cygnusx1 Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 I removed my rear hatch finisher panel and put a heavy clear plastic sheet "glued" in place with weatherstrip sealer. I then put the finisher panel back on. I replaced all the rear tail light gaskets. I got under the car and the insides of the rear quarter panels do have some holes in them. I plugged any I could find. There was also a rubber plug inside the lower driver side quarter that I removed and reinstalled with sealer. With the windows shut, I get NO fumes. If I open the windows, I get fumes. With the fan set to 3, and the windows half open, I can manage to keep enough fresh air coming in so I don't smell fumes. With only one window open, the fumes are much worse. I don't think that there is a perfect solution. Somehow, the cabin needs to be pressurized so that the fumes don't come in. Maybe a scoop on the valence in front of the windshield. I did have a CO2 meter in the car with me once and I measured some pretty high levels with both windows wide open. Especially when coasting downhill. I don't remember the numbers off hand. You think Nissan will fix this under warranty or recall? LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 John, what was it that was cracked on the top of my tank? It was on top of the vent can in the rear 1/4 panel. There's a small tube brazed onto the top of it that's the beginning of the main vent line going forward to the block vent pipe in the engine compartment. It had been bent down and had a small crack at the base where its brazed to the can itself. If I open the windows, I get fumes. With the fan set to 3, and the windows half open, I can manage to keep enough fresh air coming in so I don't smell fumes. With only one window open, the fumes are much worse. $10 says its the inner rear hatch seal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 $10 says I go home tonight and slip a piece of paper in the hatch seal to check it! I will try the grease trick also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedNeckZ Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 I also had the problem with fumes. But it came from the gear shifter. It was missing the inner boot and the outer boot wasn't any better. I replaced both and it fixed it for while. Now the rear hatch seal needs replacing. I am replacing it when we do the new paint job. Hope this helps some, Rich. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 John, can you elaborate on this grease trick? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 I have always thought that setting off a smoke pellet inside the car with all the windows closed and walk around and see where the smoke is coming out of the holes and gaslets in the car, and seal them up. I watched a show on weatherstripping your house and they did this in a different way. They put a big fan in the house to pressurize it, then they used a stick of incense around the windows and doors. Anywhere there was a leak, the smoke from the incense would go straight for it. You might be able to do this with the normal fan in the car, or maybe a slightly larger house fan. Can't be too big I suppose. Anyway, just a thought and probably would be a lot less stinky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 John, can you elaborate on this grease trick? I don't know what more I can say. What's unclear? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Just wanna make sure we are on the same page, you just smear grease on the inner hatch panel, close the hatch and tell where the grease wasnt moved? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 We're not on the same page... Inner Hatch Seal 1. Clean the inner hatch seal mating surface on the underside of the hatch. 2. Clean the inner hatch seal (the inside seal on the body of the car). 3. Put a thin layer of grease on the top surface of the inner hatch seal (the inside seal on the body of the car). 4. Shut the hatch. 5. Opened the hatch and looked at the line of grease on the hatch sealing surface (the underside of the hatch). Anywhere the line is less the 1/4" thick is a place where the inner hatch seal is not contacting properly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Not all grease is compatable with rubber. Not that it will be a problem if you wipe it clean quickly. I will be using silicone grease to try this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Ok i understand alot better now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 71ZZZZZ Posted August 4, 2005 Share Posted August 4, 2005 Hey there! Not really a Z noob but new to this site...nice place you have here. I'm in the process of bringing my '71 out of drydock after many years looking forward to getting 'er roadready... Lot's of good information in this thread but I didn't see a couple of things. You're right about the aerodynamics of the Z being the biggest culprit... I bought some parts off a guy who built a scale model of one and put it in a flow tank and took pictures. Things are really messy in front under the chin and at the rear valence. There's pressure created around the body and if the exhaust is not routed out of this zone it'll get back into the cab anyway it can...I think an airdam in front and a foil in back helps smooth things over. Have you taken your ride into a muffler shop and checked out the pipes? You may have a bad gasket where the downtubes from the manifold join the main pipe...that joint is in front of the driver near the bell housing...if that's rotted it's flowing right into the cab...also check out any of the bends/joints for leakage... What do you have your breather outlet on top of the valve cover connected to? I used have that little K&N filter on mine then read that the original intent was to have the blowby exhausts ported back into the carbs for recombustion. If you don't have that hooked back somehow into the intake, those fumes are free to flow anywhere they can, (check an original SU configuration)...I got a screw on inlet from a performance shop, attached it to the top of one of my air cleaners then connected the breather outlet to that... Oh, don't forget to sealup under the rubber shift boot. There's nothing between the tunnel and the outside... I think like others have said it's a collection of solutions...looking forward to future threads...working on the body now so considering aero treatments... Have