It's Alive! : after the Flood

[Mr Nice Guy]

Finally got the Z running again after the flood on Sunday. Had to take out the Spark Plugs and get all tyhe water out of the engine. Jeez what a job. I got six of em out and then got my friend, the miracle worker, to help get the other two on the passenger side out. After that I cranked it over till the water came out and put em back in and prayed it'd run and it did . Man I was happy when it started up and finally began to idle nice. I changed the oil since there was some water in it and it seems to be running fine (just got back from a little test drive).
Now I just need to get the inside dry. Carpet is dry for the most part but the padding under the front seats and rear floor boards is still pretty damp if you stick your hand under there(I sucked all the actual water out from under the carpet with a shop vac). I plan on sitting it in the sun and I put some "Damp Rid" buckets to help soak up moisture. Do you think this will be enough or should I bite the bullet and yank the carpet out to dry? Anyone have any experience with this? Thanks for your help. I will be careful about "flood zones" from now on even if I have to walk alot further it's worth it.

[Joe 1320]

I was wondering how it turned out. You might consider a few oil changes within a few warm up cycles. IMHO, I would not run it in gear until a 2nd oil change after a good warm up. Maybe I'm paranoid about residual water, but maybe it's better to be safe than sorry.

[Mr Nice Guy]

Thanks Joe,

I changed the oil before I drove it and it looks fine after about 60 miles or so the oil looks nice and clean. Dosen't show any signs of water in it at all so I think I'm Ok. Besides that mobile one is pretty spensive. It is Idling at about 1000rpms though. I was thinking I'd clean the trottle body and IAC in case it got dirty. Any other thoughts? Other than that All I have to do is dry out the carpet and it should be back to normal.

[SS_CarGuy]

I would bite the bullet and pull the seats and carpet and let them dry. Also, if the rear axle was under water. you may have water in there too since the vent on top of the axle could have let some in. Did you check the fluid level in the rear end? If its too full, there is probably water in there too. Might be a good idea to change that just to be safe.

[seannz28]

good call. I'd never thought about the rear end....thats cake to change though. even with nothing but socket set with a 3/8's drive, and GL-5 (75w-90?? I think) is a dime a dozen.

[Mike71]

i would also remove the carpet ..otherwise u will never get the smell out

plus if it is ruined after its dried u have already done half the work of replacing it...and ur seats wont soak up that lovely moldy rotting smell (my cars a convertable..i know that smell all to well lol)

[Mr Nice Guy]

Thanks Guys,

The carpet is drying out somewhat but I think the padding will take forever so I think I'll yank it as soon as I get a chance. I've got the carpet pulled up in the back and stuck some damp rid buckets under the carpet to help untill I can get it out of there. My friend recomended pulling the padding off, getting rid of it, and pressure washing the carpet. He did this with his truck when he went through too much water. If I do that will the carpet still sit right? Seats are already dry, didn't get that wet, (I did pull the back seats out immediately and dry the foam) so that's cool. I don't think the water was deep enough in the back to get through the vent tube for the rear but I'll check it anyway. Thanks guys.....Later