I just installed all 3 new BD seals this past weekend.  My van looks and
seals up great!
  I can attest to the fact that no requirement for glue, the obviously
high-quality EPDM bulb seal that fits and looks excellent (and should last
the life of the van), lack of steel insert clip, plus the ease of
installation, makes this choice a hands-down winner in my book.  If you need
top seals, get the complete kit, like I did.  You won't be sorry.  Thanks,
Ron!

Mike B.

----- Original Message -----
From: "The Bus Depot" <vanagon@BUSDEPOT.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 9:43 AM
Subject: Re: Pop Top Seal Differences

>> Anybody had experience using both Bus Depot
>> and Van Cafe type seals?  BD uses no glue,
>> while VC comes with glue.  I remember years
>> ago replacing one and using the glue.  No big
>> deal and seem to look fine after.  Both are the
>> same price.  Here in AZ  the sun kills everything
>> so I expect the rubber to take a beating in this sun.
>> Anybody able to compare from expeirience?
>
>
>
> Since nobody else has chimed in, I can present my dissertation on poptop
> seals. They were the Bus Depot's first product, and I know them well
> because
> I designed them myself after finding the other aftermarket alternatives
> lacking.
>
> Most other suppliers use the same off-the-shelf generic weatherstripping
> for
> the poptop seal, the luggage rack seal, and even (in most cases) the seal
> that goes between the two. This saves them money, but the product was
> never
> designed for VW poptops and is not optimal for that use. All three of my
> seals are different, and specialized for their jobs. None of them is an
> off-the-shelf generic product.
>
> Poptop seal:  The others have a textured finish that looks different from
> stock. Mine has a smoother, closer-to-stock finish.  The precise location
> of
> the insulation bulb is also different. Mine is a bit closer to the
> location
> of the insulation flap on the original VW seal. This better insulates your
> van to prevent heat loss (or water reaching the canvas in torrential
> rain).
>
> Flat seal (between poptop and luggage rack):  Most other suppliers just
> send
> along a second piece of the same generic weatherstrip, which is absolutely
> nothing like the original flat seal that VW used.  Those that do use a
> closer-to-stock seal, have one that lacks an aluminum clip, so it has to
> be
> glued to your poptop.  Ours has the correct profile, but uses an
> impregnated
> aluminum clip, so it just pushes into place like the other seals. This
> design is exclusive to us, and means that no glue is required to install
> any
> part of the Bus Depot poptop seal kit.
>
> Luggage Rack seal: The other suppliers simply include yet another piece of
> the same generic weatherstripping they use for the poptop, which has an
> insulation bulb. If you look at an original Westfalia luggage rack seal,
> you'll find that it has no insulation bulb. That is an intentional
> omission,
> as such a bulb can trap rain water between the luggage rack and the roof
> (causing rust on your roof). Look at the cavity of your luggage rack and
> you'll see drip holes that allow rain water to flow through the luggage
> rack
> onto the roof, rather than collecting inside the luggage rack. That water
> then flows off the sides of the roof (since it is curved) into the rain
> gutters. If you put a bulbed seal on your luggage rack, it seals up the
> gap
> between the luggage rack and the rain gutter, preventing this drainage.
> My
> seal lacks the bulb for this reason. As a side benefit, this allows you to
> install the seal without having to loosen or remove the luggage rack
> (which
> saves you a tremendous amount of time/hassle).  The only case where you
> will
> need an insulation bulb on the luggage rack is if your luggage rack is
> slightly loose, and you get wind noise. In that case (quite rare), we do
> offer a bulbed seal as an option, but strongly recommend that you notch
> the
> bulb on the sides of the luggage rack. Of course, installing that seal
> will
> require loosening the luggage rack (as is required with the other vendors'
> luggage rack seals).  I don't recommend using this bulbed seal unless you
> absolutely have to. 99% of the time, the correct non-bulbed seal will work
> perfectly fine, avoid having to loosen your luggage rack, and provide
> maximum rain water drainage as VW intended.
>
> There is no significant difference between the actual rubber used on the
> various aftermarket seals, so in terms of longevity they will all do about
> the same (which is to say, quite well).
>
> Links:
>
> <http://busdepot.com/view.jsp?model=43&category=47&group=94&prodgroup=-1>
>
> <http://busdepot.com/details/canvas.jsp#seals>
>
>
> - Ron Salmon
>  The Bus Depot, Inc.
>  www.busdepot.com
>  (215)  234-VWVW
>
> _____________________________________________
> Toll-Free for Orders by PART # :  1-866-BUS-DEPOT