Cyrus951

Hey guys, I'm having a problem with my 951.
When I take my car for a drive, a faint exhaust smell comes through the AC vents, now it smells like exhaust, but it might not be. I'm about to change the oil on my car, there is old, dirty oil in it right now that might be causing this smell. Guys I'd like to save what brain cells I have left, so the sooner the fix, the better. oh and btw- I tried closing the AC vents, but it still comes through!!

Magown

Do you have your the snow flake or recirculate buttons pushed. This closes the air flaps on the a/c air box, which makes it suck air from the cabin. I have found that this creates a slight vacuum situation in the cabin. It's minor but enough to suck in exhaust fumes from any leaking seals. The rear hatch seal is the first thing to check, then the shift boot, then the DME wiring harness to firewall gromet.

Cyrus951

Oh, there is no shift boot on the car, I bought one but havent installed it yet..perhaps this is it? No the ac button isn't turned on.
thanks.

jsonnen

it is defintely the shift boot!!! Put that thing in pronto vilo!

Cyrus951

The inner rubber boot under the leather one I bought is there though, if it was the boot, then why is there heat/smell coming from the closed AC vents?

jsonnen

When you say heat smell , does it smell like coolant?

jimbo1111

Have you checked for exhaust leaks around the header and crossover pipes?

Cyrus951

No, it's definately not coolant. Regarding the headers, a while back (about 2 months) ago, I remember when I remember seeing some smoke coming from around the headers, it was only a little bit though, not a lot. The car was idling btw, I'll have a look tomorrow morning as to whether or not the smoke is still there..

Cyrus951

When I say heat, I mean a hot air.
And the smell is a smell of exhaust.

cpt_koolbeenz

If you see smoke from the headers you have a big leak. My headers were cracked and I didn't even see any smoke (and I WAS looking for it). Definently check that. Then check the rear hatch for any break in the seal or just it not closing tightly... and get a boot for the shifter.

Matt Sheppard

Is the large rubber grommet that holds the DME/KLR wiring at the firewall installed correctly? Any gaps?

kasturbo

Are you getting hot heat comming from the vents without the heat being turned on?

Cyrus951

Yes, it has a tight fit.

Did you fix your headers? How much was the fix? The rear hatch seal is perfect. I have a boot it's just awaiting installation.

The heat is off, set to 0, the AC button is not turned on, and the vents are closed.

MHT

I would guess that you have an oil leak that is dripping on the manifold or cross-over pipe and that what you smell is oil burning off the exhaust. Most of the time, when there is smoke from the front of the exhaust system, it's burning oil.

cpt_koolbeenz

Good point... Oil smells different than exhaust though. First find out if it is exhaust or if it is oil burning. Burning oil has a blue hue to the smoke. Sniff the exhaust at the tailpipe (waft it don't shove your nose in) then sniff in the cabin or engine bay and see if it is the exact same smell.

I did get my headers fixed... You have to take them off of the car then go to an exhaust shop and have them pressure test them. If they find a leak then they have to remove the heat shields and weld the cracks. Mine was leaking in the crotch (Y) of the 2/3 header pipe and the rings that seal the connection to the crossover from the headers was leaking badly. I got new rings from MySwiss. They cost around $120 or so for the whole set.