My wife’s 2001 Buick LeSabre has a fuel leak. The thing is it’s intermittent. Sometimes it smells like gas but not always. I don’t know if the fuel pump is in the tank on this car or not. If it is I’m guessing that can’t be it. It could be the fuel filter, but I believe that was changes just a few months ago. We bought the car from my in-laws last Feb. My father-in-law had everything he could think of done to it before he handed it over. Anybody ever hear of anything like this or have any suggestions? I’m not sure how to go about finding the actual point where the leak is occurring. My wife says the smell is coming from the front of the car.
Fool Around, Fool Around . . . Pretty Soon You Won’t Be Around!
Seriously though, I wouldn’t wait having a possible fuel leak checked out by a competent technician. It could be the evap system or a dangerous gasoline leak.
Does the gas smell come with a fuel tank fill-up?
Get it checked before we read about you in the newspaper.
CSA
We’ve only noticed the smell over the last week or so. The car hasn’t been filled up during that time. It doesn’t seem to correspond to anything in particular. It’s parked in the garage for 12 hours and there’s no smell. You drive it a short distance (2 miles) and when you come out an hour later it reaks of gasoline. However, the next time you take it somewhere (similar distance) it doesn’t smell at all. I am planning to work on it this weekend, that’s why I was hoping to get some advice. -thanks
Check the fuel injectors and their O-rings. If even a small amount of gasoline leaks onto the hot intake manifold, it doesn’t take very much to create the gasoline odor.
Tester
I Know You Said That The Smell Is Believed To Be Coming From The Front. You Are Correct That The Pump Is In The Fuel Tank. However . . .
. . . it’s pretty difficult to tell where the gasoline smell is coming from.
You can try taking off that plastic shield held onto the engine by the oil filler neck if this is a GM 3.8. You just twist the neck below the oil cap and Voila! off comes the neck and then the shield. That will give you a view of the top of the engine and possible leaky component. I’d do this on a cold engine.
Sometimes fuel filters do leak as you have mentioned. You can inspect the filter and lines under the car between the tank and the engine.
Also, I believe your car has an access panel below the trunk lining, between the spare wheel well and back seat, toward the passenger’s side. A small handful of screws hold an oval metal cover that when removed gives you a view of the top of the pump / fuel sender assembly and fuel line connections above the tank.
CSA