[mopowa]

Last year I replaced the door/window rubber seals on my 87. I don't remember the manufacturer the set was given to me from the guy I bought the car from. Any way I have to do them again because a few of the factory joints have split,some of the plastic push in clips have pulled out and the screw holes are ripped . This was a PITA task and I'm not looking forward to doing it again.
My question is who makes the best fitting sets for a 5th gen and what kind of luck have you guys had replacing them?
Thanks for any input, Ang.

 

[darbysan]

The best, if you can find them and afford them, is GM NOS. They were made of a rubber compound that has since been outlawed by the EPA, so newer replacement just don't have the same consistency.
That being said, I think the only readily available replacements are Soft Seal and Metro. I think Metro gets the better reviews, but something in the back of my head tells me that they are the same company, or at least one owns the other now.
When I installed mine, I used a little dab of weatherstrip sealer at the two ends, and also any place where I felt I wasn't getting a good seal.

 

[Bobby78]

You can still get NOS. Dixie has a set for around $550 :Eyecrazy:

I think I saw them for about 1/2 that on gbodyparts.com :dontknow:

 

[Jack_K]

"I used a little dab of weatherstrip sealer at the two ends, and also any place where I felt I wasn't getting a good seal. "

YES!

 

[Otterfox]

I've used soft seal and not had any complaints really, the one issue I had with the door seals was my own fault, I closed the door too soon after I'd painted the sill and the weatherstrip stuck to it and pulled several pins out of the seal... Doh!

I do have some issues with the window seal though, it doesn't seem long enough along the roofline so at one corner or the other, A or B pillar depending on where I start, it will leave nearly an inch gap. I'm really bummed about that. I may buy another set when I replace the door seal I fubed up too... oke:

Jeri~

 

[Wayne Parrish]

Steele Rubber has excellent products. I have used them on a 57 Pontiac Safari wagon and 60 Cadillac and found them to be excellent .www.steelerubber.com

 

[mopowa]

Thanks for the responses guys. I'll check out all of the options mentioned. WOW $550 for originals!
I used the weather strip sealer when I did them and I also felt that the upper window seal wasn't long enough. Thats where one of the factory joints came apart there's now a 1'' gap down toward the bottom of the window.
Hey Otterfox are you going to Lee speedway this coming Friday?
Thanks again,Ang.

 

[Otterfox]

I'm not sure I can make it, if plans change I'll sure try. As it is I have to work. :dontknow:

Jeri~

 

[mopowa]

I'm not sure I can make it, if plans change I'll sure try. As it is I have to work. :dontknow:

Jeri~

I hear that, ya gutta doo whach ya gutta do

 

[Kernal]

SoftSeal & OPGI

1968 El Camino - I have a story on this. I bought the Soft Seal rubbers from Original Parts Group. The pins fit ok but when installing the seal in the channel it appeared to be too long. I contacted SS since I thought there might be some sort of special installation instructions but they were no help. They just said "take it back to where you bought it." I spread out the excess and it got better but it was still wavey. I also noticed the sealing beads pointed in a different direction than the old one so they didn't seal. Then every time the door was closed the rubber popped out of the channel in places. When I explained this to OPG they said to sent the set back (only one side was installed). I told the guy it would be hard to take it off without breaking a pin. He said don't worry about it and gave me a return number. When I paid for shipping and they got it back they said the wouldn't take it back because a piece had been installed (even though I got it out without breaking a pin). They wouldn't listen to anything I had to say. I couldn't get a response from Softseal either. I had a body guy look at it and he said the rubber "wasn't made right." So I put a review on the OPG site explaining my installation problems but it didn't get posted. Looks like they only want positive reviews. That shows you what reviews are worth on the OPG site.
I bought the molded style from Bob's Chevelle. It snapped right in, fit and looked great and seals. I believe that Softseal stuff is to soft, at least in this application. No more purchases by my friends and me from OPG (and we're local).

 

[LOCKJAW]

Softseal products have stood up well for me. The vent window gaskets I bought from the El Camino Store were total garbage and eventually went in the garbage!

 

[Wayne Parrish]

I am not a fan of OPG either. I had dealings with them when I had my 57 Pontiac Custom Safari wagon and was never satisfied with any dealings. I have twice sent them requests for info on items for my 86 Elcam and it takes them at least 3-4 days to reply,which is absolutely un-acceptable with todays e-mail/messenging. The last time they took so long to reply I sent them a e-mail asking why it took so long to return my request and never received a reply ! I will never buy anything from them again . I think maybe they have gotten too big for their own good ? You never get so big that you can't fall ! WP

 

[Wayne Parrish]

Lockjaw, A product isn't worth a crap without customer support for those times when a product fails ,and everyone has failures .

 

[steelybill]

I haven' bought much from OPGI. They do have some items that no one else has, but their prices for common items are like 10% higher than most places.

My seals are Metro on the doors, and Soff Seal on the roof rail. They seem to fit OK.

 

[LOCKJAW]

Lockjaw, A product isn't worth a crap without customer support for those times when a product fails ,and everyone has failures .

Having owned and operated a service business for nearly 40 years, I agree 100%. The problem was the rubber goods the EC Store sold me were cheaply made cheesy lousy asian knockoffs that didn't for s*$#. I paid a good price for them. I consider it a lesson learned.