I seem to remember that some guys put dielectric grease on their weather stripping to preserve the rubber. Is this true and what brand is the best? I bought something called Ox-Gard anti-oxicant grease. It does not say "dielectric" on the label. ? ? ? Rod

 

Yes, dielectric grease will work very well on the weatherstripping. The GM stuff is very good.

What I use is a natural silicone lubricant that I bought from a local body shop and it does great keeping the weatherstripping nice and pliable.

 

I use the Permatex brand. A thin coat once or twice a year helps keep the rubber soft & pliable -- increasing its longevity and reducing squeaks.

 

I bought a tube of weatherstripping grease from NAPA.

 

Thanks guys, I'll return this Ox-Gard as it isn't silicon based and has graphite powder in it. Enjoy the day!! Rod

 

Honda started using this Shin-Etsu Grease back when the Del sol came out for that same type of problem.

 

Picked up a small tube at our local stealership and it works great!

 

 

Many years ago, Hot Rod or Car Craft, ran an article about preserving the weatherstripping on "modern cars". Some may recall that GM cars of the mid to late 70's were having a real weather stripping durability problem at that time. The article was all about using glycerine, plain old medicinal type glycerine, available at your local Pharmacy at the time for about $.50 a bottle to treat and preserve weather stripping.



I had recently bought a new '77 Corvette and after watching the weather stripping on my MIL's 4 year old Cutlass' rot away, decided to give it a try. The bottles are quite small and I wasn't sure how many to buy, so I bought 2 of them and went to work. It took less than half a bottle to do all the weatherstripping on my '77 Corvette.

I started with a clean piece of cotton cloth by dampening a small area with the glycerine. I then began just gently rubbing it into the weatherstripping as they had suggested. Initially it seemed it was just laying on top of the weather stripping with no effect, but slowly it began to be absorbed. It really didn't take long at all and I simply repeated the procedure about every 2-3 years. When I sold the car 6 years later the weatherstripping was like new.

I ordered a new Corvette in '85 and performed the glycerine treatment to its weather stripping shortly thereafter. I soon had to store the car for 9 years and the weather stripping was fine. It's now been over 30 years and the original weather stripping looks as new.

It is a very inexpensive treatment to try and if it works for you like it has for me, you'll find it time well spent.

Good luck... GUSTO

 

I spray silicone on a rag then apply it to the rubber where most of it is absorbed then any extra is wiped off; instead of grease it doesn't transfer to the glass and felt guides making a mess. Treating the weather stripping on any car driven in the winter is important to prevent the doors from freezing closed.

 

Check this out:

Gummi Pflege is a special rubber treatment that conditions rubber weather seals on car doors, windows and trunks reducing squeaks, rattles, wind noise and potential water leaks. Gummi restores color to dried out rubber and keeps them elastic while protecting them against the damaging effects of heat, freezing temperatures and UV rays. It uses a petroleum free, water-based formula. Easy-to-use shoe polish type applicator makes application simple without the mess.

 

That name is associated with a different product that had been regarded as the ultimate solution for treating rubber seals, etc.; used to be available at the BMW parts counter. The BMW version was apparently always somewhat difficult to get, but is totally out of production for several years I believe.
I think the current manufacturer has able to capitalize by using the name.

 

I picked up a small tube of the Permatex and will try it tomorrow. Thanks, Rod