Gasoline smell from vent

[raychan]

Can anyone help me?<BR>Something is happening to my car today, there's a strong smell of gasoline coming from the vent, and i can smell it from under the hood. Does anyone know what's happening?<P>Thanks a lot to help me.<P>Raymond <BR>93' GS

[pelado]

Better get your a-- under the hood and find out where the gas leak is or you might be talking to your insurance agent about the total loss of your MX-3 due to fire!

[Macen]

I can smell gasoline in the coupé when starting the engine after let it running. I can't see any leaks in the engine bay. It smells like it comes from the front of the car, and comes into the coupé via the ventilation.

Any suggestions? Is this dangerous? :p

[guyaverage]

YES it is dangerous, if not to you, at the minimum to the car. If you cant locate it, take it to a shop, ASAP, and dont leave until they locate the leak and fix it. Dont put this off.

I've had underhood fires before (Mustang 5.0, the fastest, torquiest, funnest and quite possibly the worst built car I ever owned). Trust me, once they start, your chances of opening the hood safely without getting burned are almost nil, and unless you have a fire extinguisher in hand the damage is so quick and permanent the car will literally be toast. "Gone in 60 seconds" isnt just the name of a movie.

[Juans_93_MX3]

Originally posted by guyaverage:
YES it is dangerous, if not to you, at the minimum to the car. If you cant locate it, take it to a shop, ASAP, and dont leave until they locate the leak and fix it. Dont put this off.

I've had underhood fires before (Mustang 5.0, the fastest, torquiest, funnest and quite possibly the worst built car I ever owned). Trust me, once they start, your chances of opening the hood safely without getting burned are almost nil, and unless you have a fire extinguisher in hand the damage is so quick and permanent the car will literally be toast. "Gone in 60 seconds" isnt just the name of a movie.

What made it the worst built car for you? Dont you know when you smell gas inside a car (any car) you should have it checked?

<small>[ November 17, 2004, 09:12 PM: Message edited by: Juan's MX3 ]</small>

[Mnemonic]

i had that smell awhile back it, but only when i cranked the car, it was a combination of crappy fuel and just cranking the car.

[guyaverage]

What made it the worst built car for you?

You want the whole list? How about just the top ten?
1. Rod knock, had to rebuild engine.

2. CONSTANT flooding.

3. Water pump puked. Oil pressure sender puked.

4. Power steering puked. Bought a new hose, I couldnt get old one off, didnt have right tool. Took it to the dealer. They said it was the wrong hose. It wasnt. I had to go to the dealer and SHOW the mechanic how to put it on. Freaking clueless...... They got the hose on. Then the pump quit. I gave up on power steering.

5. Rear spring broke while driving. THAT was fun.

6. Front end suspension looser than an $8 hooker.

7. Rust forming here, rust forming there. Rust forming everywhere.

8. Constant heating/ac problems. Worked when it wanted to. Or didnt.

9. Transmission that had a mind of its own. Shifted when it wanted to. Or didnt.

10. Lets not even talk about gas mileage. Not that anyone buys a 5.0 for mileage, but it was rediculous.

And those were just the good points......


All of this in less than 6 years and 70k miles. This was not an old car. I traded it for an Rx7. Good trade.

[Macen]

I can only feel the smell when starting the car. Not when standing still at idle after driving.
I have no EGR-sensor connected, since the connector is broken. Maybe that has something to do with it? Maybe too much fuel is injected when cranking?

[bubbaflaat]

My car kinda has that smell when i'm accelerating fast. But no other time.... I'm puzzled

[What]

Did you guys discover what the smell was? My wimpy SOHC did it once a few months back, and is did it consistently yesterday. Smells close the firewall, comes through vents...

no leaks from the injectors and nothing obvious from the fuel lines. Is there a fuel charcoal canister on these cars that gets plugged up? Or another common problem?

with -30 weather I haven't ventured under the vehicle, although I'll have to try to get into someones garage and under it today.

[Macen]

I found out that the bolt to the fuel rail was loose and leaked fuel. I also ventilated my charcoal canister by clowing air into it.

[What]

I notice the gas smell problem quite a few times doing searches, people definetely need to look into the problem as these cars get older.

I found the bottom line connecting to the underside of the likely original fuel filter may have leaked. It's the only spot I could find that showed like there may have been a path for gasoline coming down.

I spent more time trying to satisfy myself as to what the problem was then replacing things. I even pressure tested the old fuel filter as the bottom showed some rust.

While I was there, replaced PCV, all fuel lines, and stole the canister off of my parts escort.

So far, smell free.

There were actually spots along the ummm... drip line from the one line that showed like a bit of fire may have come accross it's path.

If it smells like fuel, check it and fix it! Especially with aged rubber lines!

[MrMX3]

I had this same problem one night and it turned out to be a faulty fuel filter, replaced it and everything was great.

[Bradmx32003]

Just wanna add that if your not too knowledgeable, you MAY be confusing this gas smell with exhaust. Same tihng happened to me, I had a crack in one of the pipes... but either way check it out fast... not just for your car.. but its not good to be breathing that in all the time.