As noted yesterday, I put the soft top on the Scout over the weekend and drove it in yesterday with the windows down and the back panel rolled up. This morning, taking advantage of the mild weather and predictions of sunshine, I drove it in again but left the windows rolled up and the back panel zipped down mostly because I was running late. I’m pleased to report the fumes were almost nonexistent in the cab, which is a huge improvement over yesterday’s ride, and even having the top completely down.
This happened in my first Scout too—the aerodynamics of the body trap a lot of exhaust behind the tailgate and when braking it tends to creep forward into the cab; the fact that the carburetor is poorly tuned and leaking around the gasket to the manifold doesn’t help either. I think that having a proper set of door and tailgate seals will help keep out a lot of the exhaust from the rear (as well as soundproof the doors somewhat) and having the carb rebuilt/replaced will help with the smell of raw gasoline.
→ This is a syndicated post from my Scout weblog. More info here.