924Board.org

[82Red931]

I must open by saying this is the most informative site for porsches I've been to yet. I recently purchased an '82 931 with 103K on it, for only 700 dollars. The car has a new turbo and clutch, which the prior owner had installed. After owning the car for about two weeks... I noticed a smell which can only be described as a gas and exhaust like smell which fills the cabin of the car. I've resorted to riding around with the windows down b/c I just can't resist driving the car on occasion.

However the cabin filling with fumes has become simply intolerable. I took it to a mechanic (who specializes in porsches), only to be told I'm smelling burning oil which must be leaking down on to the turbocharger.
He replaced three oil lines on the car... and said the problem was fixed but only resurfaced about 3 miles down the road.

I need some ideas of what this problem could be considering I have a limited budget for this car...

Thanks for your help:
The starving cartoonist

[Smoothie]

There are 3 causes of these problems that I know of.

(1) An exhaust leak toward the front, maybe at the wastegate to catalytic converter connection. I had this for a while. Until I found and fixed it, I found that I got some relief by rolling down the passenger side window about 3/4's and the driver side about 1/4. That seemed to do something to the airflow inside the car that lessened the effect on the driver, but; check for an exhaust leak at that point. It's a slip joint.

(2) Your rear hatch may not be sealing completely when it's closed. Check that - exhaust gets drawn back into the car from there. Some fix this by replacing the rubber seal. I fixed mine by letting the gas out of the rear hatch struts to let the hatch sit down heavier.

(3) The rubber hose/s between the fuel filler point and the gas tank go bad and let gas fume smells into the passenger compartment. The quick fix is to not fill the tank up all the way. Of course the correct fix is to replace hoses. If you notice the fumes more just after a fill up, that's where the fume problem is coming from.

P.S. Good point - read the FAQ. Just do a search on "fumes" or whatever else you're wondering about. Most questions have already been answered before. Also, try this: http://www.924board.org/viewtopic.php?topic=1664&forum=1&
- and welcome to the dg. Great place...more useful for 924 info than most mechanics.
_________________
'82 924 Turbo, Home Depot boost control, blue windshield washer fluid water injection


[ This Message was edited by: Smoothie on 2002-03-13 04:03 ]

[924RACR]

RTFAQ

_________________
Vaughan Scott
Webmeister
'79 924 #77 SCCA H Prod racecar
'82 931 Plat. Silver
#25 Hidari Firefly P2 sports prototype

[Rick MacLaren]

Another possible cause: Check the rubber liner on your firewall...sometimes engine fumes leak into the air intake vent.

[numbers]

all od the above are right on. The primary cause of your smell is undoubtably the rear hatch seal. You can get a new seal from the dealer, or from an aftermarket supplier such as Performance Products, or Tweeks. However, for about half of the price, you can get the identical seal from JC Whitney. Just order the catalog, and look for the page with all of the weather stripping. Pull up one edge of your seal, and compare it to the drawings in Whitney. It just presses in place, but be careful not to stretch it when you install it, because it will contract back later, and if you cut the seal for an exact fit it will then have a gap. I cut mine about a quarter inch long and force it in place. After a few days it will fit perfect.

For the gas problem, you can still fill-up, just don't top off, and you shouldn't have any fumes.

You can solve the hood seal problem by getting some household gray foam insulation from a hardware store. Get it about 3/4 inch wide. Just peel off the sticky edge and apply it to your hood along where the rubber seal meets the hood. It will form right to the seal and stop all underhood fumes from reaching the passenger compartment.

[Smoothie]

JC Whitney weatherstripping -
http://www.jcwhitney.com/catsubpic.jhtml;$sessionid$SARH5GYAAAAS0QSNDV1CFE0CJUOXKIV0?CATID=3347&_requestid=2131

[ This Message was edited by: Smoothie on 2002-03-14 01:33 ]

[MitchellT]

I experience less fumes in my car when the windows are all the way up and the heat is off. Obviously this works only in winter!!

I have noticed that the "j" pipe to the wastegate did not have seals (since ordered). I replaced my hatch seal and sunroof seals and some exhaust seals and even one of the fuel vent hoses but still have some degreee of fumes from time to time. Its an ongoing hunt for leaks and deteriorated seals to replace.