Hi, I decided to install a weatherstrip on the trunk lid of the 1961 Corvette. It is the d shaped hollow rubber that most vendors sell. I installed as prescribed on the forum. Installed it and now all hell broke loose.the trunk use to close nicely and lined up well. I installed shims to jack it around to look as best as possible. The best I can get it is to have 2 shims in the lower hinges on both sides. The front edge of the trunk sits really high but allows the rear of the trunk to almost close properly. The problem now is the latch wire will not align up with the trunk latch and causes the trunk lid to kick to the left and will not latch. I have no more room for adjustment on either the lock assembly or latch wire.Any clue to what is wrong. Thanks

 

Well it seems if the only thing you changed was the weatherstrip there lies your problem. Can it be put on backwards? Did you have any problems getting it to fit? How did it fit before new weatherstrip? Did you try going back to fit without all the shims?
Just some things to consider. Can you post pictures?

 

Hi, trunk lid closed and looked good before weatherstrip installation. I installed the weatherstrip correctly and made sure before I glued it in. I tried several shimming combinations on it and finally got the lid to look good with just 1 shims on each of the lower 2 bolts on each hinge. This worked best. The front of the trunk is still high between the body section between the deck lid and trunk area but the weatherstrip is kicking it up as I can shove the lid down but it bounces right back up. Guess I can live with that or try trimming some weatherstripping where it rests on body opening. The other issue is when I close the trunk the lid kicks to the left because I have no more adjustment from the striker or lock mechanism. Both are all the way over to the right as much as possible. Question could the trunk latch fibre glass assembly be in wrong as it looks like it was repaired at one time. Only indicator is the trunk key rod that inserts into the latch assembly looks off to the left and not a straight shot into the latch. I do not want to butcher latch fibre glass assembly to allow proper aliment. I should have known because the correct wire striker that belongs in the trunk will not work and someone made a thinner wire striker to have the trunk close. I will attempt to post photos and am being coached on doing this. Thanks.

 

Hi, I have been away from the site as I have 2 family members with an illness which took up my time. They are getting better. I re shimmed the trunk lid and got it to look the best I can but the front of the trunk lid sticks up more than I like. The weatherstrip is causing this problem. It is in correctly and removed the trunklid to recheck everything. The weatherstrip is just too thick My next problem is when I close the trunk, the lid wants to kick to the left as the factory wire striker closes over the lock assembly and will not lock. Everything is adjusted all the way to the right as possible to avoid this. If I install the wire striker thinner wire and bent differently that some one made previous to me owning the car it will close. I am guessing the fibreglass mount where the lock assembly attaches must have broken and glassed in wrong. Only indication of this is the trunk key lock rod that inserts into the lock assembly is shifted off to the left as you look down on it. My assumption is that it should be straight. If so then I have to cut the fibreglass mount out and relocate it to the right about an inch. Does anybody have a photo of this area so I can compare mine with a correct one? Am trying to post photos but having difficulty. Need to post on another subject here also. Thanks.

 

I had the same problem with my '60. When I got it the trunk looked like it was twisted when closed. The best I could determine is that most or all of the replacement gaskets are not soft enough, too dense foam. I finally gave up and replaced most of the gasket with 1/2" (may have been 3/4", don't remember that well) low density foam. Also had to tighten the latch to its max adjustment and requires a firm push to get it latched. Now everything lines up and looks good when closed. Gasket looks like hell when opened but I have no reason to open it at car shows.

 

Hi, got a minute to look over the trunk alignment problem again. I think I have the wrong trunk latch assembly in the car. It appears that there are a few different ones from what I see out there. Which one is correct I do not know. Contacted a Corvette vendor with a supposed correct one that looks different than mine and may be the one I need. I may have one from passenger car of that period. Both styles look very close but there is a relief on the left side opposite the locking arm for the striker wire to fit into in the one I am looking at and the one in the car now does not have that relief. I looked at a few photos on line of the trunk latch area and it appears there is no adjustment. The latch just bolts in. My latch mount face has been wallowed out I am guessing to allow the mismatched parts to close the trunk. When I located the correct strike wire and installed it nothing fit then. Hope this solves this issue. Thanks for replies!

 

O.K. Well I cannot determine which style the correct trunk latch is supposed to be. Cannot get anybody to verify which style is correct for 1961! A friend was at a coffee and cars meet in the mid west. A 1961Corvette showed up.Appears they have the same latch as mine so we will go with that. And my trunk latch mount was reinstalled too far to the left. I see faint marks on the underside of the trunk where somebody removed the latch assembly and used hood pins to hold the trunk down. That explains why the latch mount was removed. The body shop reinstalled it over 40 years ago and cobbled parts to work. When I purchased the correct parts and installed the crappy new weatherstrip everything just went out of aliment. I hate the look of the trunk lid now as it is a horrible fit so I guess I will rip out the weatherstrip and just install a flat thin foam gasket in it's place. Do not know how I will be able to remove the 3M glue. Any suggestions on removing it? Thanks.

 

Hi, I was able to get back to the trunk gasket issue. I do have the correct latch mechanism (still cannot determine if there was more than 1 style used) My trunk latch fibreglass assembly was repaired and reinstalled indeed about 3/8 to 1/2 inch too far off to the left. I also removed the striker wire and tried to correct the weatherstrip problem. Nothing would work so I removed the lid and cut almost all the rubber off just leaving the L shaped part of the rubber glued to the lid. Removed all the shims I installed trying to get better alignment. End result was trunk is back where it belongs and looks great as it should with no part sticking up. I will have to be satisfied with the L shaped weatherstrip now even though it is wrong but the trunk closes properly car looks better now. Once I correct the latch mount I will be happy. This car does not get shown or judged. I have 2 rolls of the GM service replacement weatherstrip I purchased many years ago I did not use. If some one wants them please let me know. It does not have the 3 ribs as they make today and is a foam type material not rubber. Thanks.