New Trunk Seal. Sort of.

[yourpc48]

So if you have seen some of my posts you may know that the P15 I have was a shell when I got it and I am puting it together on a VERY tight budget. I have no seals on the doors or trunk since they were missing when I got the car.

Today I was stripping down our old worn out 89 Dodge Caravan to haul off for scrap (repairs outcost the value by far). I pulled the dust seal from around the rear opening where the hatch closes and put the seal aside. Getting sidetracked like I often do, all of a sudden it hits me that I may be able to put it on the 47 the way it was on the Caravan and the trunk lid would seal against it. Sure enough, after centering the rubber seal I cut about 2 feet of both ends and it ended up working. Dang!!! It worked.

Now Im pretty sure that the original seal was on the trunk lid and closed down on the lip that I put the Caravan hatch gasket on. But it looks good when I open the trunk lid and it was FREE! If your in a hurry and just want the trunk lid on your car to have a good dust seal a trip the wrecking yard might make quick work of your problem. Heck most yards dont even charge for seals like that.

Here is what the car looked like the morning after I got it home about a year and a half ago.

[yourpc48]

Heres a more current picture. I like to drive my car every day so since I work on computers I had the back window lettered. Its stick on so it comes off easy if I wanted to remove it. The car has gotten me some extra work too.

[oldodge41]

Necessity is the mother of invention. I try to be opportunistic like that myself. Nice job. Free is good! Car is looking good too.

[Don Coatney]

Innovation is great!

[49 Dodge Dude]

Wow. I need a trunk lid seal for my '49, too. Maybe I'll look into that. The ones you buy online are way too expensive if you ask me.

[BobT-47P15]

As I recall, the rubber strip originally did attach to the trunk lid.

It's always good to hear from someone what they found that would

work on these old cars....as a substitute for original.

On my doors, I

just used some stick on rubber home weatherstripping as found at

Walmart or home improvement stores. Not quite right, but better than

the nothing that I had.

[yourpc48]

I got some at the hardware store but it was a little too small. I will pick up the next size bigger for the door. I need to seal up the cowl vent next. I finally got the thing loosened up after pulling it partially apart and then heating each pivot point red hot and then spraying with liquid wrench till cool. Got it all working again. I do need to pull it out to fix up the surface that the seal goes against.

[Eneto-55]

Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you are talking about, but the 4-door trunk lid seal fit into a channel in the body - at least that's how mine was when I got it. I don't have a picture of it while the rubber seal was still in place, though.

[yourpc48]

Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you are talking about, but the 4-door trunk lid seal fit into a channel in the body - at least that's how mine was when I got it. I don't have a picture of it while the rubber seal was still in place, though.

Well since it has been 25 years since I had my 48 D24 Coupe I dont remember how its is supposed to be. All I know is that if you fill that channel with a gasket your asking for dirt and stuff to collect there and start rusting the body out.

If you look at a new car the seal is on a lip that the trunk closes against and seals against the trunk lid. That is what mine is now doing. I know its not right but it works well. It even reduced the exhaust and road noise I could hear in the car from the open gap in the trunk lid and body. From these pictures you can see how the seal mounts on the lip in the body and how when the trunk lid closes it will fill the gap in the trunk lid. There is an edge at the top of the crush side of the gasket and its facing inward but it should face outward. I need to wait for a nice hot day to change it around. Its been cool and overcast here for the past 2 days. The gasket let the trunk lid close easier this direction. Check it out.

[Eneto-55]

Yeah, my memory is not all that great either. The photo I posted of my car was taken now almost 30 years ago (the photo file name is the date - October of 1981), so I'm not really positive how it was. But you are right - this was one of the most rusted areas on my car. (The car is pretty much the same as in the photo - it has been stored ever since, as I moved away and got married soon after that, then we moved overseas. It still sits in my Dad's shop - over 900 miles away.)

Anyway, I have a 93 Chrysler T & C I'm scrapping out, so will check tomorrow what the rear hatch rubber is like. I was never able to find any weather stripping quite like what was in there. I believe I kept a few pieces of it, and have drawings of the basic shape as well - someplace.

