gas smell in van while vent or heat is on ?

Question

took my van to the dealer and they told me that the smell was coming from the valve covers, which i dont understand cause there is no fuel that goes throught the valve covers.So i had them replaced at the dealer, and i still have the smell of gas inside the van.
I am thinking that it may be an exhaust leak or it could be a faulty fuel injector leaking?
anyone have any other suggestions?

Answer 1

If the dealer diagnosed the problem and didn't fix it, why don't you bring it back? Seriously, that's the most ridiculous diagnosis I've heard.
If you smell fuel when the heat or vent is on, then the smell is most likely coming from under the hood because the heater control is drawing air from the front of a vehicle. I would check all the fuel lines and connections for leaks / cracks. Also, check for a faulty vapor canister while you're at it.

Answer 2

Step 1: don't go to the dealer ;)
Step 2: Check for leaks where the fuel line comes up into the engine compartment all the way into the throttle body. If you're fuel injected, these are probably hard lines and should be fine. FI fuel is under such high pressure a leak is very obvious
Step 3: If you are throttle body injected or carbureated, check the seal between the intake manifold and the throttle body or carb. In older vehicles, this likes to get gaps. Vehicle will usually run like crap if there is a gap, so you could kill two birds with one stone. Unbolt the carb/throttle body, check for defects in both it and the intake manifold, and replace the gasket.
Step 4: Could be residual. It's a long shot but you could just have some gas in your engine compartment evaporating and getting pushed into your interior. It wouldn't be a strong smell though and it would get better with time. If this is the case, spend 4 bucks, get a can of Gunk engine brite, spray down under your hood, and hose 'er on out. It may be worth a try anyways and will make your engine shiny and clean.
Sorry for the long post, hope it helps.

Answer 3

If you smell unburned gas, you have a leak. The leak can be anywhere between the filler cap right down to the engine. Try the following tests.

#1. Fill the van full with gas, right up to the gas cap. Let it sit for 2-3 days. Come back and see if you can get more gas into the gas tank. If you can get more than 1-2 ounces, your leak is between the gas filler cap and the fuel pump on the LOW pressure side of the system. (Sometimes the fuel pump is inside the gas tank, sometimes it is up at the engine.)
Check for leaks at the filler cap, the filler pipe going down to the gas tank and the gas tank itself. (If you have a leak at the filler cap or filler pipe, you may notice that the smell is strong when you first fill the van with gas, then it gets weaker with time.)

If you can not get any gas in, then the leak is between the fuel pump and the engine on the HIGH pressure side of the system.
Check for leaks between the fuel pump and the engine. You may or may not smell gas.

#2. Once you did the above, start the engine. if the gas smell gets stronger, you got confirmation that the leak is on the HIGH pressure side of the system, between the fuel pump and engine.
If this is the case you have serious problem. With the fuel pump pumping gas out you got a big fire hazard. Also, since it is on the HIGH pressure side, the leak is only going to get worse.

#3. The worst kind of leak to find is one that ONLY happens at certain times, such as having a crack on the right side of the gas tank that only leaks when you make a hard left turn with more than 1/2 tank of gas. If #1 and #2 do not find the leak, get a note pad and start making notes as to when you smell the gas.

If it is an exhaust leak, that should not smell like gas. That can be check by having a muffler shop check the system.

Lastly, what you may be smelling is antifreeze coming from a leaky heater core. Have them pressure test your cooling system. You might be able to tell a difference in the smell if you run your AC with your windows open, get rid of the smell, then close the windows and turn on the heater. If the smell comes back and all you did was switch from AC to heater, you got your problem located.

Answer 4

Since the heater gets it's heat from the radiator water, via a heat exchanger, the likely source of the smell is a leak it the fuel line, somewhere in the engine compartment.

Now, the air from the heater does not come from the engine compartment. The air should be coming through vents leading from the front of the car's grill area. There may also be a crack in these air vents.

In any case, this condidtion could be very dangerous, both, because of the gas fumes in the passenger compartment, and the leaking fuel under the hood.

Answer 5

i mechanic for a living,and you probably didn't need the valve cover gaskets at all,anyway,if it is a gas smell it could either be a leaky injector or a exhaust leak ,either way it needs to be found and repaired,,dealers are like that ,they try and get you on everything they can,but id have a local garage look at it and see,it may be something that needs to be done as soon as possible,,good luck with it,hope this help,s.

Answer 6

Sound Like a exaust leak somewhere, U can buy some exuast repair kits from automitive stores ( temp fix) or what u can do is, let your car run on a cold day, and pop the hood after the engine has heated up, see if there is any smoke (exaust fumes) that come up out of the upper Exuast manifolds.

Answer 7

My car had an exhaust leak that did the same thing. Go to a muffler shop and have them look at your exhaust system. They should be able to tell if there is a leak.

Answer 8

A powerball winner! Yeah, that's it! Ok, so I can dream, can't I? Won't know who won until later tonight. Actually I smell like hair products. Visited my glam squad today before heading up to Idaho to buy lottery tickets. Whatever that shampoo or conditioner was that they used, MMMmmmmm! I smell GOOD!

Answer 9

My car does that sometimes too. I have a gas leak, but it's super small and the mechanic can't ever seem to fix it. I don't know what to tell you...I just live with it.

Answer 10

take it back to the dealer and tell them to fix it properly or give your money back for not fixing it. please verify that it is a gas smell(wipe you finger on the fuel inlet to verify smell) not antifreeze(will have a sweet like smell), if it smells like neither it an exhaust leak. this might help us help you.