380 sl boot seal

[ttownchief]

I need to replace the boot seal and am not sure how to get the old one out and new one in. Can anyone help

[donbryce]

Well, you just undo the laces and.....If you mean the trunk lid seal, it's a press fit in the channel, and I think glued in place with MB cement, which can be substituted with 3M or contact cement. If you mean the soft-top cover/lid seal, that's also a press-fit into the channel. I haven't replaced my trunk lid seal, so I'm speculating a bit, but I did replace the top lid seal. It was aftermarket, not Mercedes, and was NOT a good fit, and the cloth covering on the ends wore off in weeks.

[ctaylor738]

This is a job that is harder than it looks. I have seen more of these done wrong than right. My advice:

- find an original car so you can see how the seal goes in the different areas, note how it curls over along the sides.
- get a real Mercdes seal
- be prepared to fix rust in the channel
- remove every scrap of the old seal and adhesive
- use Wurth Rubber Cement
- remove the boot (trunk) lid
- practice fitting it before you apply the adhesive because you have very little time to position the seal when you put it in for real
- work in two-foot sections

[ttownchief]

Thanks, I also tried a replacement seal and it was horrible. Ordered OEM and it is much softer, now waiting on weather seal cement from Wurth.