I just replaced the passenger side moulding/garnish. Overall it wasn’t a hard job, but it did require some work. And a TON of prep to clean out the old sealant and stuck on 3M tape. The existing pieces had 3M tape along the A pillar, which made removal extra tough, I bent up the moulding. I’m not sure running a bead of sealant or tape along the A pillar is necessary. I don’t think that is how Toyota installed these from the factory. Just 4 rivets and the 8” section of tape to hold the wider roof channel piece down.
The existing pieces were riveted in, but with non-OEM aluminum rivets. Each A-pillar hole measured out to ~4mm, so the Toyota rivets I ordered didn’t work. Too small, no grip. Damn!
My Home Depot only stocked 3 and 5mm aluminum rivets so I had no choice but to go with the 5mm. I could have looked elsewhere for 4mm, but didn’t. As a result, I had to open up the A pillar holes a tiny bit, as only one of them would let the larger rivets fit. After drilling new holes—something I didn’t want to do—I coated each rivet in RTV, and put a thin layer of RTV around each of the holes.
2 of the 4 rivets went in perfectly. The other two mandrels snapped halfway and I was left with this:
If this happens to you, don’t worry. You can push the too long of mandrel back through, and the rivet will still hold. Thankfully I was able to do that and avoid having to attempt to cut them off flush.
Finished work…
Final thoughts…when installing new moulding, use the rivets and holes to fit and align the new one prior to taping down the top section at the roof channel. It can be a little tricky to get all 4 holes lined up—take your time.
I also opted for a thin layer of RTV around each rivet hole on the A pillar surface and then again over each installed rivet head after installation for added water proofing.
The existing pieces were riveted in, but with non-OEM aluminum rivets. Each A-pillar hole measured out to ~4mm, so the Toyota rivets I ordered didn’t work. Too small, no grip. Damn!
My Home Depot only stocked 3 and 5mm aluminum rivets so I had no choice but to go with the 5mm. I could have looked elsewhere for 4mm, but didn’t. As a result, I had to open up the A pillar holes a tiny bit, as only one of them would let the larger rivets fit. After drilling new holes—something I didn’t want to do—I coated each rivet in RTV, and put a thin layer of RTV around each of the holes.
2 of the 4 rivets went in perfectly. The other two mandrels snapped halfway and I was left with this:
If this happens to you, don’t worry. You can push the too long of mandrel back through, and the rivet will still hold. Thankfully I was able to do that and avoid having to attempt to cut them off flush.
Finished work…
Final thoughts…when installing new moulding, use the rivets and holes to fit and align the new one prior to taping down the top section at the roof channel. It can be a little tricky to get all 4 holes lined up—take your time.
I also opted for a thin layer of RTV around each rivet hole on the A pillar surface and then again over each installed rivet head after installation for added water proofing.
