why didn't they update the part number when they updated the price and details.

Ok SR replied fast, within 3 hours of msg sent. As expected, they haven't long upgraded the seals and I have an earlier version. Pity I opened it to check,  harder to resell for half the cost.

https://www.steelerubber.com/door-weatherstrip-82-0008-72

Brian, did you or anyone else try the latex seals in original posts? Was wondering how they compare.

[Wallington]

I didn't get any further response from SR, possibly bust, doesn't really matter. Thought I may get an offer on a replacement set or similar when I pointed out their ad was being used incorrectly for items not matching in price or detail, almost entirely down do them not altering part numbers for completely different items.  Their exclusivity means no possible combining shipping around the world like other brands and suppliers, a very expensive situation due to their marketing error. I like the idea of the brass inserts, but not for 2-3x the cost of others and shipping that nearly matches.
Fairchild do reasonable sets, might give them a look. And yes, car is a shell and doesn't need seals in the next 10yrs but buying parts not needed keeps a stalled project moving!
I also noticed that some Fairchild trunk seals show them to be the hollow type, others are solid. Need to confirm this, I'd expect most are simply reseller using stock photos of a trunk seal, regardless of brand.

[tinpusher]

Just wondering if anyone has used the Latex seals from the Parts Place or other vendors…if any..
I just installed some OER seals that I already had (new) and they are  very rigid and will be removed tomorrow. I have used metro on my other car, but not impressed.
 So…. This time I’ll use the latex ones or Steele rubber. I hope someone could give me a review on the Latex ones.

[b_hill_86]

Sorry Ben, I missed your question way back when. I haven’t purchased a set yet but I’m at the point where I think I’m going to shortly. $109 for SR and $159 for the parts place….I’m torn. I’d love to pick up the PP set to try but hard to justify when people seem happy with SR for less.

I just installed a “new” (used but better than I had) passenger side window and it doesn’t close as well as it did or should so I’d like to get some new seals and alignment blocks and give it a whirl.

[FormTA]

You need to be careful with new side window glass. There seems to be quite a few variations of it. The ones I have from NPD has too much curve in it which makes it really hard to roll up.

Just pointing that out so you don't end up with compounding issues.

[b_hill_86]

It’s not brand new. Just new to me. Out of a 76. I’ve heard of the curvature issues though on the new stuff. My drivers may get replaced with new someday at which point I plan to try the Auto City Glass piece.

[firebirdparts]

I just recently installed a metro in the last few days, and I would have to say it fit and it worked.  I'm satisfied.  I don't think they really had quite the same shape as GM originally used, but I could be wrong.  The window needs to make a deep deep impression right next to the rear view mirror, but the rest of it seems too light of a touch.

It put so much force on the window there at the mirror I was a little afraid of it bending something.

[b_hill_86]

I wish I knew what brand my current seals are. They work, they’re just not the best. I ended up ordering some window alignment blocks and steel rubber seals. Should be here by the end of the weekend or beginning of next week. Looking forward to trying both out. My biggest gripe with the current seals is my drivers door is hard to shut with the window up and drivers window doesn’t go all the way up without opening the door first. Passenger shuts better but not like my old seals and the window nearly goes all the way up. They’re probably an 1/8” gap or so. Maybe less. Hoping new seals and alignment solves this.

I opted for the SR due to the lower cost and guarantee. The parts place had quite a disclaimer that honesty turned a potential customer away on a part that’s more expensive and no explanations as to why or why theirs is better.

[Wallington]

All good, it was just an updated thread-dig since it had been a while, there were a few new products on the market and time for the previously new products to get some feedback, perhaps.

During my chat to Steele Rubber they also confirmed their trunk seals were hollow as per original GM, the rubber type, not the latex covering. I noticed several ads of the same showed profiles of solid rubber seal using stock photos which are apparently not correct. In theory these will compress better than solid, always check that's what you are getting if ad photos show otherwise. Might find, yet again, it's very old stock when done differently, or is not the item being advertised.

