1974 decklid weatherstrip

[Kevin N.]

when it comes to roadsters, being a coupe man, i have no experience in convertible decklid weatherstripping installs. i have been told both ways, but i know there can only be 1 correct way. my question is...should i be looking at a solid piece of rubber at the ends (pic 1) or the 3 holes facing me (pic 2) after it is glued down? (see the pics i have added) i am guessing i should be looking at the solid weatherstrip after it is glued down as it fits more firmly than with the 3 holes showing. someone told me the 3 holes showing is correct as to act like a drain and 1 hole is for air escapage from when you close the lid. i have checked the assembly manual, but it shows every piece of weatherstripping except the decklid. any info will be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance.

[Robert S.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

I have a 74' convertible and looked at the deck lid today. Unfortunately my rubber seal does not look like the pictures you posted. The end of my seal does not turn 90 degrees like the one you show in your pictures. My seal comes straight to the end with no piece to the side. On mine the end of the rubber has perhaps a 30 degree chamfer cut.
I have always assumed my seal was factory original but I cannot say for sure.

[Paul L.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

Sorry I did not answer your PM over at CF. Personal matter. I have never seen a weather strip like that. I agree with Robert. Who is the supplier?

[Robert S.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

The weatherstrip I described in my reply is identical to the picture posted by Paul Latour.

[Harmon C.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

Kevin
It looks to me like the new weatherstrip you have replaces a wedge of rubber that I see attached to the body on 73's. It looks like the holes so you can see them is the better fit.

[Paul D.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

Kevin,
The weatherstrip on my '71 is fitted as in your pic #1 with the smooth side down, sealing against the body. It has been on my car since '86 when the car was last painted and I believe I had ordered it from GM when they were still available, but I will not swear to that. I do remember the one I took off looked the same. That molded end fits up close to another small wedge shaped weatherstrip mounted to the body at the top of the lock pillar. If you look the decklid W/S up in Doc Rebuild's catalog, it is described as having "molded ends". Chip.

[Michael G.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

Paul,

I'm like you as I remember my '72 and '74 convertible having the 90* angle at the ends of the deck lid w/s matching up with the small body lock w/s attached at the top of the door jamb.

Have done numerous resto's and don't believe the other w/s's viewed appear to be a correct style.

[Kevin N.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

Sorry I did not answer your PM over at CF. Personal matter. I have never seen a weather strip like that. I agree with Robert. Who is the supplier?

paul...i bought it through corvette central and it's made by corvette rubber.

[Paul L.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

CRC makes very good products. I just haven't seen one like that before. Of course how often is a deck lid up at shows? I don't have an answer to your question but intuitively I would put the hole side on the deck and the leave the solid surface visible to the eye.

[Glenn D.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

Kevin :

I have never weatherstrip like those on a 74'. I got mine from Corvette Rubber. They are exactly like the originals.

[Kevin N.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

hey glenn...yours looks like some hood weatherstripping i've seen. by the way did you know that your missing a rubber bumper on the passenger side of your deck lid?

[Joe L.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

All------



The same deck lid weatherstrip was used in PRODUCTION for all 1968-75 Corvette convertibles. This was GM #3912948. However, this weatherstrip was NEVER available in SERVICE. Instead, the weatherstrip sold in SERVICE by GM for 68-75 applications was always (but no more) GM #3826967. The latter was the PRODUCTION and SERVICE weatherstrip for 1963-67 Corvette convertibles. Actually, I think the only difference between the 3912948 and the 3826967 was that the 3826967 was a little longer. So, the 3826967 could be used in SERVICE for 68-75 simply by cutting it off a little shorter. Otherwise, I believe the 2 were the same. I don't believe that either one had the molded ends seen in the first photo in this thread.

Beginning sometime in the 1969 model year, 2 weatherstrip "wedges" were added to the top of the door lock pillar post, probably to cure water leakage problems experienced with the 1968 and early 1969 design. These pieces would seal the area which the molded ends of the weatherstrip pictured in the first post here would otherwise seal. I don't even see how a car that had both the "wedges" and the "molded end" weatherstrip would work. It would seem to me that the deck lid would be hard or impossible to close. Perhaps not, though. In any event, I think the molded end weatherstrip is an aftermarket type of improvement. I expect it is designed to eliminate the need for the "wedges".

By the way, the on-body"wedges", GM #3956075, left, and 3956076, right, were discontinued in October, 1992 and July, 1996, respectively. At the time these were discontinued, these very small pieces of weatherstrip with a small embedded steel retainer carried a GM list price of almost $100 EACH. They are available in reproduction, though, for a much lower price. The reproductions are not perfect, but close and functional.

Attached are photos of the ends of a 1969 deck lid weatherstrip which is absolutely, positively known to be original. As I mentioned above, the 1968-75 deck lid weatherstrips were all GM #3912948.

[Joe L.]

Re: 1974 decklid weatherstrip

hey glenn...yours looks like some hood weatherstripping i've seen. by the way did you know that your missing a rubber bumper on the passenger side of your deck lid?

Kevin------



There's no missing bumper. After early 1971 the passenger side bumper was deleted although the panel nut mounting provisions remained. It's possible that after 1971 through 1975 some cars received two bumpers, but they were not scheduled to receive such. It's also possible that some folks figured they had been "shorted" a bumper and either installed one themselves or squawked load enough that the dealer installed one to shut them up.