The weather stripping joint underneath the driver's side door has fallen apart. I tried gluing it back together with Seal-all -- after cleaning it with rubbing alcohol -- but it came apart again. What adhesive should I be using for this job?

Thanks,
Inari

 

I recommend you replace it

 

I wonder if I wasn't being specific enough. The rest of the weather stripping around the door is okay. The section that came apart is the join beneath the door. The two sides came apart from each other and I'd like to know what to use to glue them back together.

Thanks,
Inari

 

Sorry I thought it was damaged when I initially read it.

The weather strip ends aren't supposed to be glued. The joint should is at the bottom where sealing isn't critical. I've never seen one where the gap is perfectly tight, and it's never been a problem. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if there's meant to be a gap for water to drain out. Of course, as they age, the rubber shrinks and the gap will grow. Replacement is the only option.

On my vehicle, the strip is hollow, and there's simply a plug inserted between the two ends to loosely hold them together. Maybe you could fashion something similar from foam backer rod.

 

There's no way that water is getting up in there.

 

Thank you, Mountain Man Joe,

The rod inside the joint is still there, but the two halves don't quite fit together, and are hanging where the door can slam into them.

 

Oh so they've become detached? Maybe you should post a photo so we can see what's going on.

The rubber isn't glued to the vehicle either. There are metal clips inside the rubber which pinch grip onto the sheet metal lip. If they're become loose then you need to squeeze them closed.

 

And that's because you need a heat-resistant adhesive. Then it'll help. I just remember myself when I tried to glue the seal, too, when there was a tear. At first I took a standard PVA adhesive, but he couldn't help me at all, because after that I immediately realized that I should look for some other adhesive. I will say from myself that even a standard superglue will not help much, because it will dry too quickly at high temperatures and will just start to crumble. You can't do without special glue. That's why I found out about heat resistant glue https://gluefaq.com/best-heat-resistant-glue/ . You can get acquainted with it in detail, because it describes in details what are the options of high-quality heat-resistant glue. For example, I already found the Loctite GO2 Gel Super Glue, I was very lucky to find it, especially since the glue of really high quality is described here, which helped me with the adhesive seal. But you can find another one, you can already see for yourself. Good luck with that.

 

The adhesive I originally used for the tear was Automotive Seal-All is rated up to 70 deg c or 161 deg f, so there was no problem with it not being heat resistant. I didn't want to replace the whole door weather stripping for a bottom tear, so I thought outside the box and found my solution. I used nylon upholstery thread - because it doesn't rot -- and a needle to sew the tear and put both halves back together. (There was an actual tear in the rubber material, which made the joint sag.) I then sealed it up with the Seal-All. In hindsight, I should have used a leather or surgical sewing needle for more precise holes because it tore the weather stripping a little as I put the needle through, but now I don't have to worry about the joint getting worse. I doesn't need to be water tight because, as I found out when I was lubricating the weather stripping, it was manufactured with holes in it every few inches.

And speaking of "computer age" products I thought I'd pass this along. I was lubing the weather stripping with dielectric grease, as suggested in the official Uplander manual, but only got one-third the way through the job using a small expensive tube brought at Canadian Tire. ($5.49 for 28 grams.) I figured there has got to be a cheaper way of doing this. I wondered if petroleum jelly would do, but discovered that this destroys rubber. Then I phoned all the automotive shops in town and discovered a combination dielectric grease/brake lube combo that is a lot cheaper. ( $13.83 for 170 grams at Bumper to Bumper.) It's Liquid Kleen-Flo EZE Slide, and is labeled as "Brake Lube" and "Dielectric Grease."

Cheers, Inari

 

Very creative solution with the stitching.

I also use electrical sealant to condition my weather strip. I paid around $7 for 113g. It goes a long way... I've had it for years. I take a small piece of rag and saturate it with the grease, then use it to work the grease in to the rubber.

Sounds like you're canadian so you might have Princess Auto around you:
https://www.princessauto.com/en/deta...nt/A-p8039562e

In the winter the door seals can freeze shut sometimes. If I'm in a hurry I'll use aerosol silicone spray on them:
https://www.princessauto.com/en/deta...nt/A-p8003463e