I have a NOS hardtop roof rail hull seal here, only one side though. I also have a barely used Metro or Soffseal set in box, if comparisons are of use, probably for conversation more than anything since it doesn't really change anything. The Steele Rubber set I have are for the doors, not the body.

[b_hill_86]

Well I got my seals over the weekend and first impressions were good. First, the areas I circled on my old seals are much softer. The seal itself feels more smooth than the other set. Second, once I installed the new seals it was apparent they had more give to them. Unlike the pictures above where the window sat at the outer edge of the seal, with the SR set, the windows contact near the center of the seal which is how the “original” seals were. No idea if they were actually original but they may have been. They were rough.

Anyway, with the old seals, my passenger door closed well with the window up but the window wouldn’t go all the way up. Drivers door closed more difficultly and the window struggled to go up all the way. I ordered some alignment blocks but they didn’t arrive until today. In the meantime I adjusted the passenger glass myself. Door closes well but the window still struggles. Today I got the blocks and used them with the drivers side. Now the door closes much better though maybe not as good as the passenger but the window still only reaches about 1/8” or less with the door closed.

I seem to recall but the window and door seals I installed previously being fairly stiff and not closing well until they broke in. I’m hoping this is the case with the new SR window seals.

I did note that the area where the door, window and a piller all contact is less rigid Tom the passenger side than the old seals. The drivers is less rigid as well but not as soft as the passenger side. I feel like this is my biggest hangup with getting the window to close all the way with the door shut. I don’t understand why this area needs to be so rigid. Only time will tell I guess. Hopefully they soften up and break in more

[b_hill_86]

I will add, I’ve read from some they think the alignment blocks are useless. I disagree. I definitely took less time using the blocks today than over the weekend without them.

This particular set I got from e-pay and they’re the cheapest set I found. They seem to work just fine.

[Wallington]

Good to know. I haven't used them other than to test fit on a spare channel on floor for pics. But I think that's the idea, get the glass in general location from the blocks as a guide, and fine tune and tweak from there. Anything helps. I don't think they will prevent all swearing and tool throwing, though.

[FormTA]

Nice! I may have to rent those alignment blocks from you.

I wonder if you would benefit from the relay setup for your window motors. If you don't know it's 3 relays wired up that takes the load off the switches and runs battery directly to the window motors.

[b_hill_86]

Good to know. I haven't used them other than to test fit on a spare channel on floor for pics. But I think that's the idea, get the glass in general location from the blocks as a guide, and fine tune and tweak from there. Anything helps. I don't think they will prevent all swearing and tool throwing, though.

I didn’t have to do much tweaking compared to the other side with no blocks. Then again, the windows don’t close still lol. I found them to be pretty helpful.

Nice! I may have to rent those alignment blocks from you.

I wonder if you would benefit from the relay setup for your window motors. If you don't know it's 3 relays wired up that takes the load off the switches and runs battery directly to the window motors.

Luke, you’re welcome to use them any time. I’ve thought about the relay setup but have never gone that route since my windows actually move pretty well as is. And with my old seals long ago they went all the way up like they should. It may be a future project someday though as it won’t hurt obviously. I’m really hoping these seals will compress a bit in the stiffer areas. If they do, they’ll be much better than what I had.

[b_hill_86]

Well I decided to come back for an update. I emailed Steele rubber about a month ago asking if there was an expected break-in period so to speak because even after adjusting the windows, though the new seals are an improvement over my old ones, these still aren’t like my old factory ones were. I was told, yes, there can take some time for them to form. So after a month, my passenger door closes fairly nicely with the window up. With the door closed, the passenger side window goes nearly all the way up. It’s probably short by a few millimeters and opening the door allows the rest of the way. It’s possible a bit of adjusting might get that perfect.

The drivers side, however is still a struggle. The door closes better than the old seals did (window up) but it’s still tough. And rolling the window up on a closed door isn’t great. I get till about a quarter inch from completely closed and it won’t go any further. I suspect my problem area is the large rubber area where the door, window and A pillar meet. On the PS, that area is fairly soft. It almost feels hollow inside. The drivers side is very rigid and I think that’s my main issue with putting the window up and closing the door easily with the window up. There also happens to be a silver or looking mark on the seal near the sail panel I thought might wear away but it hasn’t. That said, I sent Steele a rubber a reply to their reply to me per their instructions. That was about a week ago with no response so I just sent another message through their website.

