Just Did The Kia Hatch Seal

[Hardway]

One problem I am running into after installing the Kia seal is my tail light cover trim piece does not wan to go back on.  The seal is thicker around the pinch grip and will not allow the trim panel holes to line up.  I would either need to lengthen/oval the holes in the panel or install a customer speaker box or something if I did not want to alter the original panel.  Right now I have the panel wedged in to place but it is not a permanent solution.  Did anyone else run in to this after installing their Kia hatch seal?

[TomoHawk]

The hatch seal shouldn't interfere with the tail lamp cover, as it is just about the same design as the original.  Maybe it wasn't installed correctly?

[EuroDat]

I didn't have any problems with the taillight panel. The 240Z taillight panel is different from the 280Z, but I would expect that section to still be the same.

[grannyknot]

That is good to know, it's so easy for info like this to get lost.

maybe we should start referring to this topic as the Kia/Mazda seal.

FYI: You can also use a Mazda MPV van hatch seal. It's super long, and is pretty much the same as the kia one, and grips the hatch pinch-weld very tightly.

 

I like to press the seal flat with the palms of my hands before installing to the car, and it is pretty damn good at staying one. Just don't try to get "extra grip" by squeezing the steel channel in a vice or something. It will deform the steel grip channel and cause it to be bumpy in some areas.

 

[TomoHawk]

Looking at the photo in #31, it seems that the little 'wing' on the 'interior' side isn't even needed for the S30, so that is the only thing that looks to me like it could possibly interfere with anything at all.

 

Compare to the photo of the Stock Datsun weatherstrip below, you will see the lack of the 'wing.'  In that case, I'd say the Mazda or the Z31 weatherstrip  is not a good substitute, without some modification.

 

[SeafireXV]

Nice job on the hatch seal. If you are still getting exhaust fumes in the car, check the tail light gaskets. They are probably leaking.

[TomoHawk]

We replaced the door seals, and we found that you didn't really need the seals at the front edge of the quarter windows, but I haven't been able to make a long drive on the highway or in the rain to see if any water or air is getting past the door seal.  So far, I didn't hear much air noise through that area on city streets.

[TomoHawk]

Do you think there is some kind of rubber weatherstrip that could also work in place of  the seal for the quarter window? The one I have seems to need a little shaving because it hits the window frame a little too much, or is that how it's supposed to be?

Edited July 13, 2015 by TomoHawk