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After many struggles with my Firebird I finally got it started, only to confirm that my last hurried fuel line repair wasn’t good enough. So, I took a break to focus on my 10-year newer old car: 1999 Camaro. It has been sitting for over 2 years, but I thought it would be a better candidate to get on the road. I removed the cover, knowing that I had some mildew to deal with in the interior… however, I also discovered that I had left the passenger window open about an inch. More than large enough to let mice in and definitely enough to let the stink of my old pole barn set in. We had some work ahead of us: deep cleaning, odor elimination, flushing fluids, cleaning out acorns and mouse nests. [peg-image src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-elNiu7Ad0rg/V3g0OlABdnI/AAAAAAAA8nA/J5OF3Ktg_j8sYx0e1EXaq1qQacKTQ_TDwCHM/s144-o/IMG_2085.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/106726501754907162579/6302845105978564881#6302845103560029810″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”IMG_2085.JPG” image_size=”3264×2448″ peg_single_image_size=”w240-c” ] [peg-image src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6bruQq4iU88/V3g0OuGMOUI/AAAAAAAA8nA/2OchZ3COcgcvnwnDvb4XbImFEyG27WMKACHM/s144-o/IMG_2084.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/106726501754907162579/6302845105978564881#6302845106001819970″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”IMG_2084.JPG” image_size=”3264×2448″ peg_single_image_size=”w240-c” ] [peg-image src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6RxE1IG0gIo/V3g0OtInI_I/AAAAAAAA8nA/SD8qTOsgOCcaJ932DF3ax2veUIqSfAX1QCHM/s144-o/IMG_2083.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/106726501754907162579/6302845105978564881#6302845105743537138″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”IMG_2083.JPG” image_size=”3264×2448″ peg_single_image_size=”w240-c” ] [peg-image src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jFBThfAyI54/V3g0OiXOzEI/AAAAAAAA8nA/yNjk4ZP4auk1qPDvDaW9wndJY0OOyGOVgCHM/s144-o/IMG_2082.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/106726501754907162579/6302845105978564881#6302845102852066370″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”IMG_2082.JPG” image_size=”3264×2448″ peg_single_image_size=”w240-c” ] [peg-image src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Oj5Cuh72bWs/V3g0Om80A2I/AAAAAAAA8nA/9a4zYz22jQ4RMKNYc5Gfb-yUUPER9wYGQCHM/s144-o/IMG_2081.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/106726501754907162579/6302845105978564881#6302845104083436386″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”IMG_2081.JPG” image_size=”3264×2448″ peg_single_image_size=”w240-c” ] [peg-image src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/–otztXderos/V3g0Oi–_tI/AAAAAAAA8nA/i5fqH6P3QQc6W5kRzwnh-dwiNFbf4awXQCHM/s144-o/IMG_2080.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/106726501754907162579/6302845105978564881#6302845103018802898″ caption=”” type=”image” alt=”IMG_2080.JPG” image_size=”3264×2448″ peg_single_image_size=”w240-c” ] During the next 2 weeks, I spent the better part of 3 days cleaning the interior and prepping the engine. The only surprise was a mouse mess to clean up in the C pillar that I missed on my first pass. I used our commercial carpet cleaner, baking soda, Lysol disinfectant, water/vinegar, clove/water (to prevent mildew), and eventually bleach/water. Ultimately the mild bleach solution was most effective at neutralizing odors. I let my car bake with the roof off and doors open in the sun. All in all, there is a marked improvement in odor. Continuing to let it air out in our garage that has just recently been upgraded by Insta Garage Doors of San Bernardino county, has continued to help. However, as I let it run (trying to work through the fuel/stabilizer in the gas tank, it started to overheat. Yesterday, I replaced the the thermostat, but the old one looked like new. I’m hoping that I just failed to bleed all of the air out of the cooling system last time (which is a common issue with aluminum block LS motors). If that’s not it, a replacement radiator cap might be the solution… but I dread that I could have a bad head gasket and air/oil is getting into the coolant. Though my time is limited at the moment, I hope to figure out what’s going on before my birthday in mid-July. I just want to drive it around for 1 day… [peg-image src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-rANak572jhE/V3g0OhcHRCI/AAAAAAAA8nQ/kCd15WiZS8sg7J-tnaff1OWs1tfBtEjjACHM/s144-o/IMG_2100.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/106726501754907162579/6302845105978564881#6302845102604108834″ caption=”Look at ’em there, pretty maids all in a row.” type=”image” alt=”IMG_2100.JPG” image_size=”3264×2448″ peg_single_image_size=”w640″ peg_img_css=”aligncenter” ]

- Duane