So far, I’m leaning toward maybe trying the Parts Place latex set.

Untitled by Brian Hill, on Flickr

Untitled by Brian Hill, on Flickr

[b_hill_86]

In the interest of keeping something Trans Am related alive here, I’ve been in communication with SteeleRubber. It took a bit for them to respond again but the same person did finally reply. Ultimately they couldn’t answer my questions regarding what I posted above so they provided me with a shipping label to send back what I have so they can compare against what the others they have on the shelf feel like. If mine turn out to be an anomaly they’ll replace them and if not they’ll refund my money. I’m tempted then to try the latex set. I contacted the parts place and they claimed that the latex set is supposed to be a GM replacement. SR set got mailed today so time will tell I guess.

I should note I made some further adjustments to the DS window which helped the door close better and the window go up better but I had to move it backwards so far I’m not convinced the A-pillar area would stop water from coming in with the window closed.

[Wallington]

I thought their attitude was ordinary after I explained I'd shipped one of their sets around the world to find it incorrect due to an error on their own site. The fact the shipping cost similar didn't bother them.

[b_hill_86]

That would irritate me. I’m curious to see what they say. There is no question that the passenger side and drivers side are different. I doubt that’s intentional.

[737driver]

A little late to comment, but the Latex seals from the Parts Place work excellent. They are more expensive but fit quite well from the start and even when newly installed, the doors and windows shut very well. In my opinion they are the closest thing to any original seals. I’ve used soft seal ( Metro as well) and I don’t like them at all.
Jim

[b_hill_86]

No not late at all! I’m glad to hear from someone finally who used them. Depending on what Steele Rubber says I may go with the latex set also

[5th T/A]

Great information here on the window seals!

While mine currently are in good shape, they are 43 years old and won't last forever. I am seriously considering ordering a set from the Parts Place and have them sitting on my shelf for the day when I will need them.

[Wallington]

Do they still use regular plastic push-pins? Thin rubber areas reinforced at all where it wraps around and fastens? That always seemed a weak area with both original seals and aftermarket, even if they actually sealed well. Always seemed to be stretched or starting to tear away or over the pins. That's why I like the idea of the metal reinforced seals from Steele Rubber, at least trying to improve a feature even if the rest was no different. But of course, that's where I got conned, ending up with an early version with same part number but still at a price between the 2 plus international shipping. I also have a NOS set but never compared. But no reason to as already a replaced seal design. Actually, I lied, I think I have hull seals by GM. Somewhere.

[b_hill_86]

The SR set I had did not have any metal reinforcements. Held in by pushpins, yes. They seemed at least slightly better than my old mystery set. Those stuck to the door seals where the two overlap so badly the roofrail seal in the door jam held by the pushpin eventually got bunched up in the corner and, yes, pulled off of the pin. I tried using weatherstrip adhesive but it made no difference. I eventually cut the portion that lays in the door jam with just a small piece remaining that looked pretty clean but eliminated the bunching. I couldn’t take it anymore. I may have pictures. I’ll look.

The SR set at least didn’t seem to want to bunch as bad as they weren’t as sticky with each other.

[Wallington]

I think it's only the door seal from SR that has the metal insert ends even though it was the hull seal issues I was thinking of.

[b_hill_86]

Ah, ok

[b_hill_86]

Well, steel rubber responded, indicating that the set I returned to them matches the other sets they have in stock however, I questioned whether or not the area by the a pillar specifically differs between the passenger and driver side on ALL of their sets as their response was kind of generic saying “the rubber is soft and pliable.”  Their response was that the RMA notes were vague and they’d have to check with their research and production team to address my specific question. They haven’t responded but issued me a refund. I don’t expect to hear back from them.

