Roof Seal Squeaking!

["Stian Birkeland" <delorean@xxxx>]

Last summer I replaced my roof seals. It was quite a job, had to drill out the rivets, remove the T-panel and install the new roof seals on the stainless rails. I've heard that the function of the roof seals are quite limited since the DeLorean has a good drain channel, but still I'd like it to have the perfect look, so I want those roof seals in place.

My problems with the roof seals are as follows: The driver's door is slower in opening since the roof seal is "sticking" making it difficult for the door to open. At the same time this makes a terrible squeaking noise! The passenger door is fine however. Yes, the struts are new and torsion bars adjusted. This is simply a case of an annoying roof seal.

Of course the problem had to be on the driver's door which is the door you use the most (read: Murphy's law)

I tried to use some kind of oil on the roof seal in order to get it more slippery and not sticking, but no luck. 

I finally decided to remove the roof seal on the driver's door and install a new one. 

Still, I wanted to find out where the squeaking noise came from. By using a razor blade I started to cut the roof seal (it will be replaced anyway) and I found out that the the roof seal had trouble in bending, resulting in the squeaking, irritating noise. The exact place was at the very end of the roof seal (towards the rear of the car). This is the area where there are two bolts for the hinges and the wire loom that enters the roof.

I'm puzzled as to why this happened on this roof seal and not on the passenger side!
Still, I might have installed them different when I did it.

The roof seal itself is shaped like a "U", and last time I changed the roof seal I might have placed it upside-down. Could this explain the squeaking noise? My guess is the the "U" is to function as a drain canal, is this right? Or is this suppose to be the other way around (perhaps making the bending of the roof seal easier when opening the door?)

I really need help on this one since I cannot see (on the passenger side) which way the "U" is supposed to be. Right now both sides look very flat on top. So - will the "U" face upwards (drain canal) or downwards?

And one more question - I have lots of trouble with my T-panel. It just won't hold down. 
I have tried with lots of silicone and pressure on top, and 24hrs curing, but after driving the panel always rises to a hunchback look. What can be done to correct this???

Best wishes
Stian Birkeland
Norway

VIN # 06759



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