re: Sealing Doors

[TJCallahan@domain.elided]

Scott & all,

Plastic sheeting is the way to go, 4mil thick is just right.

Jaguar and others put the sheet on the inside of the door cavity and along the interior side. This requires removal of the window crank and latch mechanisms and all, but definitely is worth it in the long run. Make certain that the sheet ends inside the door and don't rely on sealant to keep water out of the car interior.

VW put the sheet between the door and the interior panel (as suggested by a few here) and, after a few years of heat cycling, the sealant would dry out and the sheet would channel the smallest amount of rain water into the interior floors with great efficiency. Don't do it this way.

Not certain what the interior trim on top of the door looks like on the 74 spider (where the interior window wipe is), but Jag wraps the sheet from the inside of the door, through the gap between window and door, secures it initially with double sided tape to the door trim lip (think of an upside down letter 'J' hooking over the lip), and then installs the trim on top, securing the installation.

Pretty anal process, but it keeps the interior very dry (from this water source, anyway). Sealing the back of the interior panels, as described previously, is a good idea, too.

Biba - did you do all of this on Joe's Giulietta spider? :-)

Tom
Seattle
10123 (no plastic sheeting except on the floor of the garage)
11615 (plastic sheeting being installed during the engine rebuild)
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