Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

Just bought and installed new weatherstripping for both driver and passenger door. Everything is lined up perfect and glued in but you have to slam door shut for it to latch. Any suggestions on how to fix this? Also does the top edge of the side window just sit against the edge of the weatherstripping? Just seems strange that GM would design it that way.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

What kind of weatherstripping did you get? I’ve heard some is softer than others. I just installed some too and the door needs a good slam to shut, but I’m hoping that will improve over time.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I bought it off of camaro central and I think the company that makes it is called super soft or somthing related to that.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

That's normal. It will take some time for the seals to form to your car. Remember, the old seals were compressed over time.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

..but is it really normal? I've often wondered if a brand new Camaro or Firebird had doors hard to close because the rubber was "new." Or could it be the companies making the aftermarket rubber are just not doing it right? I put all new rubber in my 82 4 years ago after a repaint and the doors are still tough to close to this day if the windows are up. Maybe I just did a good job sealing that car up air-tight or maybe the rubber is not made right. These are questions I may never have the answers to.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I ran a Auto Repair Shop for one of the top two rental car companies, in America. I would see the many brands of cars, as they were delivered from the manufacturers. Yes, the doors closed A LITTLE tighter as delivered, but absolutely never required SLAMMING.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

Try comparing the "slam" when closing the door with the window closed vs. the window opened.

It wouldn't appear that this is necessary, but I've had cars where the window needed to be re-adjusted slightly (up/down, in/out) after replacing the door weatherstrip. I don't recall if there's an adjustment for f-body windows or filler.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

If he only replaced the weatherstripping that attaches to the doors themselves, then there's no need to adjust the glass. Glass only needs to be adjusted when replacing the weatherstripping that goes on the a-pillars/roof.

About the only thing I can recommend is making sure that all the clips are in the holes, and that the weatherstripping is firmly attached to the doors, and not kinked anywhere, or getting caught in the door jamb when closing. It may differ from brand to brand -- I used Soff Seal, and it sticks up a little bit on the front of both doors towards the bottom where the weatherstripping curves and doesn't have a clip/hole to hold it in. I can say that I had no problem closing my doors when I replacing the weatherstripping on them. Weatherstripping on the a-pillars/roof was a completely different story though.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

My '89 IROC Z Vert needs weatherstrip. I will be angry if I spend approx. $ 675.00 for the complete W/S kit and get an unsatisfactory fit! I am still annoyed that my new, Delco deck-lid supports do not raise the lid, up off the pulldown mechanism!

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I used the Fairfield(?) brand from A1 Auto when I did my vert doors. They fit really good and still had the reinforced ends that the soffseal did not have. I used the soffseal on my GTA a few years ago and I am much happier with the Fairfield ones.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I think you mean Fairchild Industries. I read dozens of threads on here when I was researching which brand to buy and it seemed like people were the happiest with Fairchild. Glad to hear you like yours too because that's what I ordered for my car. And my painter texted me that it'll be painted by the end of the weekend so hopefully I'll be able to weigh in on this topic pretty soon.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

Yes, that's what I meant. I was thinking that but for some reason typed it wrong.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

its new,its air tight.it will be more difficult to close your door now and that's exactly what you want.
if you need to close your door a little harder than you did before its fine,if you need to slam it to close
that's not fine.my weather stripping is still good (original)and if my windows are up and i close my door
lightly it often doesn't close easily.this is my opinion and my personal experience,it was the same with
a low mileage berlinneta i had as well(it had about 50,000 km or 30,000 miles when i bought it)

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

Mine were a little tight at first but after a while they take a set and they will close much easier. It's basically normal at this stage of the game - the fact that we can get door seals and there's even more than one manufacturer of them is a blessing. If these cars weren't produced in the numbers they were and are still as popular as they are - it would be very likely impossible to get replacements.

GD

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

My weatherstripping has been on for years. The doors close easily if the window or windows are down a little. To me that is a good sign when the windows are up. That means that it is more air tight. You can really tell the difference if you have a good tight seal in the rain. No water coming in.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

agreed,if my windows are down its easy,if they are up its a little more force required but nothing outrageous

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I just replaced both my door and window weatherstripping. I used Fairchild. The quality was very good and everything lined up well. I first did the doors and they required a slam to shut. After a few weeks it has improved quite a bit. But the window are killing me. Been messing with adjustments for weeks. It’s either too tight and the doors will absolutely not close without risking a broken window or there will be gaps here and there. Very frustrating.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

On a vehicle whose windows and/or doors have never been adjusted, after installing new, PROPERLY MANUFACTURERED AND SIZED WEATHERSTRIP, everything should fall into place, with little or NO adjustment. Unfortunately, lots of substandard junk reproduction parts out there.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

True, and I recall someone saying the originals were foam, where the repos are rubber.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I recently replaced my weather stripping for the a pillar/roof and for my door I always had to slam my door and even after changing it i still have too. Also my window for some reason sits kind of tilted. I have tried adjusting it but it looks like there is no way of doing that. Anyone else have these problems?

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

There is an adjustment for tilting the window in/out. The bolts are inside the door with the heads pointing down. If you do a search you’ll find pics

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I bought the complete weatherstrip kit from Hawks, and I had this problem when I had my car painted. The strips seemed like real good quality imo. I definitely had to slam them for them to shut at first though. I was worried I would hurt the glass. Then I had my body guy look at it, and found the doors were a little out of whack. I put in a couple new door pins and aligned the door and the problem went away. I still have to shut them a little harder but I am finding that even over just a couple months I no longer had to slam the doors like before. I would say, check if your door sags and have that problem fixed first. Additionally, try readjusting the glass as well. Over time, it will go away.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

Your going to either have to replace them, modify them or live with them.
Living with them will probably get easier as time goes on. Sitting out in the heat will do them more good than anything. It takes some time even on better seals.
As for modifying: This is going to be some scary stuff for most of you and just the thought of doing this modification sends most guys to the corner wetting their pants and sucking their thumb. That being said, the back edge of the seal can be trimmed and glued back together. When doing this I also use a strip of wax paper and once the seal gets secured I placed the waxed paper between the seal and door and keep it closed over night. Believe me when I say that the first time I did this it was not easy and took a lot of nerve to do.
Ive also used a heat gun to carefully heat up the seal and then shut the door on it to soften it some.
Silicone help some also. It lets the seal spread out easier rather than friction stick to the door while closing. I apply it, close the door a few times and then wipe off the residue.
Good luck.

Re: Just put new weatherstripping in and door closes hard
 

I got the seals off of hawks, They SUCK!! The ends don't fit like OEM, the push pins are too small and fall out and the main part is too thick and wrong. I'm not finding any with good reviews. I might cut the ends and find a genetic correct oval seal and put that in.