softtop seals leaking

[ICON 1956]

No matter what you do to stop the water from coming in. Soft top or Hard top these will leak. When I was caught in a rain storm mine leaked like a sieve.

[55Greg&Amy]

New seals on both hard and soft tops and windows adjusted correctly still
F=floods
O=on
R=rainy
D=days

[seany-boy]

yeah, you cannot really adjust the window up too much firmer as the channel in the door limits the upward movement and indeed the forward movement. Once you hit the top of the channel with the glass then that it it. The only solution I found was to avoid rainy days

[RegM 56 T-Bird]

Well I've decided to just live with the softtop leaks and have moved on the the hardtop. I bought a set of new seals for it and it turns out the new ones are made different. On the original seals, the front seal comes all the way over to the corner where it buts against the side seal. The new side seals are shaped like a hockey stick at the top and they but against the ends of the front seal about 4 or 5 inches in from the corner (ie; from the top of the A pillar) and there is gap of about 1/4 inch between them. Once again I am looking for help. Does anybody here have any experience with these new seals? Also, I am thinking of putting in some kind or sealer, something that cures to a rubber consistency and not sticky once it cures. Thanks in advance, Reg

[MarkR]

If your original seal was corner to corner on the header with no dogleg from the side seal, sounds like you have the wrong seals for your 56.

55’s and early 56’s had the dogleg from the side seal and a shorter header piece.

Late 56’s and 57’s had no dogleg and the header piece was full width.

I’m guessing your top is a late 56. There’s a slight chance your build date may indicate an early build, which is what you may have based the order
on, but your top was replaced at some point with a later top. Either way the correct seals are available.

Mark

[ward 57]

To help with the drainage from the front pillar, Ford started punching a hole in the top of the door dog leg in the outside corner. I think they started doing that in late '56 and all '57s. Several have accidentally covered it with the weather strip. If it isn't there you could make your own so water will drain into the door and not the interior.

[ranchbird]

Unless it's a daily driver why would you need to or want to drive it in the rain, I know everybody says you gotta drive um but I will wait for a sunny day.

[ICON 1956]

Here is the rubber seals in my door.... I feel the rubber plug was placed in the wrong position. Note the top seal has a gap in it...maybe that's why my car leaked like a sieve.

[hiampen]

Never drive my old cars in rain or wet surfaces. Water can get trapped in various places in them and all of a sudden there are rusted out areas. Not a fan of rust and patina.

[ICON 1956]

Never drive my old cars in rain or wet surfaces. Water can get trapped in various places in them and all of a sudden there are rusted out areas. Not a fan of rust and patina.

I never take out my car if radar say's there's a 50 % chance of rain. I got caught last year at a car show. Not only did the car get wet inside but also caught covid !

[hiampen]

The only leaks I know about on my old cars are air. Will never find out if i have water leaks. Sky has to totally clear for me to go 10 miles from home

[55blacktie]

If water drains into the door, is it going to stay inside the door? I would prefer being able to see moisture and deal with it asap.

[ward 57]

If water drains into the door, is it going to stay inside the door? I would prefer being able to see moisture and deal with it asap.
[/quote

There are drains in the bottom of the door just for this reason and any water that may get past the window whiskers. They are oblong just behind the bottom lip of the door before the weather stripping. Make sure they are clear of debris. I think every car I have owned has them.

[DynoDan’55]

I replaced all possible hardtop & door seals and verified all done correctly. But, since I still have the orig. windshield (and it’s orig. seal), I gave up and now always carry towels.
BTW: I had to replace the trunk lid seal also. I found (soon after I got the car), the fender drains in the trunk wells were plugged, and I was carrying around several gals. of water.

[55blacktie]

Even with a new top, my 1988 Mustang leaked during a hard rain or when taking through the car wash. However, the amount of water entering the passenger compartment was manageable. It was my daily driver; leaving it in the garage on rainy days wasn't an option. My 55 Tbird, on the other hand, will never see the inside of a car wash.