Removed rear seat and now stuck with a vent that opens when driving

[Joshkim993]

Hey guys and gals,

Thank you in advance.
I got the chance to remove the rear sear for more cargo over this weekend.

But came to a problem, hope someone on this forum solved as it seems like a problem for everyone who removed their rear seat.

So after the rear seat removal. The vent on the back wall in the center (photo attached) opens due to the air flow coming when driving over 20kms per hour.

Apparently this vents out to the bottom of the truck so when the door closes it doesn’t break a window or what not.

The problem of this vent opening when driving is huge.. Road noise and also interior temperature wise.

Can I ask fello Maverick owners who deleted their rear seat, how you solved this vent to be quiet but yet still functional?

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[Lane]

I have a side-note to share -

I built a kit car using a donor car, but the vent was no longer present after my construction was done. The car's doors required a surprising amount of force to close and all the door glass moved when slamming the doors as hard as they needed to be. It was scary and showed that the vent was needed so I added it back in.

So it would not be wise to get rid of that vent. Build a low tech baffle or muffler for it. Cover it with a cardboard box and remove the left and right ends of the box. Fill the box with polyester fiberfill (passes air but will muffle noise). Or put a layer of foam or fiberglass insulation on the box's internal surfaces. I wouldn't think the box would need to stick out from the back wall of the cab more than 3 inches or so. Should still allow enough airflow at that size.

In my Mav, I've driven with the rear seats removed while I was building my audio system. I had more sound/noise coming into the cab from the foam block off (over the factory subwoofer hole, on the passenger side) than thru that vent. See the red arrow below.

I was surprised how well the seat's carpet and foam normally muffles it. Regardless, that problem was easily fixed with the volume knob on the radio until the seats went back in.

 

[Tiger Dude]

The vent is "opening" when the seat is in, you just don't hear it.

 

[Msradke]

normal condition. Is ventilation thru cab. Bring fresh air in. They are closed in max air , will intermittently open in recirc mode . This is done by design , it is in owners manual.

 

[Tbone289]

normal condition. Is ventilation thru cab. Bring fresh air in. They are closed in max air , will intermittently open in recirc mode . This is done by design , it is in owners manual.

That's not the vent that we're talking about here...

 

[notfast]

Can I ask fello Maverick owners who deleted their rear seat, how you solved this vent to be quiet but yet still functional?

My first thought is to build something that looks maybe like a dryer vent cover and put egg-crate foam (or even carpet padding) on the inside. The downward-facing opening should redirect road noise toward the floor and the foam on the inside should muffle the noises further.

You could definitely 3D print something, if not build it out of 1/4" plywood. Heck you could probably build one out of a cardboard box as a proof-of-concept and use it as a template.

 

[Msradke]

That's not the vent that we're talking about here...

The first picture shows the center . There are also 2 side vents by wheel houses. The next picture is an access cover. Would like to understand which vent you are talking about.

 

[Surly Old Bill]

Same. Having the seat in really blocks the noise.
I'm going to eventually build a storage cabinet/shelf to cover the back wall, and that should block some of the vent noise.

While driving, putting the front vents "recirculating" mode drastically reduces the rear air escape vent noise. Cuz no new air is coming in and ther flap doesn't need to open to let it out.

I haven't done it yet, but thought about temporarily sticking a piece of cardboard or rolled up towel in front of the air escape vent. It should be noted that blocking the vent will make it more difficult to shut the doors with the windows up. The one in my Transit(not Connect) is partially blocked by walls I put in, and to get the slider to close easily I have to open the front door a crack. The front doors are easier to shut

 

[Tbone289]

The first picture shows the center . There are also 2 side vents by wheel houses. The next picture is an access cover. Would like to understand which vent you are talking about.

We're talking about the one in the first two pictures, but it's not controlled by the AC system and doesn't bring in fresh air as you stated. It's an air extractor that is forced open any time that internal cabin pressure is higher than external air pressure to relieve pressure in the cab. This vent isn't mentioned in my manual, but maybe your manual is different?

 

[Msradke]

We're talking about the one in the first two pictures, but it's not controlled by the AC system. It's an air extractor that is forced open any time that pressure in the cabin is higher than external air pressure to relieve pressure in the cab. This vent isn't mentioned in my manual, but maybe your manual is different?

not directly controlled by a/c system but part of it. Yes they are pressure vents but also vents when a/c system in outside air mode. It is in my manual in the hvac section which explains there operation. They will open and close while in recirc mode to allow fresh air in the cabin . the only time they will closed all the time is in max a/c.

 

[Tbone289]

not directly controlled by a/c system but part of it. Yes they are pressure vents but also vents when a/c system in outside air mode. It is in my manual in the hvac section which explains there operation. They will open and close while in recirc mode to allow fresh air in the cabin . the only time they will closed all the time is in max a/c.

It will be forced open more frequently in outside air mode because outside air mode creates more cabin pressure. However, it doesn't bring in outside air and that is not the only time it will open. Closing the doors, opening the windows at high speed, etc, will also open that vent because high cabin pressure (relative to outside) forces it open. It operates independently of the climate control system.

 

[EffNo50]

The first picture shows the center . There are also 2 side vents by wheel houses. The next picture is an access cover. Would like to understand which vent you are talking about.

If you lower (open) the top of the rear seat like you are going to access the factory jack (at the bottom of the picture) the vent in question is right there just above and behind the jack.

 

[Msradke]

I do understand how they work. 45 plus years dealer tech

 

[HeyBales]

not directly controlled by a/c system but part of it. Yes they are pressure vents but also vents when a/c system in outside air mode. It is in my manual in the hvac section which explains there operation. They will open and close while in recirc mode to allow fresh air in the cabin . the only time they will closed all the time is in max a/c.

Those are not the vents that have anything to do with recirc or fresh air mode on climate control.

Those vents are up under the dash.
Take your glove box out, and cabin air filter, and you may be able to see sunlight if bright enough out, looking up thru where the filter was.
Turn truck on - mess with fresh/recirc modes and note the movements to the left, and the change in sunlight filtering thru.

The only thing the vents under discussion have to do with that is in flesh air mode and extra air in needs a place to go out. But as early post shares - even more important for door closing and window rattle.

There is no ability to "only time they will be closed all the time" - because it's a flapper.
I discovered driving with seat down - even in recirc mode it was being pulled open probably by low pressure under truck - made a racket.
Though it might have been good listening for some sounds of truck running - perhaps suspension noises.

 

[Tbone289]

I do understand how they work. 45 plus years dealer tech

My apologies. The way you worded your comments made it appear to me that you didn't.

The succinct way to state how the air extractor vent works is that it passively reduces cabin pressure. It is basically a one way pressure valve allowing air pressure out, but not in.

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