Grommets seal the numerous holes in the bulkhead, floor, and inner wings through which wiring, cables, pipes, and control linkages pass. These rubber components are easily overlooked during restoration, but deteriorated grommets allow water, draughts, engine fumes, and road noise into the cockpit, all of which undermine the comfort and weatherproofing that other, more expensive work has been done to improve.
Grommet Range
Grommets are available covering all the apertures in the Midget bulkhead and floor. Key items include the steering column grommet (which seals the large aperture where the column passes through the bulkhead), the heater cable grommet, the wiring loom pass-through grommets (typically two or three on each side of the bulkhead), the speedometer cable grommet, and the clutch and brake pipe grommets. Rubber blanking plugs in several standard sizes seal unused holes, particularly important on later cars where holes from earlier specifications may have been drilled but are no longer used.
Grommets Fitting
When fitting new grommets, the hole edge should be clean and free from sharp burrs that would cut into the rubber. A thin smear of rubber lubricant helps the grommet seat fully into its hole. All grommets should be renewed whenever the interior is stripped for retrimming, the marginal cost is negligible compared to the improvement in cabin sealing.