questions about lightening fly wheel & smoke through shifter boot

[kapower]

I'am in the middle of replacing my clutch, and i have a few questions. first off what would cause smoke to come through the shifter boot? It smells like gear oil, but the front seal on my transmission seams to be ok. I would also like to lighten & balance my fly wheel so my other questions are how much does a stock flywheel wiegh? how much wieght should i reduce, and about how much extra power would get to the ground, the only mods that I have are I/E. and last but not least would it be worth it [by that i mean would i actually gain any perfomance for my money] but mainly I would like to know what is causing smoke to seep through the shift boot. Thanks in advance for any knowledge that anyone will share. :)

[silvia240]

is the smoke from the shift boot coming out constantly? Cauz i have the same problem, but only if im in 5th gear and my sunroof is open or my window is cracked. I did research on this more than a year ago and i was told it was a seal that is leakin on the exhaust and buring.
I never really understood how that would only happen in fifth gear.
But anyways i went to the dealer and they checked my tranny and they said everything was ok.
This seems to be a pretty common problem.
IF you find out exactly what it is, please let me know. Thanks

[lbcklik1486]

It might just be the shift boot torn somewhere letting the gas escape.

[mrdirty]

Originally posted by kapower
I'am in the middle of replacing my clutch, and i have a few questions. first off what would cause smoke to come through the shifter boot? It smells like gear oil, but the front seal on my transmission seams to be ok. I would also like to lighten & balance my fly wheel so my other questions are how much does a stock flywheel wiegh? how much wieght should i reduce, and about how much extra power would get to the ground, the only mods that I have are I/E. and last but not least would it be worth it [by that i mean would i actually gain any perfomance for my money] but mainly I would like to know what is causing smoke to seep through the shift boot. Thanks in advance for any knowledge that anyone will share. :)

We covered the flywheel issue pretty extensively a month ago; so search for that thread and find some of your answers; don't think anyone commented on stock FW weght though...

Smoke from shift boot is from oil leaking onto something hot and burning; probably exhaust. Does it do this when cold or just when hot?

But this too has been covered a few times.

[silvia240]

well it has been talked about but never resolved. No body knows exactly what and where it is.

[Red]

I think my stock flywheel was "21 lbs" I'll drop it on the scale tonight and double check for you.. My lightend one is "11 lbs"

I keep it just incase I warp or destroy my light one.

[kapower]

hey people thanks for all of your responses I just finished installing my clutch and every thing went well (it was a pita & it was my first clutch install) I did not get my fly wheel lightened because it could only be lightened by 1-3 pounds safely & with out experimenting. so it was not worth the money (I'am just going to get a fidanza later on down the road) 20 pounds is the wieght of my fly wheel and I was hoping for 16 pounds or less after lightening.

[kapower]

to all of the people wondering what is causing smoke to seep in through the shift boot or into the cabin. 99% of the time it is the inner shift boot on the bottom of the shifter on top of the transmission. what happens is that the boot is cracked & or split open letting some of the burn off from inside the tranny seep in through the shifter & into to the car. for the unfortunite 1% of people out there it is leaky transmission seals dripping fluid on the exhaust & most likely the inner shift boot is also torn. to fix the problem unscrew your shift knob, unscrew your center consul, unscrew the middle shift boot, & then you will see the inner shift boot inspect it for cracks & holes and hopefully that will be the problem. if so then go to a nissan dealership to purchase the inner shift boot. it only costed me $11.98 (cheap fix) like I said earlier in the post 99% of the time it is just the inner shift boot. hope that helps everone & sorry about the long posts I just wanted to be as clear as possible.(and I'am drunk) If any one has anymore questions feel free to ask.

[luke91]

I may have a similar problem...

Shortly after completeing my SR swap, I began to notice a weird smell when I accellerate. For the longest time I could not describe it. Lately, I determined that it is burning gear oil. I only smell it when I accelerate a lot. Normal driving does not produce the smell.
why is that?

--Luke

[kapower]

have you checked your transmission fluid it could be low or old. also I think driving hard causes more burnoff inside of the tranny than normal driving. hard driving and old and or low trannsmission fluid would also cause exsesive burnoff. check your inner shift boot like I described in one of the above posts that is probaly your problem.