UH-OH.....

1777 Views 15 Replies 5 Participants Last post by MaxQ, Mar 15, 2005

MaxQ

Discussion Starter · Feb 23, 2005

No major changes made recently besides a new paint job. All of a sudden, two problems that appear to be unrelated. Let's treat them as such, and please shoot out some suggestions:

1) My blower is screwed up, so the interior of the car receives a lot of hot air from the engine compartment. Recently, it's been smelling hella sweet, like coolant, and I've been sucking coolant like you wouldn't believe. No apparent coolant leaks after I sit the car overnight. No white smoke at startup or during running. Is it the cap or is there another way for the coolant to be evaporating so quickly without any external signs?

2) My "Door Ajar" light keeps flashing off and on when the car is in motion. If I open and close my passenger door, the light will go off temporarily, then come on again, in sync with some of the motions of the car. Is this my door close sensor or can it indicate another problem as well, like how the brake light in the dash will also go off if brake fluid level is low?

Thanks, and looking forward to your suggestions. I'd rather not have that light signal some fluid level that I don't check until something major blows.

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Zen31ZR

· #2 · Feb 23, 2005

MaxQ said:
No major changes made recently besides a new paint job. All of a sudden, two problems that appear to be unrelated. Let's treat them as such, and please shoot out some suggestions:

1) My blower is screwed up, so the interior of the car receives a lot of hot air from the engine compartment. Recently, it's been smelling hella sweet, like coolant, and I've been sucking coolant like you wouldn't believe. No apparent coolant leaks after I sit the car overnight. No white smoke at startup or during running. Is it the cap or is there another way for the coolant to be evaporating so quickly without any external signs?

2) My "Door Ajar" light keeps flashing off and on when the car is in motion. If I open and close my passenger door, the light will go off temporarily, then come on again, in sync with some of the motions of the car. Is this my door close sensor or can it indicate another problem as well, like how the brake light in the dash will also go off if brake fluid level is low?

Thanks, and looking forward to your suggestions. I'd rather not have that light signal some fluid level that I don't check until something major blows.

(1) Check the carpet on the passenger side, make sure it's not soaked. Sure sign of a leaking heater core if it is. There are also a few hoses on the backside of the motor that can leak and if it drips on the engine it will evaporate almost immediately. You'll smell that for sure.

(2) The lock on the passenger side door may be out of adjustment, either the pin or the lock inside the door itself, both can be adjusted by loosening the bolts and moving it. Does the door sound loose at all? I beleive there is a way to disable the switch on that side, but you'd have to take the switch apart. It's on the rear side of the door sill on the bottom part, on the car itself, not the door.

Spongerider

· #3 · Feb 23, 2005

2nd. Zen :cheers:

MaxQ

Discussion Starter · #4 · Feb 23, 2005

1. Very cool. The carpet isn't soaked--I think one chump mechanic who shall remain nameless did something to it. There is one split hose with a 5 on it toward the rear of the motor, drivers side. It looks like an original hose, so the number 5 may be significant.

2. The passenger side door certainly does sound loose when I drive, but it's been that way for a while and no "Door Ajar" light until now. How do I go about adjusting the lock mechanism, and what tools will I need?

Zen31ZR

· #5 · Feb 23, 2005

MaxQ said:
1. Very cool. The carpet isn't soaked--I think one chump mechanic who shall remain nameless did something to it. There is one split hose with a 5 on it toward the rear of the motor, drivers side. It looks like an original hose, so the number 5 may be significant.

2. The passenger side door certainly does sound loose when I drive, but it's been that way for a while and no "Door Ajar" light until now. How do I go about adjusting the lock mechanism, and what tools will I need?

(1) Might be the one coming off the TB, that one seems to split a lot. There's others on that side, so I can't say for sure.

(2) Driving around with it rattling like that probably finally jarred the door switch loose, it might have been corroded or stuck before. As far as tools needed, I don't have the car right in front of me, so I can't say for sure. I think the door pin is an Allen head, but I can't remember. The door lock screws might be Phillips head. Take a look at it, or take it to the parts shop with you when you go buy the tools. The guys there should be able to help you.

Domdogg123

· #6 · Feb 24, 2005

I think your door fix is going to be easier than what thier saying. Look at your door bumpers, they're the little rubber part in the bottom rear quadrant of the door. If your car is like mine, the plastic plunger had worn through the rubber cap over it and wasn't being pushed all the way in. Easy fix, just replace them. I just got a couple and they were $1.95 each from Victoria British.

