What's the purpose of windlace?

[chevynut]

I guess I never thought about it, but why do cars use windlace? There's already a weatherstrip to seal the doors, so why do you need windlace? When did they stop using it and why?

[chevynut]

This sure looks clean...

[MP&C]

Nice!

[chevynut]

If I would have thought you could eliminate the windlace like that I would have tried to do it with my door panels. At this point I'm not sure it's worth messing with.

[carls 56 (RIP 11/24/2021)]

never thought about it, but your right (never thought I would say that ). windlace purpose is just for looks, it hides the gaps.

[rockytopper R.I.P 5-13-2017]

If I would have thought you could eliminate the windlace like that I would have tried to do it with my door panels. At this point I'm not sure it's worth messing with.

Looks like you are going to have to scrap them to get perfection. No worries I'll make good use of them for you they want go to waste LOL. They will fit a 55 also........

[WagonCrazy]

1. supposed to stop the leaking wind
2. covers the gaps
3. stops the sound and draft of wind leaking thru the rubber seals at speed

My wagon (even with newer seals) leaks all over. The vent window seals leak at high speeds, the fresh air duct butterfly valves leak at high speeds, the doors leak. No wonder my AC barely cools the cabin in summer!.

Purely a design carryover from many early years of car building,and I may be wrong but I’m assuming Chevrolet and others discontinued it in the early 60’s sometime. Do Impalas have it?

[chevynut]

The weatherstrip stops the wind and leaks. I agree with covering the [ugly] gaps, but you can do that in the way they did it in the pic above. I can't see windlace stopping any leaks or wind, or very little of it.

Here's something I found...

http://webpages.charter.net/mannings/windlace.htm

"The purpose of windlace is to hide gaps. That’s right, it’s purely cosmetic. Take a look around and you’ll see windlace at work in a variety of applications. In restaurants it hides the gaps between the booths. In boats it hides the gap between the seats and the side of the boat. In cars it hides the same gaps that it hides in aircraft, the gap between the interior trim panel and the surface to which they attach, and the gap between the door and doorframe.

If it doesn’t keep out the weather, rain, or wind, why do they call it "wind" lace? Upholstery techniques were first applied to furniture. Then, as the automobile matured, furniture upholstery techniques were applied to auto interiors. Eventually, automotive upholstery evolved into a separate discipline. As aircraft developed, their upholstery needs were more closely related to automotive upholstery techniques than furniture techniques. The adoption of automotive upholstery techniques to aircraft applications is where we find the answer.


In the early days of coach building some auto bodies were made of wood, and even more had wooden frames covered with sheet metal. Windows were installed in these auto bodies in about the same way windows were installed in houses. The wooden frame was recessed to accept the glass, and wooden slats were installed to hold the glass in place.


When it came time to install the upholstery, the material was tacked to the wooden framework. Where the material met the window, it was tacked to the slats that held the window in place. As you might imagine, the raw edge of the material with a bunch of tacks showing looked rather crude. To put a pretty face on this ugly situation they attached a narrow strip of decorative material, known as lace, on top of the tacks. This lace covered the tack heads and the raw edge of the material, and became commonly referred to as window lace.


As time went on, window lace became known as windlace. The building of automotive bodies continued to evolve. The wood was replaced with metal and the area around the window now had a metal molding. The gap between the window and the molding was filled with an oversized, spongy welt. This new technique retained the old name, "windlace." The evolution of interior techniques continued, and eventually windlace was used to finish the edges around the door openings too. At this point we have a term, and a technique, that has no obvious connection to its origin, or current application.
As manufacturing processes improved, and interior fashion changed, the perceived need for windlace has been reduced. Some of today’s aircraft, as well as most modern cars, have no trace of windlace."

[Olderthandirt]

C.A.R.S. Inc. shows a list for windlace up to 1967 Impalla's, up to 64 Belairs & up to 72 chevelle's.

[Mike56]

The car looks sleeker without the wind lace. Thanks for the history on wind lace. The seats in the picture of the yellow/ white car interest me. They sit low and I'm tall, looks like a good option. Do you have any information?