bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Since my 28 year old window sweeps really weren't in the greatest shape anymore and getting worse by the day, I decided to do something about it. Since new sweeps cost about $70 and I refuse to pay that amount for a couple pieces of rubber, I opted to go with the alternative. There have been a couple threads regarding the use of 4th gen window sweeps, but none have been a step-by-step how-to, which is why I decided to show the way that I replaced mine. Window sweeps are a problem area on probably 99% of all thirdgens and when they get brittle they fall apart and let water into your door, and don't feel real good on your arm when you hang it out of the window, either.

I went to my local LKQ and there were probably about 8 4th gens there, all with good window sweeps, so they are out there, and its relatively easy to locate a set of good sweeps. I ended up getting charged $4 per side for a total of a whopping $8! I just saved $62 by thinking outside of the box and retro-fitting yet another 4th gen part into a third gen!

So let's get started..

Here are all of the tools I ended up using to complete this project:



Here is what I had to start with:



They had seen better days for sure, but some are way worse than this, and my drivers side sweep made my passenger side sweep look non-existant.



I started by removing the door panel, locate the three screws that old the armrest on, and use the proper size of Torx bit to unscrew them and remove the arm rest:



The other two are underneath:



---Continued---

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Using a smaller Torx bit, remove the door handle trim pieces, there are a total of seven screws to remove, the real screws are the first 2 on each square, except the square where the armrest bolts to.



The seventh one is here, underneath the power door lock switch panel:



The door lock switch pops off of the trim via the two clips on the sides, gently prey one side off and it will pop out of the other side:



Slide your finger or a small flathead under the door lock arm to pop it off and them take the trim panel off, and it should now look like this:



Now, using a large flathead screwdriver, or the proper tool (I don't have one) pry on the edges of the door panel and locate the clips:



---Continued---

krazefbird

Man you just posted the first pics and already I'm enthused about it! lol

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

This is what the clips will look like, they just pry out, but be careful not to rip your door panel, they are very fragile:



The top trim panel is tricky, you have to squeeze it at the top and lift at the same time, but be very careful or it will break.

Now you should see the screws that are holding the sweep on:



The felt window guides will have to be removed so you can pull the window glass towards you and get at the screws behind it. That part is very tricky and will require some ingenuity. I used a small philips drill bit clamped in a pair of needle-nose vice grip pliers and worked at it for a while, but wait to remove the screws until the guides and triangular filler piece have been removed.

Guides being removed:



Now the triangular window filler panel needs to be removed because there is a screw that holds the sweep on behind it. There are a total of 3 bolts and one nut holding it in. The two phillips screws holding the weather stripping on in the right corner of the door will have to be removed. Once they are removed, gently pry on them to pull them off because there is sealant holding them to the door. You can see one bolt (the wrench is on it) and one nut to the right of the wrench holding the triangle on:



Once the triangle is removed it looks like this, the two upper screws will require a 10mm solid wrench to remove. The way I did it was to unscrew them all the way until they were almost out, and then lifted up on it and wiggled it out once the bottom nut and bolt were removed:



---Continued---

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Theres that last screw!



Now that you have the window sweep removed, here is a comparison of it to the 4th gen unit:



As you can see, the fourth gen uses clips to secure it to the door, rather than screws, and therefore they will have to be removed. They pop off pretty easily. Just pry them off with a smaller-bladed flat screwdriver in their four corners and they'll come right off:



Here is the mirror-end of both of the sweeps. The fourth gen unit is longer than the third gen one, so it will need trimming. I ended up trimming 2 3/4" off of it, and making a notch underneath of that just like the third gen unit is. The notch that was removed measured 2 inches by 3/4 of an inch.




This is what I removed from the 4th gen sweep:



---Continued---

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Here is what that end now looks like:



Now I set it up on the door for the first mock-up:



Here is a problem area I found, apparently the fourth gens doors are curved near the end and as a result, so is the sweep:



From here I had someone help me hold the sweep down into position while I used my drill and the self-tapping screws that I removed from the old sweep to screw down the new one:



The area where the 4th gen sweep is curved is much harder to hold down in place and definitely requires two people to mount:



---Continued---

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Now put your triangular piece, weatherstripping, door panel, trim pieces, and armrest back on in the reverse order you removed them. Re-installing the window guides will take a couple tweaks to get perfect but it isn't hard to do. Make sure they aren't scraping the window, but also make sure they aren't allowing the window to wobble, either.

