gas fume smell from a 2001 Grand Am with 2.4 four.

[zl5600]

Have not actually looked at the car yet but daughters car every once in a while gives off a gas fume smell. For a while the mileage was poor but now it is back up to where it normally is yet the fume smell persists. Any idea's on where to start looking. Thinking the evaporative canister right off hand.

[GTP Dad]

Check the fuel connections at the fuel rail and at the fuel filter. Also it is possible that the vapor canister is saturated and causing the issue especially if this smell happens on a hot day. It is also possible that the O2 sensor is going bad and causing the engine to run rich that is why the fuel mileage may have been bad. All are worth checking.

[zl5600]

Originally Posted by GTP Dad

Check the fuel connections at the fuel rail and at the fuel filter. Also it is possible that the vapor canister is saturated and causing the issue especially if this smell happens on a hot day. It is also possible that the O2 sensor is going bad and causing the engine to run rich that is why the fuel mileage may have been bad. All are worth checking.

Car has new fuel filter and no signs of leaks. Fuel mileage is right where it is supposed to be now. Guessing the bad mileage was from lots of warm up time since it is Winter time driving so not hot weather what so ever.

[Tech II]

Really need to put the car on a lift......thoroughly check the lines.....fuel tank......rare it's the canister, especially if no EVAP codes.....

Check the vac line to the F/P regulator for fuel.....check the regulator itself.....rail rarely leaks, if no work was ever done to it.....

[zl5600]

Originally Posted by Tech II

Really need to put the car on a lift......thoroughly check the lines.....fuel tank......rare it's the canister, especially if no EVAP codes.....

Check the vac line to the F/P regulator for fuel.....check the regulator itself.....rail rarely leaks, if no work was ever done to it.....

I agree but like I had said earlier, it is not losing mileage and no fuel on the garage floor but will get her to take it to a garage just to be safe. Thanks.

[thephantom1492]

My cavalier was leaking fuel by the fuel injector oring. At first, there was no visible leak. As time went by, I started to see the fuel on the engine itself, at the end the leak was dangerous (started to look really wet) and... the car got totalled by a "blind" driver, aka someone that don't look where he was going and reared my car. Short story: 6ft wide by 10ft+ long rust trail in the street. Estimate: more than 2500$ of damage on a car that worth 500

The leak was really bad... Considering the rate of evaporation on an hot engine, I wouln't be surprised if it was more than a drop a second going out of the leak. Yet only wetting about 1 ft of the engine side. Zero drop on the parking.

In other words: it's not because the parking do not have gas that you do not have a leak.

p.s. Don't be as stupid as I was with a leak. A life is more important than a few bux for a repair. I now know that the repair would have been relativelly easy to do. If it would happend today, even if I'm as broke, I'ld find the money to fix it right away.

[Tech II]

Rare for an injector o-ring to leak, unless the rail was removed, previously....

[thephantom1492]

Originally Posted by Tech II

Rare for an injector o-ring to leak, unless the rail was removed, previously....

The car was 13 years old. Also, I think they started to include some ethanol in the gas around that time, so I wonder if the rubber was ethanol-safe. I read that even 5% ethanol can, in some case, cause such issues. Anyway, that car is no more, not even a block of metal anymore... not even shread pieces anymore... Melted and turned into something else... maybe some bikes?