Water Diverter Fix
02-22-2016, 08:24 PM
#1
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: 09-14-2015
Location: Peck, MI
Posts: 74
Water Diverter Fix
The last couple of weeks in Michigan we had snow, cold weather, and sunny days. This "combination" created an issue when I tried to open my doors after the car was sitting outside at work. I heard a nasty "crunching" noise at the bottom front of the door, and I thought I was going to break something when I tried to open them. That's when I saw the huge ice dam at the bottom of the door jam. I've never had this problem on any other vehicle I've owned. I did some searching on here and see a few others have as well. Once the weather warmed up, this is how I solved the problem.
I bought some plastic "surface mount" electrical wiring conduit. There are many types and more than one shape might work. I bought the square style, and it already has the two sided foam adhesive on the back.
Cut it to length, I made it extend just past the rubber window channel to make sure it catches all the water. I then cut the channel in half, resulting in a "J" shape. As I type this, another option that comes to mind would be vinyl siding "J" channel, but you'd need to add the double sided foam tape.
So that it can "tuck" inside the fender opening, I split the end to allow it to be narrower.
Along the body where the channel goes, there is a indent, so I added a little extra piece of double sided foam tape to help pull the channel in and fill the extra space (you can see it in the photos, it's that short black spot about half way down the channel) and used a heat gun to get it to follow the contour.
Hopefully these photos will show you what it looks like and explain what I did. I tested it by pouring water on the roof, seems to work like a charm, redirecting the water further up the fender. It really surprises me that GM didn't make a nice plastic part (formed to the contours of the frame) to do the same thing.
I bought some plastic "surface mount" electrical wiring conduit. There are many types and more than one shape might work. I bought the square style, and it already has the two sided foam adhesive on the back.
Cut it to length, I made it extend just past the rubber window channel to make sure it catches all the water. I then cut the channel in half, resulting in a "J" shape. As I type this, another option that comes to mind would be vinyl siding "J" channel, but you'd need to add the double sided foam tape.
So that it can "tuck" inside the fender opening, I split the end to allow it to be narrower.
Along the body where the channel goes, there is a indent, so I added a little extra piece of double sided foam tape to help pull the channel in and fill the extra space (you can see it in the photos, it's that short black spot about half way down the channel) and used a heat gun to get it to follow the contour.
Hopefully these photos will show you what it looks like and explain what I did. I tested it by pouring water on the roof, seems to work like a charm, redirecting the water further up the fender. It really surprises me that GM didn't make a nice plastic part (formed to the contours of the frame) to do the same thing.
02-23-2016, 08:35 AM
#3
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: 09-14-2015
Location: Peck, MI
Posts: 74
Yeah, pretty much, lol.
The idea isn't "new", some other members had similar solutions, but what might be a little different here is the material used. Since the area where the diverter has to travel isn't nice and flat, that's where the plastic helps because it can be persuaded to follow the contour (and even more with careful use of a heat gun!). And as I mentioned earlier, another product that would work is "J-Channel" used in conjunction with vinyl siding material for housing.
The idea isn't "new", some other members had similar solutions, but what might be a little different here is the material used. Since the area where the diverter has to travel isn't nice and flat, that's where the plastic helps because it can be persuaded to follow the contour (and even more with careful use of a heat gun!). And as I mentioned earlier, another product that would work is "J-Channel" used in conjunction with vinyl siding material for housing.
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