Hey folks, we went to take the roof down over the weekend and noticed something that I distinctly do not like... the part of the roof by the back of the car that has weatherstripping and sits on the tonneau area of the car... when we went to lift it to store the roof, we heard a strange kind of "sticky" noise, and immediately noticed there is a black line of the weatherstripping now on the tonneau area where the roof seals to the car... anyone else had this before? I'll try to post a pic later.

Wondering, is this bad? How do we go about cleaning this up now, to avoid damaging the paint? My wife suggested "Goo Gone", which has some petroleum base to it, but I don't know if that's going to damage the finish....

Man, I hope we're not wearing out that weatherstripping somehow.. I have no clue how this happened.. never noticed it before. But, it has been VERY hot up here the last 2 weeks, so maybe that has something to do with it...

ANY feedback appreciated here. Thanks kindly.

 

You might try a little light oil, such as air tool oil and rub it with a cotton cloth, don't use synthetics as they can scratch the finish. Old baby blankets and the old syle cloth diapers work great. I use cotton to rub down my guitars and the finish looks great.

 

Thanks C3, that's what we'll try. Man, I'm worried I've done something here and am about to wreck that weatherstripping on the roof. []

 

Well, I got some lo-res pictures of the situation. Sorry about the lack of quality.




Anyways, I also found this on Eckler's today, and I going to order one of these.
1986-96 Convertible Top Black Deck Lid Protector

Just thought I'd post an update, just in case anyone else runs into this.

 

We tried one of the clear vinyl deck lid protectors a few years back and it left an outline almost like it had fused with the clear coat. Maybe they have improved them since we tried one.

 

A product that I use for all my vehicles is "Nu Finish". It cleans without abrasives and will even restore finish from oxydation. I can get it at my local hardware store.

 

[sm=headbang.gif]
Oh sweet Lord!! Never thought of THAT! Jeez, I think I will scrap this idea for now... thanks for the headsup on that one. Did you guys have the same issue with the residue from the weatherstripping I have here, or did you use that as a precaution?

 

*nods* We can get that up here, too. Maybe this is what I'll do then, is just clean it up whenever it shows up again.. had the roof down for a bit yesterday, and it didn't "stick" as I was putting it down like it did over the weekend. I am baffled as to if this is a common thing, or just a one-time thing that happened to me.

 

TopSpeed, I have a 93 convertible and have noticed a similar line where the gasket sits. I haven't looked at it very closely but I would assume it is created from the gasket rubbing on the deck. My guess is, it is the nature of the beast and can be removed, but will reappear. Good luck.

 

I was just wondering, is there a removable hard top available for your Vette? I think you would still have the weather stripping prob, I was just wondering. ( This could be a determining factor for what year Vette I find for my wife. She doesn't like the look of Rag-tops.)