I had to replace the window runs because they were old, cracked and basically falling apart. The first thing you need to determine is which kind you need to replace yours with. You basically have two different choices for replacing your window runs and you can choose between aftermarket or Original GM replacements. The first thing you need to determine is if your car came with the deluxe chrome decor package. If you have the deluxe chrome decor package installed on your car, then you will have a wide chrome strip that runs along the top of your door all the way to the front of the door and also on the top edge of the front fenders, and across the back edge of the hood like shown below in the photo on the left.
With chrome decor package |
Without chrome decor package |
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Now, if you have a chrome strip along the top of your door that runs along the top edge of the door and stops at about the rear view mirror, then your car did not come with the chrome decor package. Most (if not all) Special Edition and Anniversary Trans Am did not come with the chrome decor package. So, when you go to place an order for new Windowfelt window sweeps, you need to order the correct ones. So, if you have a car with the chrome decor package, then you need to order the replacement window sweeps WITHOUT the chrome bead (because the chrome bead on your car is actually attached to the door and not the window sweeps). Now, if your car did not come with the chrome decor package, then you need to order the replacement window sweeps WITH the chrome bead. Now, when you order it with the chrome bead, you do have two different choices. The original molding that is on your car was a thin round chrome bead. So, you can replace your window sweeps with original GM (at about $150 a set), or you can purchase the aftermarket which has a thin flat chrome bead (at about $75 a set). So it is your choice o what to replace your sweeps with (photos shown below).
Original GM chrome bead (round) |
Aftermarket chrome bead (flat) |
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Ok, now that you have determined which one you needed to order, lets get moving. This project was a little tedious to perform (frustrating is another word for tedious). This job seems easy to do, but working with those little staples was a chore at times. I started by taking the door apart starting 
with the interior. There isn't much that you have to remove to get the interior door panel off. You have to remove the door cup, door handle, and door lock (if you have a control for the rearview mirror, then you have to remove that as well), but you don't have to remove
the door Firebird emblem or the power door lock switch. The power door lock switch simply unplugs from the back. Once these items are removed you can carefully remove the door panel by prying it away from the door around the sides and bottom, then lift the panel up and away from the door. Make sure you unplug the power door lock switch from the door. The water shield will also need to be removed. Once you have the door apart, there are basically two sections you have to do. The first one is the outer door window runs. There are 6 screws that hold this one in place. To get to all of them you need to drop the window out of the way. There is one bolt that holds the window stop in place. It has a rubber stopper on it that stops the window so that it doesn't go down too far. Remove this and roll down the window all the way so that you can get to all of the retainer screws. There are also three guides that allow the window to rise and lower in a straight fashion. You may need to move these out of the way as well in order to remove all of the retainer screws. Once these are removed, you can place the new run in place and reverse you steps that you did to take them out. If you needed to move the guides, place them back and roll the window back up and put the window stop back in place. Now the second part is the interior window runs. These are held in place by heavy duty staples (yes, not as easy to work with like the screws on the outer door). There are 6 or 7 staples that you need to remove to take off the inner run. You must be careful not to rip any of the door panel or break the door panel (this is made of a plastic material that can break real easy if you are not careful. Once all of the staples are carefully removed, place the new run in place and see if the new holes for the staples line up 
with the ones that were just removed. If not, the kit comes with a small drill bit and new staples so that you can drill new pilot holes for them (I had to drill new ones). Drill the holes, place the new staples in place and bend them in to hold on the new window run. Once that is complete, you can start to put everything back together. The kit also comes with new felt pieces to replace any worn pieces. The window guides that I mentioned earlier have this felt on them. It doesn't hurt to replace them all anyway. Also as long as you have the door panel off, you might as well replace those old door clips that hold the panel in place around the sides and bottom of the door panel. They are inexpensive enough to replace all of them. Also, another easy and inexpensive thing to replace as long as the door is apart is the water shield. These can be ordered separately or you can just go down to the local auto parts store and make your own. Make sure that you plug back in the power door locks before you put the panels back into place.
