Door weatherstrip

[_Ogre]

Originally Posted by 57chevyman

the cowl vent is the thing in front of the windshield between the windshield and the hood? just trying the understand , the water that goes in that area is supposed to drain to the sides and out the bottom, but the area behind the kick panel can get clogged up and prevent drainage?

yes, the cowl vent is in between the wiper bezels.
roger55's pics show good detail of the places leaves and crud gather and cause rust
(nice repair work also roger55)

you can see the gutter that collects crud and rusts out
then crud falls on top of the vent housing rusting out the top of the vent
and finally it falls down and plugs the drain rusting out the firewall, floor and seam
what his repair didn't show was pin holes that happen in the top of the standing seam on the firewall

my truk was parked under pine trees for a year before i was able to pick it up after moving to michigan
the whole area was full of needles that started on fire when i plasma cut the vent doors out

this pic shows many of the spots that rust thru from cowl vent rain getting in there
his truck is actually not bad i had a lot more rust at the bottom and on top of the vent door duct



thus is why i shaved the cowl vent, i also added ac and didn't need the kick vents
i also shaved the standing seam on the firewall, it had no rust thru but many thin spots

[roger55]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

...what his repair didn't show was pin holes that happen in the top of the standing seam on the firewall...

Mine didn't have any pin holes at the seams. Just some small holes at the gutter and down low under the vent hole where the leaves collect.

With the covers off, I was able to get my blaster nozzle inside and up and get the seamed areas. I also got the nozzle inside from above through the openings at the base of the windshield.
I then used seam sealer and my finger to get in there along the seams from the top and from the under side. It's tricky but it all can be reached. Some of it just by feel though.
I got in there with a small brush to get epoxy primer to it all too.

I have A/C but I don't like to use it unless it's unbearably hot out. So most of the time I like to ride around with the windows and fresh air vents open.