[T3] Couldn't start in the rain

[Aaron Leiby]

> Next time this happens, pull off the dist cap and wipe it clean> inside with a dry paper towel. Condensation in there may well be the> cause. Be careful not to break the carbon contact in the middle.
Bam!  Started right up after wiping out thoroughly with a paper towel.
What can I do to keep this from happening though?  Is there supposed to be a rubber seal that I'm missing, or would adding something like this help?

> From: jadney at vwtype3.org
> To: type3 at vwtype3.org
> Date: Sat, 13 Oct 2012 17:19:59 -0500
> Subject: Re: [T3] Couldn't start in the rain
> 
> On 13 Oct 2012 at 16:36, Aaron Leiby wrote:
> 
> > If I leave my car out, and it rains overnight, it refuses to start -
> > usually until we've had a couple nice days for it to dry out.  Starts
> > up great normally. 
> 
> > I have a kit to replace the air vent tubes for my gas tank, but have
> > never gotten around to it.  
> 
> Those must be the overflow and vent kits that you got from me. That's 
> not your problem in this case, but it's a very real problem that you 
> need to fix. Get those kits installed. If you wait for it to cause a 
> real problem, it will be a very expensive problem, so don't wait.  
> 
> > I've checked all around the engine and nothing looks damp at all.  I
> > have those spark plug cover things, though they are a bit cracked, but
> > didn't see any sign of moisture. 
> 
> Pull the spark plug connectors out. Do the brown phenolic connectors 
> have red rubber seals over the ends? If not, installing those may 
> well fix your problem.
> 
> > The distributor cap, rotor, points and spark plug cables have all been
> > recently replaced.  
> 
> Next time this happens, pull off the dist cap and wipe it clean 
> inside with a dry paper towel. Condensation in there may well be the 
> cause. Be careful not to break the carbon contact in the middle.
> 
> > I have a couple leaks up in the footwell area on both sides (though it
> > might be a single leak that just drains to one side or the other based
> > on which way the car is leaning). 
> 
> This isn't your starting problem, but it may be caused by clogged 
> water drains for the air inlet in front of the windshield. This is a 
> common problem and is rather easily fixed. It's important to do, 
> because water gets in that way and starts to rust the body from the 
> inside out.
> 
> > This is a 72 Squareback.  Fuel Injected.  I pulled the computer as
> > well, and that was all nice and dry and sealed up, and made sure to
> > fit the tabs in correctly so no water gets in from there (I had fixed
> > this a long time ago, but figured it was worth double checking). 
> 
> Mis-installed ECU tabs often lead to water in the back, so that's 
> what I suspected above. If you've got that all installed correctly, 
> okay, but be sure.
> -- 
> *******************************
> Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
> Madison, Wisconsin, USA
> *******************************
> 
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