Leaking gasoling out manifold?

[txcougar]

I hope you guys can help us out. My brother in law has an 83 Buick Lesabre with a 307. He claims iIt appears that gasoline is somehow leaking out the exhaust manifold and it has been terrible on gas mileage since he bought it a couple of weeks ago. He's also smelled gas coming from the engine compartment at times. It seems to be running okay other than this leaking gas and it only seems to leak when he first starts the engine? Hope someone can help.

[MagicRat]

Its likely the carburetor is bad, either the float has sunk or the needle and seat is bad. Either way the float bowl is being over filled and gas is flooding into the engine.

[quaddriver]

Originally Posted by MagicRat

Its likely the carburetor is bad, either the float has sunk or the needle and seat is bad. Either way the float bowl is being over filled and gas is flooding into the engine.

The E4MEs are pretty easy to rebuild, the kit is about $30 and will take a person with average ability about 2-3 hrs, plus cleaning time. throttle plate seals always go bad (usually need bushed) and the tiny bowl leaks into the bleed passage - does it idle like crap?

also, dont discount a bad cylinder not lighting the mix....Y-codes aint the best of motors....do a bit more research then report back

[txcougar]

You guys were right bought a a kit for the carburetor and it took care of the problem. Thanks for the help!