I ordered a set of the alleged GM replacement seals from The Parts Place on Friday and they were supposed to be delivered today (impressive. Almost) except UPS seems to have misplaced my package as they are still showing having arrived at my local hub back on Saturday with a new delivery estimate of tomorrow. We shall see….

[FormTA]

Keep us posted, I'm interested in these new seals. I had so many trunk seals because they were all garbage. I believe I ended up with soffseal which fit so good I never even glued it in. I hope you find a good set of seals.

[b_hill_86]

I certainly will. Don’t get my wrong, SR weren’t junk by any means. I even wonder if crank windows would have enough oomph to close completely vs my power windows. But I’m very hopeful these latest seals are the bees knees. I could’ve lived with the Steele Rubber set I think but if there’s a better replacement out there I want it. Having to crack the door open to get the window up the last 1/8” (or probably less) got annoying. Especially on the eway.

[b_hill_86]

Received the parts place seals. Kind of wish I had the Steele rubber to compare. I didn’t have a lot of time to handle them let alone install them before work however they didn’t feel much different than the SR set. I also noted that the protruding portion near the A pillar where the door and window meet is fairly solid on the drivers side and less so on the passenger side just like the Steele Rubber set. Makes me wonder if they’re all like that. Have to actually install and see how they fit though which will hopefully happen tomorrow. More to come….

[b_hill_86]

I installed the drivers seal last night after work and the passenger side today as I needed to pull the car out to do the passenger side. First impressions are this….i still cannot get my window to roll up all the way in either side without opening the door. That said, these are brand new and should have a “setting in” period so to speak. Maybe that’ll help. Maybe also I need more work on the window adjustment. I’m not sure how since I thought I did all I could but I’ll have to continue working at it.

The feel of these are very similar to the SR set. And both are significantly better than my old mystery set. As I noted above that particular area on the lower A pillar still seems more rigid than it should but I don’t know what to make of it. I wish I had the SR set to compare side by side with these. It’s probably too early to tell but I tend to think the SR set may have fit slightly better. Don’t quote me on that yet though.

I know I’ve left a lot of unknowns still in this far less than scientific comparison but my initial impression on whether the “latex” version is worth the  extra $40 I paid compared to the Steele Rubber set, I’m going to say maybe not at this point. I was hoping to be really impressed with these but they don’t strike me as much better than SR. Will I go through the trouble to return these and buy another SR set to save $40? Probably not.

Of course it’s cold here in NW Ohio and salted road weather is around the corner so I’m not sure how good of a review I’ll get on these seals in the meantime but if I get the chance I plan to play with the windows more to see if I can improve the closing at all. I also wonder if running the window motor directly off of the battery will have an effect on its strength although my windows are surprisingly spunky anyway s so I don’t know if that will have any effect.

[FormTA]

I remember someone clamping paint sticks between the glass and the gasket to overcompress them for weeks or months at a time. This would help give the seals a Chance to conform more. Just an idea.

[b_hill_86]

Well, that’s not an awful idea. Especially as winter approaches.

I recorded two short videos though I’m not sure what that accomplishes. I guess just to show what I’m experiencing and where.

https://youtube.com/shorts/SJ_T8Neus3g?si=tmn6D8UNSCKZc7vK

https://youtube.com/shorts/l0HgRMh2puU?si=4nfCNKGfwp03-yT0

[FormTA]

First off let me say, wow, your windows seem fast! I can see where my car seals are indented where the window sits. So maybe in 40 years yours will be good. Just kidding, maybe by next spring

Luckily for me I still have my original seals. I didn't want to remove mine because I have fisher Tops.

[Wallington]

Brian, have you adjusted the rails using the setup blocks, or adjusted the window after? I'm wondering if slightly adjusting the guide so it directs the glass a slightly different angle as it gets to the top? It's been so long I can't recall, is that angle meant to have the glass press up into to or still pass over it to seal, where it's getting pinched? Try a few variations with door trim on, where you push outwards on glass putting it up or push inwards from outside putting it up. Otherwise, mine haven't been fitted with seals in 10 years, and haven't adjusted anything.

I have a NOS GM roof seal set here if need any comparison pics, although hard to see much except on each end.