Gas smell in passenger cabin.. Seriously?

[LibertyFreedom]

We have a 2003 Jeep Liberty 3.7L, 4WD, automatic, with about 150K. Recently and so far only in cold weather, the passenger cabin of our Jeep has been filling with gas emissions. Under the hood, it appears to be coming from the passenger side. There are no noticeable leaks in the lines and the fuel gauge is not dropping.

Any ideas as to what it could be? Our mechanic states that he is not equipped to deal with such an issue and that we must take it to a dealer so any thoughts would be helpful and appreciated! Thanks!

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

We have a 2003 Jeep Liberty 3.7L, 4WD, automatic, with about 150K. Recently and so far only in cold weather, the passenger cabin of our Jeep has been filling with gas emissions. Under the hood, it appears to be coming from the passenger side. There are no noticeable leaks in the lines and the fuel gauge is not dropping.

Any ideas as to what it could be? Our mechanic states that he is not equipped to deal with such an issue and that we must take it to a dealer so any thoughts would be helpful and appreciated! Thanks!

First things first: (welcome)

OK, let's make sure we're talking about the same thing as the title implies one thing but your post says something different.

Are you smelling gasoline or are you smelling gas-like emissions, such as exhaust?

If you're smelling gasoline inside the cabin but also under the hood - and specifically on the passenger side of the engine bay - then it would seem to be a leak in the fuel rail or one of the injectors. The fuel line from the gas tank runs under the driver's side of the Jeep, then up the firewall right next to the brake booster. You can see the rubber fuel hose where it connects to the fuel rail right next to brake fluid reservoir. So if you're smelling gasoline on the passenger side there would be a fuel leak somewhere on the passenger side fuel rail and/or where a fuel injector fits into the fuel rail and not in the fuel line coming from the gas tank. Make sure you're smelling it on the passenger side.

Now, if what you're smelling in the cabin is a burnt oil smell or gas exhaust smell I would bet you have a small oil leak from the passenger side valve cover. It is common for the valve cover gasket to develop a small leak; oil then drips from the cylinder head nearest the firewall and down onto the hot catalytic converter directly below it. There is no threat of a fire, but the oil burns immediately and smoke from the burnt oil rises and is drawn into the cabin air intake. The smell is not pleasant - very acrid and obnoxious. The good news is the valve cover gasket replacement is not difficult nor expensive if you are somewhat mechanically inclined. The pair of gaskets (one for each side of the engine) runs around $50 and about an hour or two of your time.

Give us some more clarity as to what you're smelling and we'll help out as much as possible. :waytogo:

Bob

 

[LibertyFreedom]

Thanks for the response, the wife posted this last night. More details.... it's not an oil smell but I will check that area just to be sure (wouldn't have thought of that right off the bat). It only happens intermittently and at varying levels and seems to only happen when cold (although not consistently then either). Last time I smelled it in the cabin strongly I popped the hood and started looking around. I didn't see any obvious leak around the fuel rail or injectors (did notice the fuel line came in on the drivers side and wrapped around the front to the passengers side). I could smell it in the cabin and towards the back on the passengers side under the hood, but could not smell anything on the drivers side. I did take it to the mechanic hoping he'd have better luck, but after he had it on the lift and looked all around it he couldn't find a leak either and told me the lines looked to be in good shape. I'm really at a loss here.... The other day the smell was so strong I think I could have ignited the fumes, then the next day very little if any smell... The only thing I could think of would be one of the injector O-rings starting to go (compression set maybe mixed with cold weather?). On a side note, both head gaskets were replaced 2 years ago, so I would have thought all the gaskets would have been replaced as far as injectors, intake manifold, valve covers, etc......

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

On a side note, both head gaskets were replaced 2 years ago, so I would have thought all the gaskets would have been replaced as far as injectors, intake manifold, valve covers, etc......

Hmmm, that might give us a clue. It is possible one of the injectors isn't seated completely in the fuel rail from the repair a couple of years ago. The rail has to be pushed down very firmly on the injectors and then there is a U-shaped clip that keeps the rail held to the injector. Could be one of them has loosened up to the point there is a a slight leak around the top of the injector and fuel is pooling in one of the cavities on the top of the head.

If you're willing to do it yourself, wait till the engine has cooled and grab a flashlight and a few paper towels. Using the flashlight look for the cavities around the injectors and press the paper towel down into the cavity. Pull it back out and give it the sniff test; if one of the cavities has some a gasoline odor the adjacent injector(s) could be the source of the fuel.

Keep us posted!

Bob

 

[LibertyFreedom]

Thanks! I'll give that a shot next time I smell gas (but probably not until this weekend).

 

[CactusJacked]

Could also be a leak in the evap system, letting gas fumes escape into the air. Sometimes that could trip an error code and check engine light, sometimes not.

 

[02blue]

I had a similar situation when I pinched an injector O-ring while putting one back in. Took a small nick out of the O-ring and would leak just enough to be annoying. Of course it was #6 on the passenger side at the way back where everything else seems to be located and in the way.

 

[LibertyFreedom]

Root Cause

Sorry for not updating in awhile, but we just figured it out a couple days ago. Last weekend it was about 40 degrees warmer than it had been and there was no fuel leak. My wife had me drive it to work one cold morning and I smelled a ton of gas so I popped the hood and finally saw where the fuel was coming from. The fuel rail on the passengers side where the cross over section hooks up to the main rail was pouring out fuel right on the back side of the joint. By the time I took it to the mechanic down the road to prove to him it was leaking it stopped. My guess is it was either a high cycle fatigue crack or from thermal cycles, but it seems to have a hairline crack that only opens up at extremely cold temperatures. Anyways, since I don't have a backup vehicle I'm letting the mechanic take care of it..... New fuel rail, new injector O-rings, new fuel rail seals, ... and he found 2 injectors with broken tips.... $618 + tax and will be ready tomorrow.....

 

[02blue]

Glad you found it! Those intermittent problems are the worst to find. They never happen when you need them to.

 

[CactusJacked]

Wow, good thing you saw that shooting out at the right time. Leaks like that can make for one nasty carbeque!