Strong fumes in my 60! (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Oct 23, 2019
Threads
7
Messages
85
Location
Flagstaff, AZ
Well, my wife and son have gotten to where they don't want to ride in the cruiser anymore. I drove mostly old vehicles, using the new Tundra mostly for just picking up old cars periodically. But, I need to figure out the horrible fumes in my old rig.

I think that it's probably no less than a four fold problem!

1.) This is a BIG one. Probably the biggest..
It should be an easy fix! My tailgate won't fully latch! I can push it tightly against the seal, and the fumes are MUCH less offensive! Until I get a few miles down the road and the tailgate will vibrate/bounce slightly open, creating a small gap around the tailgate weather striping. Any hints or hacks to get this tail gate to fully latch? Is interested an adjustment? Mid road trip, when my wife starts complaining about the strong odor, I can stop the rig, push the tailgate tight up against the seals, re-close the back glass, and its much better for another spell. Bouncing on forest roads will make this fix only last about 3-5 minutes. My tailgate latches securely, but about 3/8" away from the seal. If I slam it really hard, sometimes the left side will catch. Though the right side will never catch anymore. It will close completely, but not stay there.

2.) The exhaust ends abruptly approximately under the rear seat. It has a wonderful sound through the Flowmaster down there, but it ends too abruptly. I need to have a piece of tubing bent to notch over the rear axle, and dump out the rear. I may use the plasma cutter to cut a circular hole through the rear bumper, and sleeve with some 3" pipe, and route through the rear bumper. The way that I off road it, if the exhaust hangs under the rear bumper, it is SURE to get smashed. Perhaps a turn out, behind the rear tire... this should help significantly. Probably the first fix I'll make. I might just drop the Cruiser off at the muffler shop today, and have them run a tailpipe out the remainder of the length of the body, and dump out the side, behind the rear tire.

3.) Rust. My Cruiser has a bit of cancer. As a very temporary solution attempt, I put some expanding foam in the quarter panels to help seal it up. This helped significantly, but will serve as a water trap, worsening the rust issue significantly. I need to weld in some quarter panel patches, and get the rear end sealed up. This will not help at all, without first figuring out how to get my tailgate latched and sealed up properly.

4.) I live at 7,000', and the poor old rig runs pig rich. I think that I am in need of a re-jet.

Any thoughts on the tailgate issue? I need to search for carb re-jet and rebuild help.

Thanks much,

Nik
 
Are you smelling exhaust fumes, or gas fumes? Take a look at all the hoses coming from the gas tank, especially the hose from the filler to the tank.
 
Are you smelling exhaust fumes, or gas fumes? Take a look at all the hoses coming from the gas tank, especially the hose from the filler to the tank.

Yes. Haha. Primary issue is exhaust fumes, though any time that we fill up with fuel, there is a strong gas odor for a bit after fill up! I'll look at those hoses. I assume that I also have a plugged charcoal canister, as my tank gets very pressurized. Lots of built up pressure when I remove the fuel filler cap!
 
Not to throw another culprit on the list, but the lowly D pillar vents in the back of the truck (interior flap) deteriorates over time and allows outside air like exhaust to freely enter the cab. Sounds like this is lower on your priority list though. Good luck attacking everything!
 
Not to throw another culprit on the list, but the lowly D pillar vents in the back of the truck (interior flap) deteriorates over time and allows outside air like exhaust to freely enter the cab. Sounds like this is lower on your priority list though. Good luck attacking everything!

Man, I think that you just added culprit number 6 to my list! LOL. Need to just start plugging away! I really appreciate the input from you guys that have had these issues!
 
"Any thoughts on the tailgate issue? I need to search for carb re-jet and rebuild help."

I believe the tailgate latches have 2 stages. One that catches and another that holds it tight. You could check the mechanisms on the tailgate to see if they are holding in the lock position and also check the alignment with the catches to make sure they aren't in need of adjustment.
 
Exhaust out the side and new trim lok around the tailgate and hatch and I bet that would help you tons. The d pillar flaps are a super easy fix too.
 
My tailgate had the same issue.
The latches are adjustable, you can loosen the bolts and move them until the tailgate sits flush.
My secondary issue was that the latches were not fully engaging. I sprayed them with WD40, used the side of a crew driver to cycle the latch (latch release latch release) until it freed up and then soaked it with bike lube. Its been working ever since.
 
Until you get the tailgate latches repositioned, keep all windows rolled up and Fresh Air vent on HVAC panel set with fan on High. When any window is open, it creates a vacuum in the cab when driving and air gets sucked back in anywhere there's a crack.

Behind the passenger rear side panel is the gas tank vapor separator. It's purpose is to separate liquid gas from the vent lines so it doesn't get sucked into the charcoal canister.
There's several vapor/fuel lines connected to it - and if one of the connections is leaking due to an overpressurized gas tank, you'll smell gasoline fumes inside the cab.
 

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