fumes

[kramyad]

Im new to this site.. thanks everyone.
I recently bought a 1990 944 S2... convt... 64K miles.. always maintained and garaged.
Fumes:
When I drive with the windows open or the top down I smell gas fumes.
I've looked and there is no fuel dripping anywhere.
Timing Belt:
Also, the records kept shows the timing belt changed 8 yrs ago but there is only
7K miles driven. all the tensioners and the things required at the 60K mark was replaced.
Cruise Control:
When I activate the cruise, it wants to accelerate till I have to cancel it.
Other than those things.. this is an amazing car... I had a 69 corvette when I was 19 but now at 57, I needed another sports car, and this fits that niche with great satisfaction.. what a fun car to drive.
Also, Im concerned about the top, since its black, should I cover it with something while at work... I probably wont drive it in the dead of summer or winter.
Thanks, everyone again.
I've read lots of threads and this site rocks.

[John_AZ]

The belt needs to be changed. 8 years is too long.
The rollers should be fine.

Gas fumes. Check the injectors for bad seals.
It could be charcoal canister in the front wheel well that is cracked or the hose.

GL & Welcome
John

[rpetkus]

Do you smell gas only after fully refilling the tank? I smell gas as well only when fully filling. I found that the old lines are cracked get saturated if I fill the tank up too much. 1/2 tank, no problem. That doesn't fix the problem but may eliminate the smell.

[968 GUY]

Find a repair manual and parts catalog ASAP. These will help when people tell you to check something, believe me!
Check charcoal canister..not too sure abt S2's but prob. in driver side wheelwell behind fender liner. Check all rubber hoses. Ones to charcoal can, fuel tank venting, fuel filler venting, under hood especially. You dont want your nice cab burnt to the ground.
Really though, get the parts and repair man. Also Clarksgarage.com is very helpful.
Have same prob. w/cruise. Have not found an expl. yet.
Do change belts, will cost a bit, but not as much as a ruined engine.

[kramyad]

the fumes are always there whether the car is full or not, but I've never let the tank get under 3/4 full since I've only had it a few days.
The fumes are there when I get in the car also.
thanks, I will check the hoses etc....

[968 GUY]

Gas cap also.

[James Chimney]

Check the passenger wheel well, the gas over flow drains to that side and if disconnected it will sit in the well, I found this out the hard way

[VINMAN]

You talking gas or exhaust fumes?

[kramyad]

Def gas fumes

[CatsEyes]

As John suggested above, definitely check the injectors. I had the same smell, and a couple of injectors were leaking from the seals pretty dramatically.

From memory the fuel rail is secured simply by four screws, and if they're not aligned just right, the injectors won't seat well. It's a pretty crude system.

[kramyad]

Thks cat eyes, it seems like the fumes comes from the back, but I'm taking all comments into consideration, thanks every one.

[kdjones2000]

Pull up and remove your rear cargo carpet, peel off that glass cloth square on the passenger's side, and pop off the plastic disk. There you will find the fuel level sender.

I'll bet that you have gas either in that well there, or one of the hoses is seeping or cracked in the area.

The ultimate fix is to drop the transaxle/gas tank and replace all of the lines. If this still doesn't fix it, then replace the carbon canister, as mentioned above.

Good luck, Keith

PS: I think that this topic has been covered 100 times on 944 forums, it's very common with these cars.

[ERAU944]

well, i've got the fuel smell issue when i fill the tank. as mentioned by others, if i don't top it off i don't get the smell (say i only put 10 gallons in after the fuel light comes on).

There is no gas by the fuel sender, and no gas coming from the hoses connected to the filler neck. i just spent the evening pulling the cover for the hoses off, and the cover of the fuel sender off - when i got done i filled it up, and drove around a bit. when i got home there was no smell anywhere... but then i put everything back together, and of course the smell came back. i'm really annoyed by the smell and even more annoyed that it isn't apparently coming from anywhere particular. sometimes when i open the gas cap air comes out, sometimes not. can i safely assume that my gas tank is split?

[John_AZ]

Split, no.

It could be the fuel and vacuum hoses on top of the tank deterioated.

John

[speedracing944]

I was getting fumes when I filled past 10 gallons in the tank. Today while rotating my tires I decide to the investigate the integrity of the charcoal canister and hose. Here the hose was split 270 degrees around, near where it was connected to the canister. The canister looked fine but I replaced it anyways with a almost new one off my parts car. I installed a new hose as well.

Once it stops raining, I will take it to the gas station and fill up and report back the results.

Speedy

[ERAU944]

i checked around the charcoal cannister, and there is no smell up by the left front fender... while i'm under there replacing the motor mounts, i'll have a look at the hoses that run from the fuel tank towards the front. hopefully I can find the issue - the car has been kicked out of the garage while it's emitting the strong fuel smell.

as a side note, the hoses on top of the fuel tank by the filler neck are in great shape, no cracks or leaks - in fact they are all very pliable. should i have to drop the tank to have a better look at the hoses?

[wild man]

I once had an internally deteriorated short rubber line (the one going from the fuel filter to the steel line going to the engine compartment, if I recall correctly) that didn't start leaking until I replaced the filter a couple of weeks after I bought the car.

[vdubr928]

Your cruise needs a modulator. Not sure of install location but a rebuild shop could point you to it. Usually a couple hundred bucks rebuilt.

[wild man]

Originally Posted by vdubr928

Your cruise needs a modulator. Not sure of install location but a rebuild shop could point you to it. Usually a couple hundred bucks rebuilt.

Huh? Do you mean that his ride needs a new fuel "pulse damper"?? It IS true that the diaphragms in both the pulse damper and pressure regulator start to leak fuel through them when they get old. But i don't think it is a smellable leak because it leaks into the intake (sucked in by vacuum) and is burned.

[vdubr928]

Originally Posted by wild man

Huh? Do you mean that his ride needs a new fuel "pulse damper"?? It IS true that the diaphragms in both the pulse damper and pressure regulator start to leak fuel through them when they get old. But i don't think it is a smellable leak because it leaks into the intake (sucked in by vacuum) and is burned.

Not the source of fuel leak but the reason his cruise wont hold. (In his list of problems) the modulator is the brain.