Dirty fuel door and gas cap?

[John93]

I have an 02 Sentra GXE and today I noticed that the gas cap and the area inside the fuel door is dirty, covered with a black sooty mixture of dirt and other stuff. Never in all my time owning this car had this happened, should I worry that this will cause problems in my car? And how do I go about preventing it from getting dirty?

A few days ago I replaced the air filter and changed the oil. As I was putting in the last 2 quarts of new oil in, it conveniently began to rain (I live in Florida, it has been raining a lot lately). For about 5 minutes me and my engine were exposed to elements, only covered by the hood of my car. I figured no big deal, since any water inside will probably evaporate on my next drive, or should I worry?

Last question - my oil dipstick is stuck inside the tube. For a while the plastic handle has been broken, but I could take it out without much difficulty. When I changed my oil the dipstick wouldn't budge, after a few attempts I accidentally chipped off more of the plastic, causing the dipstick to sink 1 inch into the tube. How do I get it out?

[jacjm]

i drilled a small pilot hole, and then put a screw in it- and pulled it right out.

[i68k]

just clean the gas cap and fuel door with soapy water, just make sure the gas cap is tight, so water doesnt go into the fuel. the black stuff is probably mold, you may live in a high humidity area (florida), so this is a common area for mold, around the trunk lining on the top is another area for mold. so as long as your gas cap is not leaking, you should be good.

a little bit of rain isnt going to hurt anything, not a few drops anyway. oil will prevent it from causing internal rust as long as the car is always driven and doesnt sit for extended period of time. otherwise just change the oil in case there is water in it. most likely, the water will condensate to the upper parts, and could cause internal rust, which is bad.

either you can take the entire dipstick tube off, or you could use maybe needle nose pliers or something. or take jacjm's idea, and drill a small pilot for a screw that you can grab, assuming theres still some plastic left. dont drill thru, you dont want shavings falling into the motor, just enough for a pilot hole.