queesy feeling

i took my new v.s. for it's first long trip yesterday (about 2 highway hours). once i arrived i noticed that i smelled a little like exhaust and that i was a bit nausious. not sure if it was the exhaust making it's way back into the cockpit or something i ate, i figured i'd ask some of you guys. if it is the car, do they usually set them to run a bit rich coming off the line and that's the reason for any excessive exhaust? any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Do you have the heater pipes in? Could there be a hole in there that is letting gas fumes seep in? You need to find the culprit it shouldn't make you feel woozy. Maybe it runs rich, maybe the exhaust bolts on the header are leaking.

i was missing a nut on one of my header studs, but i replaced that before the trip. come to think of it, i DID have the heat on blasting out of the driver's side vent. i should stick my nose down there and see if i smell any exhaust fumes. thanks for the tip.

Yup, If you have heater boxes and tshey are a little old, they can easily be leaking and be the culprit.

I remember decades ago when I was in high school and had a '57 VW beetle, (a.) the heaters didn't work very well (I ended up always using an ice scraper on the INSIDE of the windshield in Winter!!) and (b.) they stunk up the cockpit with exhaust fumes (pretty much all year round). Poke your nose around the heater outlets with the engine running to find out if they're leaking. Only fix is to buy new heater boxes, and go with the German ones if you can find them.

considering that it's a brand new v.s., wouldn't kirk have installed new heater boxes?

George,

I'm experiencing the same thing with my 2003 VS. Everyone that has taken a ride on it for any extended period, 20 min plus ends up smelling like exhaust fumes. I checked for leaks and found none, although I didn't stick my nose to the heater outlet!

I was wondering if the turbulence kicked up in the cockpit could be drawing enough fumes from the exhaust.

M

Guys,
Don't fool around with the forum here, get on the phone to Kirk.
That sounds to dangerous to speculate. My Vintage was used when I bought it and I have never had any fumes. The fact that you do means there is a failure somewhere in the system. New is new and parts is parts, neither means shit if you're asphyxiated!

Mel,

I'm gonna try the smelling the air coming out of the heat register. As i recall, i did NOT smell like fumes when i had it shut off. If it IS turbulence, then i fear that we are in for a different, more complex problem. judging by the feedback i have gotten, i think it may be the heater box, though.

George

here-here....make a complaint.

Originally you stated that a nut was missing on one of the head exhaust studs and that you put a new one on. If it was missing there is a good chance that the heater box/header to cyclinder head gasket was blown out and no longer seals - it probably needs to be replaced. I would replace both once the heater box is pulled down.

Wolfgang, if they're copper seals can't they be reused?
Ron

I had gas fumes in my VS. I pulled some of the gas filler neck vent tubing up to form a small loop.

I also had fumes from the heater. The number one cylinder exhaust push rod tube was leaking oil onto the heater box. The synthetic oil had a very sickening smell when burning on the header/heater pipe.

I repaired the oil leak and the smells are gone.

My X-VS had the same exhaust smell from day 1. I thought it was "normal" & just dealt with it....)O:~R

Perhaps you can talk Kirk into RECALLING his cars for inspection....
The first RECALL of a replica..........
Personally I think you ate something that disagreed with you

I think with a new car and engine you will get some smell of the paint "curing" on engine items, this causes a rather heavy odor. In fact pulling my Speedy into a garage after a good run and closing the garage door immediatly will cause the garage to smell of a mixture of hot paint, hot oil, some gas smell and whatever. It goes away in a few hours. Think it is the old technology with these things. Also running around in traffic in a Speedy will expose you to some of the running rich exhaust fumes. But in all cases try turning the heat controls to off for the first solution.

Bruce

Vince - I think that's a different smell altogether =(

a header stud/nut wouldn't cause the smell while driving. if more than a few have noticed a "smell" it may be aerodynamics with exhaust pipe
placement. usually trouble with flat backed cars/trucks and a negative pressure sucking fumes back into vehicle. remember that family out west,
made a bed in the back of their pick up for their kids to use/sleep while driving. a couple of hours into the journey the 3 kids were
dead. don't "smell" your outlets, carbon monoxide=odor free.
get a tester(small patec/indicator)changes color when exposed to
carbon monoxide. be careful.

Good idea to try a carbon monoxide tester. Keep in mind though, I believe carbon monoxide is ordorless and George said he smelled exhaust-like fumes so I have a feeling that may not be the culprit. George said the car is new so I tend to agree with West Coast Bruce tha the ordor is very likely paint burning and lubricant burning off exhaust/heater boxes and other hot engine parts. Every time I've installed a new (painted) exhaust system we get a strong, not-so-pleasant odor for the first few hours but it eventually subsides. On your next drive after the engine gets hot shut off the car and take a few whiffs around the back underside of the car and see if you can sense heated paint on the exhaust system.

George, I also had the same experience with my new VS; it was a mixture of exhaust and raw gas smell. It went away after adjusting the carbs; the car is now running not as rich as it did when I first got it. Also, what the other guys said about new paint, etc. makes a lot of sense too.

i spoke with kirk yesterday and he offered to ship me a new heater box. i also stuck my nose down by the heater outlet and revved the engine. all i could smell is the new pipe plastic smell. perhaps it is too slight of a leak for me to notice, and it took the two hour drive for it to cumulatively build up (in my clothing) and get me sick.

1. can anyone confirm if i should replace the header gasket given that one of the nuts was missing?
2. would a CO tester be more sensitive than my nose/ be able to detect a very slight amount of exhaust (i'm assuming yes)?
3. how big of a job is it to replace a heater box?

George,

How far from Boston are you? North or South or West?

I live in Kingston, Massachusetts. On the South coast near Plymouth Rock (next town over.) If you want help, just email me!

You can come by any Saturday or Sunday and I'll do the work for you/show you how to do it/help you do it, no problem at all!

I've replaced a TON of heater boxes and have had TWO TONS of problems with VW/Corvair exhaust fumes over the years. It's ALWAYS fixable and NEVER needs more than a few hours to straighten it out. I have cut off/reciprocating saws and welder and pipe bender and all so if there's something more that needs to be done other the the heater box replacement/repair, we're all set to go. I have a buch of extra gaskets and such as well, just in case.

Come by any weekend and we'll have some fun! Just let me know, and we're doing it . . . except the Saturday of the VolksVair show in Shrewsbury in a couple of weeks. You ought to go yourself. It's a great show in a greater setting. Ice cream buffet table . . . YUM!

TC

TC

I live in Boston but i keep the car in Quincy. I'll email you about the further stuff. I'll try to pick up a CO detector and get to the bottom of this. Thanks for all your help!!

I GREW UP IN QUINCY! Fun town! Some family still there . . . Forget the exhaust sensor . . . get over here!!! Any time, any weekend, let's play!!

You have my email. We get together almost every weekend to work on our VW powered cars, you're more than welcome to come by anytime that you need help with something!!!

TC

Team; you're tops, man!...