Neto

[Young Ed]

Thats an awesome spare tire.

[yourpc48]

Thats an awesome spare tire.

I KNEW someone would comment on my awesome Spare.

Hey Ed if you want one I have 2 more just like it, only with more weather checking.

I got the car with 3 stock style 16" wheels. I would LOVE to have 4 and put wide whites on them. I also have one hubcap. So I guess that would make it one wheel, 3 hubcaps, and 4 expensive tires. Hmmm I think Ill leave it this way for a while.

[BobT-47P15]

And.........that rubber piece originally ran across the bottom edge of the

trunk lid, too. You, like me and others, are missing the channel that

runs below the trunk lock. It tended to rust a lot. It was riveted on

initially.

[yourpc48]

And.........that rubber piece originally ran across the bottom edge of the

trunk lid, too. You, like me and others, are missing the channel that

runs below the trunk lock. It tended to rust a lot. It was riveted on

initially.

A little bit of that was left but only the corner ends and nothing in the middle at all. As you can see I have had to weld new metal on the back of this car and when I did I extended it about 6" (level with the bottom of the fenders).

I have a rear bumper and pan but I dont have a front bumper. I do have the brackets and splash pan. I also have a funny looking grill guard assembly. I know it was on the car at one time because the front splash pan has been notched for it. Im thinking about doing nerf bars front and rear with rolled pans.

[BobT-47P15]

Here's a pic of a P15 in a salvage yard......showing what appears to be

the original rubber attached to the lid. The photo is a bit dark, but I

think you get the idea.

[yourpc48]

Here's a pic of a P15 in a salvage yard......showing what appears to be

the original rubber attached to the lid. The photo is a bit dark, but I

think you get the idea.

Thanks for the photo. Thats the way I thought most of the old cars I have seen and owned had the seal. It had been about 18 years before this car since I had a car that was before 68. My way will work pretty good and it fits really nice as long as the trunk lid is aligned fairly well.

If I had taken more time to finish the lip all around the trunk the seal from the Caravan would have been more than long enough to fit all the way around. If you have a sedan it would be long.

Is the trunk lid longer on the 3 window business coupe? You might have to add some but Im not sure.

A little tweaking and it is as good as, if not better than factory and (BONUS) its still a MOPAR part.

[BobT-47P15]

The trunk lid on the business coupe (and the convertible, which uses a

biz cpe trunk lid) is a little longer than the two seat coupe, I think, but

not much.

[Young Ed]

Its too bad you're 1/2 the country away. I've got hubcaps and pretty sure an extra front bumper too. Holes in your front splash pan could also come from fog lights. The grill guard typically attached to the two bumper guards.

[kbuhagiar]

You, like me and others, are missing the channel that runs below the trunk lock. It tended to rust a lot. It was riveted on initially.

The weatherstrip on my P15 is mounted to the trunk lid.

But my channel below the trunk lock is missing on my car also -

how critical is it to have it replaced?

[yourpc48]

Just helps keep the dust and fumes out of the car.

[Eneto-55]

Here's a pic of a P15 in a salvage yard......showing what appears to be

the original rubber attached to the lid. The photo is a bit dark, but I

think you get the idea.

Apparently this is a difference between the sedans and the coupes. The channel below the latch area to which you are referring as having been rivited on - that is an integral part of the body on the sedan models. The trunk weather stripping must have also been completely different, or at least mounted differently.

[BobT-47P15]

The channel below the trunk latch was rusted mostly off on my car when

I got it back in '73. It looks like there were some type of rivets

holding that part in place......otherwise, it appears to have been an

integral part of the system. Just my observation.

If that part is missing, a person could make a new channel section and

weld or attach it in some manner. I don't recall the measurements now,

but one time I measured that channel on a car that still had it in place.

I think the top edge is just a little shorter than the bottom edge. It's

just a "C" shaped sort of thing. Son in law says he can make me a new

one.