MaxQ

Discussion Starter · #7 · Feb 24, 2005

2. Excellent @ Doom. I'll check that in a few mintues, after I leave work. Hopefully it's that easy of a fix.

1. I'll take a pic of the hose (it's a small-diameter, less than 1/2") and see what you think about that one. I've also ordered a Nismo radiator cap from CourtesyNissan in the meanwhile, will replace hose when I can find out where it terminates, replace radiator as last ditch?

MaxQ

Discussion Starter · #8 · Feb 24, 2005

Domdogg123 said:
I think your door fix is going to be easier than what thier saying. Look at your door bumpers, they're the little rubber part in the bottom rear quadrant of the door. If your car is like mine, the plastic plunger had worn through the rubber cap over it and wasn't being pushed all the way in. Easy fix, just replace them. I just got a couple and they were $1.95 each from Victoria British.

Thanks, Doom. The plungers are exposed on both sides, so I'll check the VickiBrit catalog for the correct part and order it tonight. Great catch!

Zen31ZR

· #9 · Feb 24, 2005

Domdogg123 said:
I think your door fix is going to be easier than what thier saying. Look at your door bumpers, they're the little rubber part in the bottom rear quadrant of the door. If your car is like mine, the plastic plunger had worn through the rubber cap over it and wasn't being pushed all the way in. Easy fix, just replace them. I just got a couple and they were $1.95 each from Victoria British.

That won't take care of his problem with the door rattling.......

MaxQ

Discussion Starter · #10 · Feb 24, 2005

♣Zen31ZR♣ said:
That won't take care of his problem with the door rattling.......

Okay, okay.......gimme the lowdown on how to fix the rattling.......pleeeeease?

Zen31ZR

· #11 · Feb 25, 2005

MaxQ said:
Okay, okay.......gimme the lowdown on how to fix the rattling.......pleeeeease?

Go back up a couple posts. I stated there what tools you probably needed. What you wanna do is loosen up either the pin or the lock and move the pin in more, or the lock out more. One or the other will make the door close tighter. You may also wish to make sure neither one is a bit loose before you loosen the other. This problem is fairly typical on cars that have been in accidents on the affected side or had the door replaced (due to rust or whatever) at some point......

'85 fairlady

· #12 · Feb 25, 2005

Your brake light will light up if your brake fluid is low.

MaxQ

Discussion Starter · #13 · Feb 25, 2005

Is there a faq with an example of how to post pics? I'm a tech, but do no html, so point me in the right direction, and I'll post that hose and it's location. For now, the end that I CAN see terminates right underneath the throttle body, with what looks like a metal fitting, but is most probably a hose clamp...didn't have a flashlight.

Zen31ZR

· #14 · Feb 25, 2005

There's 2 ways to post pics. You can either upload them to a site that does nothing but store pics for people (Like Imagstation , but they suck) and then post them here using the pic url and the

icon above(when you are in reply mode), or if you want to upload straight off your computer to here (max size is about 300k, I think) go way down the screen when you go to reply to this, there will be a button called Manage Attachments. Click that, and it will go to another screen that directs you to look for and select the file from your computer, at which time you will hit the upload button. It's not hard really.

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MaxQ

Discussion Starter · #15 · Mar 2, 2005

♣Zen31ZR♣ said:
There's 2 ways to post pics. You can either upload them to a site that does nothing but store pics for people (Like Imagstation , but they suck) and then post them here using the pic url and the

icon above(when you are in reply mode), or if you want to upload straight off your computer to here (max size is about 300k, I think) go way down the screen when you go to reply to this, there will be a button called Manage Attachments. Click that, and it will go to another screen that directs you to look for and select the file from your computer, at which time you will hit the upload button. It's not hard really.

No "Manage Attachments" button at the bottom during reply. I'd like to dl straight off my machine if possible. Sorry to bug you on a non 300zx issue, but I have the pics and can't post for my problem.

Thanks guys....your help is invaluable.

MaxQ

Discussion Starter · #16 · Mar 15, 2005

Ok, here's what was causing the coolant smell: the water outlet pipe was corroded where it attaches to the plenum, causing the car to overheat. That's the pipe that the radiator cap attaches to. I just ordered the pipe from Nissan (due Wednesday), and a 4-row radiator and fan clutch just because.

I replaced the door bumpers and it kept the door closed, no light for several days. Then suddenly, the door would pop back out about 1/4" when closed. Where can I find a replacement door locking mechanism, since it seems like that is the culprit, for both the door not closing properly and the rattling? I've checked with vicky british and Motorsport Auto catalogs, but can't find the correct part number. I'm trying to save myself another call to Courtesy Nissan.

Thanks for all the input earlier....the door bumper was a great tip.....and ONE day I'll actually be able to post some pics, too!

1 - 16 of 16 Posts

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