Roll the window up, shut the door and stand back and gaze at the magnificent wonderment that is your new and improved door:



Now that looks good!





Hope this helps somebody!

Any questions, please ask.

usacamaro

great write up. i been needing new sweeps and after this i know what i am going to do . thanks.

krazefbird

Yeah I agree, I will keep my eye out for some transhed 4th gens now. And I love the fact that I can get rid of that stupid chrome strip at the same time! Good info! And save the cash!

89Camaro89MI

iTrader: (2)

Thank you for this! Subscribing so I can find this thread again this summer.

puma1552

iTrader: (1)

You did a nice job, but the money for NOS thirdgen sweeps, or at least thirdgen aftermarket pieces really isn't too much to ask IMO. $35 a piece is dirt cheap for proper door weather stripping, I feel.

Looks good though.

Opher

iTrader: (1)

I agree with this one, good weatherstripping is well worth the money

???

iTrader: (5)

i like it..


on my todo list

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Thanks guys.

I think that the $35 per side price is a bit un-reasonable. I did this for $4 a side and I love the way it came out. Not only are they not cracked, broken or just ugly anymore, but they are a different "style" than the third gen sweeps. These have a smooth flowing design, and are taller. I think I would rather have the modded fourth gen ones than a new set of third gen units, but everyones' different.

58mark

iTrader: (3)

Great thread! love all the pics. All to do threads should have them..

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Thanks.

Yeah I don't know why some How-To's don't have any pictures, just seems very unfinished that way. Anyway, Next time I go to the junkyard I am going to get a set of inner sweeps and mod them to fit next. I want to get tint on my windows but the way my sweeps are now will just tear into the tint.

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

My passenger side was way worse looking:



And now:

mg19498

excellent write up

iluvmy91camaro

I'm off to the local yard now... Excellent Thread!

spade

iTrader: (3)

cool... for 8bux nice

iluvmy91camaro

The only thing I wonder is how the 4th gen ones feel on your arm. My dad had a 2001 z28 (sick car btw.. ttops, ls1, 6 speed, borla exhaust, etc..) anyways I'd ride with him and have my arm our the window and the sweeps kinda hurt my arm depending on how I had it placed...

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

One thing I noticed when doing this was that the window sweeps I got were different. Not different in a way that you can tell by looking outside, but one side had portions of the felt padding spread across it, and the other had one continuous pad all the way across. I don't know if this is a driver/passenger side difference, or a difference among years of fourth gens. I ended up getting these from 2 seperate 4th gen firebirds but didnt take note of their years (Though they were 93-97 for sure). Their differences didn't effect the install or overall looks of the finished product, but I thought I would mention it.

They actually feel alot better on my arms than my 3rd gens one did, I rested my arm on them with them folded over toward the interior of my T/A and it was quite comfortable. Unlike my stock rock-hard jagged teeth-like third gen sweeps that I removed.

MNformula350

iTrader: (2)

Nice

My Current Stock Sweeps are Ok, But when I need to replace them, I think I will be going this Route.

Dustytrix

iTrader: (3)

Great idea, I will be going 4th gen for mine. Looks like you have to pull all the door trim stuff anyway to get the old ones out. I might as well save some money.

valicswarrior

iTrader: (1)

no one mentions on these threads that your going to have a pretty big gap but the mirror as the 4th gen strip forms around the mirror ours are located further down this is not a direct fit and isn't a perfect install i suggest buying some all purpose weather stripping and trimming to fit the hole or your going to get a lot of water in your door

krazefbird

Vwarrior, what gap are you talking about? The pics that bradley posted look like it will be fine. If you are talking about the very front corner/edge, there is that big triangle rubber piece in there that should keep a lot of water out, if it's in decent shape. Other than that, I see where the sweep is just tad short but one can take note of this and make adjustments accordingly. I think it will do just fine.

84redta

iTrader: (34)

I don't remember any gaps when I did mine a few years back, but I shortly after went for 4th gen firebird mirrors to complement, and cover up that little swoop of weatherstripping that the 4th gen units have.

Also, I never found my 4th gen sweeps to be uncomfortable, all you may need to do is put ur arm an inch farther out than as you set your arm down come in that inch to fold over the weatherstripping. I find that when I put my windows down, the weather stripping folds in partially by itself, so when you go to set your arm down, it doesn't just sit on it like a jagged edge. I enjoy my sweeps, and I think I payed $3 a side, but not for nothing, doing this job for less than $10 is well worth it.

