Repro hatch hinge boots...

http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/34-2236

just saw them too. I know a few people have been waiting for these.

Embarrassed to say I did not even know there was such a thing :x

I'll have to check if mine are still intact when I get home...

You would probably have to remove the hatch hinges to check. You would know they were shot if you had water raining in from the dome light finisher.

It is probably a good idea to replace them during a repaint though. Cheap insurance from having to realign the hatch down the road.

John

Wow, I didn't even know about these.

I looked around the hatch hinges on my '78 and didn't see anything like them at all. I've never had a problem with water leaking into the hatch area or through the dome light finisher.

Should they be pretty easy to see when the hatch is open?

It looks like these fit in the recessed areas behind the hinges and secured to the body by the two mounting bolts on each side. Is that correct? I assume the hatch has to removed to install these.

Even though it looks like they would fit pretty snugly, do they need to be further secured with any type of adhesive?

Other than the hinges and cutout/recessed areas of the roof, do they protect any other areas from water, etc?

After stripping more than a dozen S30s I have found that the hatch hinge boot becomes hard and or painted over. When this happens you are unlikely to notice that they are there at all. You really have to go looking for them. With some luck and patience you can pry them out. That has worked 4 out of 12 times.

After stripping more than a dozen S30s I have found that the hatch hinge boot becomes hard and or painted over.

This brings up an interesting restoration question. Were the boots painted originally, or were the hinges and hatch installed after painting, leaving the boots unpainted from the factory? Nice to know if one were to go to the trouble of buying and installing these boots.

Boots and hinges were installed and adjusted before final paint. Mine had original paint on the tiny bit that protruded from under the hinge.

They are also supposed to have a thin metal plate attached to the face of the rubber boot. That helps hold the boot flanges up and in place.

E

Great, just spent about 5 hours cleaning and cleaning cleaning two of the four I had, I would easily bought new ones. , Richard.

Thanks for the info Arne!! Just my luck, I just place a big dollar order for parts with MotorSport as I am (finally) prepping my 260Z for a very thorough paint job.