Rubber Stripping on Windshield

[user 64847]

I changed the wipers on my wife's Trac and noticed the lower rubber stripping on the windshield has a portion eaten away. Should I be concerned about leaking into the cabin? Thanks, Tim

 

[EddieS'04]

Maybe not It depends on how much is gone. The gasket is a slit wraped around the glass. Then Im not sure about the trac. But some windsheilds are set in place with a sealer behind that.



Some gaskets only seal with the slits. one on the side on the glass. The other slit set in the body sheet metal. This looks like the trac style. But is may still have sealer on the backside



I would worry more if the edge of the gasket on the sheet metal edge was deteriating. It maybe only grabing 1/8" to 1/4" of the sheet metal, or less. The slit for the glass is 1/4" or more, both sides.



I hope this made any sense...

 

[Travis Stevens]

There is sealer behind the glass you should be ok

 

[Richard L]

Tim,

As Eddie and travis already mentioned, the windshield glass is sealed with a special butyl rubber sealant the makes the windshield a structural part of the vehicle to prevent the windshield from pushing out if the airbags deploy, as well as sealing out water leaks from the passenger compartment..



The rubber trim around the windshield is primarily just a trim piece to cover the edges of the windshield glass, the sealer, and the ugly seam between the glass and the windshield frame, however if water gets under the rubber trim, it can become trapped there and begin to cause rust around the edges of the windshield frame.



An auto-glass company can better judge if there is a potential problem, and it's not a major task or expense for an auto-glass shop to remove the old rubber trim around the windshield and replace it if needed....that would be my choice.



...Rich