All Weather 280Z28

[Phantom]

Been absolutely paranoid about this but drove the 280Z28 to work in the rain this morning.

Here are the things that did not happen:

1) I never got the car sideways

2) The notoriously leaky windshield - didn't

3) Oops - the rear hatch defogger didn't work. Oh well, there's always something.

Here are the things that did happen:

1) The wipers worked fine on intermittant & low. Tested them successfully on high but never had to leave them there.

2) The windshield defrost worked great - maybe too well - and the climate control system cycled through all its different modes flawlessly.

3) The crappy Yokohama S306's stayed hooked up and actually delivered credible wet weather performance. Hope the Kumho Ecstas are as good in the wet.

[RPMS]

Whoa, you are my idol. After all the rust abatement, I'm scared spitless to even get the car wet, much less drive it in the rain. Binswanger did a miserable job putting in the windshield, and it leaks like a sieve. I'm sure the door glass isn't watertight, and I'm not even sure about the cowl! I'm getting disgusted with myself for letting this get to me, though. I think the next chance I get, I'm going to strip out the carpet, remove the door panels (for inspection purposes) and have someone hose the car down while I plug leaks.

[jeromio]

My car is not rain compatible.

 

Wipers, terrible. Defrost, nonexistent. Handling, terrifying. Floorboards, puddle.

 

I suspect that my car has some rear toe issues, leading to the white-knuckle effect.

 

I don't know why it leaks so bad. I completely re-did the fresh air thing in the cowl. I guess it's the windshield gasket. But a good rain will put 2 inches of water in the passenger side footwell in less than an hour. I can't really see where it comes in from. Frustrating.

 

So, I just don't drive the car in the rain.

[CruxGNZ]

I can't really see where it comes in from. Frustrating.

 

I just had a quick thought. Art/craft supply stores have little colored tablets that disolve in water. You can place these at certain points on your car. Then take a garden hose and just mist your car down for a little bit. What ever color ends up in the footwell will tell you were to look to find a leak. But if the color in the footwell is black, then I guess it's coming from everywhere .

 

Just a thought.

 

!M!

[Tim240z]

My car is not rain compatible.

 

 

So' date=' I just don't drive the car in the rain.[/quote']

 

Me too...I have an OptiSpark distributor

 

Tim

[Phantom]

Scott,

I had Binswanger do mine too and it leaked the first time - between the glass & the seal - like a sieve. Took it back & said "fix it". They used a sealant between the seal & the glass on the outside and so far no leaks. We'll see after a few months.

Tim.

So is Optispark made by Lucas?

[wheelman]

Jeromio,

 

Have you checked the drain hoses from the cavity right at the base of the windshield that provides outside air to the heating system? There are hoses that drain that area, they are routed behind the firewall through the cabin and out behind the fender on each side.

 

They are very hard to see but it sounds like the one on your right side is loose or has a hole in it. If this is the case it would definitely drain a bunch of water into the footwell very quickly.

 

I cut through my right hand one while removing a chunk of the firewall to get rid of rust. I need to pull it off and either replace or repair it. I plan on using some standard silicone sealant to try fixing it and then replace it if that doesn't work.

 

Anyway just thought it was something else to check.

 

Wheelman

[jeromio]

The cowl drain is part of what I was talking about. I mean, it is of course possible that I did a crappy job, but I took everything apart and sealed it all up. I filled that under the cowl area with water before putting it all back together and it didn't leak

 

But, yeah, it's leaking from somewhere...