How to avoid window leaks/headliner staining on a Prewar car

[CarNucopia]

About 8 years ago, I decided I wanted to buy a late '30s GM car to do some touring. My target model was a '38 Buick Century, but I ended up finding a 26K-mile original 1939 LaSalle sedan. 

 

During my search, I noticed most of the cars from this era seemed to have water staining on the headliner, presumably from water leaking at the windows. My car is a survivor and it has taken me a few years to get past the notion I needed to pamper it to preserve the low miles. Now that I'm getting it ready for so real drives next year, I want to prevent any avoidable damage of the original parts.

 

Any advice on how best to protect the headliner?

 

Thanks

[28 Chrysler]

Some of the cars from that time period used a tar like sealer that would crack and fall apart.

Your rear window and 1/4 windows may have this, if the 1/4s open like the front wing vents check the rubber seal.

The wind-lace around the doors can also leak after 80+ years.

Close the doors on a $20 and it should not slide right out. Anywhere it pulls out easy there is a chance for a leak.

[5219]

Good looking LaSalle! I own a 1940. They are great cars. The rear window and the windshield are the most common places for leaks that stain headliners. If you don't already have stains there, I would guess that you are not leaking. The fellow up above this post is right that you need to look closely at your rubber gaskets, paying particular attention to the rear window and the windshield. If the gaskets appear shrunken and dried out, there can be a problem. They have all been reproduced, so they are available, but pricey. For the fixed windows, Permatex puts out  a silicone gasket sealer that comes out of the tube in a flowable, liquid state. It might be a good idea to try some of this on your fixed glass.

 

Good Luck!

[nat]

On 10/28/2023 at 5:59 PM, 28 Chrysler said:

Close the doors on a $20 and it should not slide right out.

     A $1 bill will work for Fords and Chevys.  

     Will two $10s work on a LaSalle?

[28 Chrysler]

5 hours ago, nat said:

     A $1 bill will work for Fords and Chevys.  

     Will two $10s work on a LaSalle?

If not fold them in half the long way.

[Stude Light]

On my 1939 LaSalle, I bought new front and rear window seals from Steele Rubber and installed them per instructions using the 3M window bedding compound between the seal and the body. I figured the new pliable rubber would would seal to everything and never followed up with the clear "rubber cement" that was recommended. After the installation I found that there were two leak paths, particularly around the rear window. The first was between the rubber window gasket and the glass itself - where it fit in the channel. The second was between the stainless steel molding that goes over the pinchweld and the body. After applying the clear sealant to these areas all my problems were solved. I'll post a photo of the stuff the next chance I get.

 

I used a syringe and needle from the farm store to apply the sealant under the lip of the rubber by grinding the end of the needle smooth and bending it slightly to form a curve. After filling the syringe, I placed the bent needle under the rubber lip and walked it around the lip (with the tip of the needle trailing so it couldn't catch) while depressing the syringe and just used mineral spirits to clean any excess.

 

Other than the windows there is really no leak path to your headliner unless there is a hole in your steel roof.

Great driving cars!!

[Stude Light]

This is the product to which I referred above

[Jack Bennett]

For the past year one of my reanimation projects has been a 1951 Plymouth Cambridge.

This car has been a lesson on how a car should not be built.

I love the power train, and the engine is the redeeming quality to make the construction of the car something other than a complete disaster.

The car was gutted, not a salvageable piece of cloth was left, the floor boards were rotted out and the trunk floor could be used as a sieve.

The windows were delaminating and the windshield had swelled and cracked into a million pieces.

And, the rubber seals around the doors, hood and trunk were either missing or rock hard, and window seals were all gone.

All that remained of a headliner was the memory there ever was one, and a few shards of stained and rotted cloth behind the attaching hardware.

But, this wasn’t totally due to leakage around windows. 
Rather, the car has a lot of chrome trim, most especially around the areas where the top is attached to the body. This chrome is attached using wire pins, compressed and inserted into holes which penetrates the body skin and opens a direct route for water to enter the car.

In nearly every instance these holes are drilled in a place which situates them directly above a area which collects and holds the water inside the body.

This pooled water was trapped inside the closed car, eventually saturated every piece of upholstery and the cotton padding they used to flesh it out.

Every time it got warmer inside the car than outside, the water evaporated and rose to saturate the headliner, and the heavy cotton padding behind it.

And then, when the interior of the car cooled, the water condensed back into a liquid and was leaked elsewhere inside the car to start a new pool, and to perpetuate the water damage problem. 
In the 1951 Plymouth, this problem is so pronounced that it actually allowed rust holes to form in the roof and inside the seam where the roof is attached to the body.

useless poop? Sure………unless you are restoring a shoebox or bathtub car and aren’t aware the defect exists. The absence of that knowledge, and a single rusted seam will eventually cause your new upholstery to fail.

Jack

[Jack Bennett]

On 10/28/2023 at 2:59 PM, 28 Chrysler said:

Some of the cars from that time period used a tar like sealer that would crack and fall apart.

Your rear window and 1/4 windows may have this, if the 1/4s open like the front wing vents check the rubber seal.

The wind-lace around the doors can also leak after 80+ years.

Close the doors on a $20 and it should not slide right out. Anywhere it pulls out easy there is a chance for a leak.

On my 1951 Plymouth I use a quarter on the side windows and a half dollar coin on the vents. A broomstick works well to check clearance around doors.

Jack

 

[CarNucopia]

On 11/5/2023 at 9:57 AM, Stude Light said:

This is the product to which I referred above

 

Thanks everyone for the tips. Your car looks beautiful @Stude Light. I’ll pick up some of the product you used and seal some of the small openings. Below is a picture of my rubber trim, which looks to have aged well. Hopefully, its as sound as it appears. I’ve been afraid to even wash the car for fear of leaks, 

[mrspeedyt]

My 40 LaSalle sedan did have a hole in the roof... (factory sliding steel sunroof) but it didn't leak which was amazing to me! Even the other window seals and rubber seemed to survive even though the car came from Abilene Texas and I had it in northern Arizona. I had the car for about 20 years. 

Edited November 6, 2023 by mrspeedyt
the silicone sealer I will use when I replace some bad glass and the interior in my 41 Cadillac. (see edit history)

[Stude Light]

@mrspeedyt. Looking at your signature - I thought the HAL2000 was an early prototype that was quickly replaced by the HAL9000 system.