Jump to content
HybridZ

Kia weather stripping


Recommended Posts

I did a quick search and there didn't seem to be a consolidated thread of all the other vehicles you can rob weatherstripping from, I apologize if I'm wrong about this. I've seen a lot of people mention using kia sportage weatherstripping but after searching the local junkyards I couldn't find any sportages, however I did find an 04 kia minivan and wanted to let everyone know they work too! I took the front door rubbers and the rear hatch rubber. The door rubbers fit great, the angles are perfect. The rubber is pretty thick though so in order to use your door sills you'll have to trim the rubber unless you can squish the rubber enough to allow you to get the screws for the door sills started. The hatch rubber was a little long so I trimmed about a foot and it fits great, the corners kink the rubber slightly but it doesn't seem to affect the seal.

 

All in all I spent $15 at the junkyard and both my doors and my hatch have new rubber, it all came off a fairly new vehicle so it's in great shape and barely shows any wear, far better than spending $200+ from some places.

 

Feel free to add other vehicles you know to be suitable weatherstripping donors, tomorrow I'm going to investigate using a fox body mustang mirror on my Z since I don't have one at all and there are no junkyard Zs around here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No problem,

 

The late model kia minivan is the only one I can personally comfirm but I have also heard people talk about the kia sportage, DC integras, but I'm sure there are a ton vehicles that you can rob the rubber off of. The most important thing I would look for is that the rubber is in good shape, still soft with no cuts and that it has a formed corner at the top back side of the door post.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've heard good stuffs about Acura Integra rubber.

The point is to have a long enough piece you can trim. My advice would be to target cars with big doors (coupe, minivan?)

You can either have one 90° corner or a straight piece. If you have a straight piece, you can trim the rubber at 45° and close the weatherstrip at the top of the door

 

As far as I'm concerned, I'm in Europe, we also do have our donor cars for weatherstriping that works very well. They are pinched type instead of glued, profile is hollow (=extruded) instead of plain which make them thicker in free state but easier to compress. It means doors are sealed and I don't need to slam the doors as I used to with previous seal. They're no difference in effort to close the door from my DD Ford Focus and my Z.

In europe, fyi, I have Renault Twingo seals.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's what's great about a Z, while having money definitely helps with certain aspects us Z owners find a way to get by without boatloads of cash. When I saw that some companies want upwards of $80 for a door rubber I couldn't believe it, I'd rather spend that money on something to make the car perform better.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Lazeum..

Did You glued those twingo seals, and was one twingo seal enough for Z doorway?

 

No, you just have to clamp them around the edge of the door with a rubber mallet. You need one for each door, One foot needs to be removed over the entire lenght to go around Z door shape.

 

On the picture below, on the left, the original MSA seal, on the right the Twingo seal. See the way they have to be install, check also the thickness in free state and how much more they can compress.

 

p1110010.jpg

Edited by Lazeum
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...