fun...Z y'all out there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted August 4, 2005 Share Posted August 4, 2005 It has been suggested before that a spoiler will help reduce the fumes, as will a turndown stuck out to the side to get the exhaust into the airflow on the side of the car instead of tumbling in the back of the car. Kind of related weatherstrip issue. I've ALWAYS had issues with the weatherstripping. Had an idea about it the other day. What if one was to grind the little lip around the hatch opening where the weatherstrip goes on completely away, then use the same type of weatherstripping used on the DOORS for the hatch? That stupid hatch weather stripping always comes off or folds over so that it doesn't seal. My thought is the door type that people are buying from McMaster Carr can't do that. Should be much more reliable... just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy85 Posted August 14, 2005 Share Posted August 14, 2005 An alternate to the smoke bomb idea to find all those stupid little holes is to use a bright light on one side and look for where the light comes through on the other side (obviously the darker the room is the better). You would be amazed where there are air entry points. And make sure you move the light around a bunch to catch them all as some will be hidden if you dont. I sealed these areas (and there were a bunch) with a roll of aluminum tape and a tube of caulk and it reduced the smell a lot. Just put new tank vent lines in yesterday as one was leaking and I'm hoping that will fix the rest. Also, since I dont have a hatch interior panel I used the aluminum take to seal the gaping holes around the hatch latch and the huge drain holes in the bottom of the hatch (she doesn't see rain so I'm not worried about drainage). Cameron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buZy Posted August 21, 2005 Share Posted August 21, 2005 Maybe your motor is jetted too rich??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huwwatki Posted August 21, 2005 Share Posted August 21, 2005 This may sound strange but a friend of mine with a restored 73 240Z, said that after doing all the sealing he still had the issue, but that upon replacing two things, it was far better, these were: 1) gearshift boot 2) plugs hidden under upholstery in struts (replaced and sealed) As I've put mine back together, I've gone absolutely stupid with silicone in all of the mentioned places, but I'm yet to drive it so this is just hearsay, but it may help. Huw 71' 240Z wonder how it runs without doors Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Metallicar Posted August 23, 2005 Share Posted August 23, 2005 My first NEW car was a 75 280Z California Spec. I drove it home from the showroom on a clear August day (in 1976*), with the windows rolled down. I can still remeber the smell! I knew a few other new Z owners, at the time who kept going back to the dealer for "warranty repair" for this. Sure, replacement of gaskets, seals, and rubber plugs will take a big bite out of the problem, if you have failures in those areas. Remeber what more than a few have said, this is an Inherent design problem. I would guess, if you search other car forums you will hear similar complaints of fumes. Try Opet GT, Toyota Celica, and even Jeep Cj's. (*In 1976, the only Z to be found new on a dealer lot, was the California Spec, on the east coast, at the time I wanted one) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poindexter Posted May 19, 2008 Share Posted May 19, 2008 I plan on attacking nearly every item and area that's been mentioned in this thread, within the next few weeks. There are just so many lines of attack- literally! What I'm going to do today though, is paint that liquid rubber coating on the exposed vent lines at the rear canister in the right rear body panel. When I finally opened it up for the first time in at least 20 years- before I bought it- the entire free volume of that space was literally packed with plastic shopping bags, and the hoses were wrapped with layers and layers of bags and at least 5 rolls of electrical tape! Bizarre, and I left just enough so that I can take a few photos and post the evidence of this insane procedure! BTW, I also had a nasty chromed exhaust extension just hanging out there in the slipstream behind the left rear wheel- around 6 inches at least- see pic, instead of coming out the rear bumper as designed. Now I understand it must have been done to prevent exhaust infiltration, which somebody evidently thought was part of the overall "fume" problem, so before I get rid of this ugly, nasty, non-stock appendage, But first I'm going to bring a battery powered CO detector into the car and drive around as it is for a while just to make sure I don't have any exhaust leakage- which I don't think I do. It does smell of raw gas at times, or perhaps excess unburned gas coming from the tailpipe, but I know the symptoms of CO poisoning and I doubt I'm getting much of that. I have spent 5 hours or more at a stretch, driving around, on several days, and while some of my friends have commented "so, driving that orange thing around again are you?" my lips never turned blue and I had no extraordinary headaches- beyond those everyday ones occurring from mere proximity to massed human life. PS- Edit- sorry!!! I didn't notice the age of the last post- I just responded to results of a search, but it's got to be an on-going problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norstar Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 (edited) My question.. do you think the design of the louvers might re-direct airflow enough to help? Edited February 8, 2016 by norstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgsheen Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 My 260 has louvers and it didn't (doesn't) seem to help much on it's own. Replacing the weatherstripping on the hatch helped in a major way, but there's still a few places I need to seal up. There are more "seals" than come in a weatherstripping kit and after 35 years they can't be much good... I'm sure I need to check the rear lights too. I guess I also need to recheck the fuel filler and all the evap hoses on the fuel tank, when I pull a hard left turn I get some gasoline fumes... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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