Bobby_80s

iTrader: (2)

do you try to line up with the old screw holes or just use self threading screws and make new holes?

valicswarrior

iTrader: (1)

trust it doesn't look bad in the pics but its a pretty big gap a member already messaged me saying i was right and how did i fix it

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

I used the screws that I removed from the old sweep which are self-tapping and just made new holes for these. But, it is possible just to drill holes in the 4th gen sweeps and use the pre-existing holes in the door if thats what you'd rather do.

84redta

iTrader: (34)

I pre-drilled holes and had perfect results. The only snag was the curve at the front of the sweep that was mentioned above, and just needed to push them down while putting the screw in.

theNMBR27

great write up, I'll be doing this.

chevman24

iTrader: (1)

Subscribed. In the process of fixing some things and i will be picking up a set of these instead. The seem like they would last longer and seal better than OEM. Cheaper is a benefit too.

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

I just want to reiterate that it is very important to have someone helping you when you screw the 4th gen pieces on. Pressure needs to be applied and slightly angled toward where the window would be as your drilling them in. This ensures that you will have the proper seal against the window.

chevman24

iTrader: (1)

If its that big of a pita maybe OEM styled seals would be more appropriate then. It looks fairly simple. IDK. They appear to have a nicer fit though.

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

I like the way they look and fit better, myself. The third gen units have a 'drop-off' in the middle of them that I do not like, whereas the 4th gen units are one-piece all the way down.

It's really not too bad of a project, just have someone hold them while you mount them.

BlackenedBird

iTrader: (5)

How do the 4th gen sweeps come off the 4th gen door? Have to disassemble the door panel like you did on the 3rd gen door? If so...Isn't it hard to do at a junkyard, since the car will have no power to roll the windows down?

bradley23150

iTrader: (10)

Yeah that was one problem I had, there were lots of fourth gens but most of them had electric windows that were rolled up. You've got to hope the windows are down/broken/manual so you can get to the sweeps. The way I did it was remove the 4th gen door panel, remove the window felt guides, remove the mirror, and carefully push the sweeps toward the inside of the car because they are only clipped on, no screws hold them to the door at all. Eventually they will budge, and you'll see how they come off.

BlackenedBird

iTrader: (5)

Solution for easy access.....
12v motorcycle battery. Small & light enough to put in your toolbox to tote into a junkyard to power the windows down. Just hafta cut & splice into the motor wires.

I wasn't sure if they could just be pushed up with a flat-bladed screwdriver wedged up under it to knock them loose, with the window still up.

58mark

iTrader: (3)

i'm picking up a pair of these next week, already off the car. I'm paying $20 each for them, but it's worth it to me not to have to take apart a junkyard car to get them off

I'm taking apart my own car this summer for painting, what a perfect time to change the sweeps

KlawinEagle

Nice write up. I just got back from the yard with mine, got them for free. Now it is time to follow your steps, and see if I can figure this out. Need to have them done today, so it will be ready for Atlanta.

KlawinEagle

Well I have completed mine. Took a lot longer than I had expected. Mounting the new one was a ______, well you get the picture. I broke one of the triangles, go figure with my luck. Got it super glued for now, hopefully get another one tomorrow at the yard. I have noticed, it does not fit very good around the triangle, there is a gap. Hopefully can be fixed with some adjustments, but I gave up for now. If anyone has ideas on it, please let me know.

vistageek92

iTrader: (2)

@ puma: Where the heck did you find sweeps for $35 a piece? Everything I see it like 100 a pair

Kory-88Iroc 350 tpi

iTrader: (1)

Nice thread. I'll be doing this soon.
Kory

DiabolicalRS

any one know how to get the manual roll up handle off?

chevydrvr

iTrader: (1)

There is a little clip behind the handle. They sell a tool to get it out, but I just used a flat head screwdriver to push it out. The clip looks like this...

http://www.rickscamaros.com/assets/r...5/sku/HW-9.jpg

hwcoll95

iTrader: (6)

manual window handles have a u-clip,there is a tool for clip removal

DiabolicalRS

and how do u get to it?

evilemokid94

iTrader: (6)

i got my thirdgen sweepsfor $51. excellent quallity

xbox07

Thats awesome im going to have to try it.