Loss of fuel

[nonickatall]

Hello, a while ago my car started to smell of petrol every now and then. I kept checking to see if I could see anything but didn't notice anything.

Since I drive with LPG gas and only need petrol to start the car, it didn't bother me that much.

But now it's gotten worse and I've tried to find out where it's coming from.

Today, after I drove into a parking space on a sharp left turn, I noticed that a trace of fuel had landed on the asphalt under the car.

There is obviously fuel on top of the tank and then sloshes downwards when you go around a bend.

So I suspect that the fuel pump, which continues to run even when the LPG system is active, is leaking and fuel is running onto the top of the tank.

Have you ever had this happen to you?

What is the most likely cause?

A rusty fuel pump, a defective quick coupling, a broken fuel hose?

Merry Christmas to you all.....

 

[Scottydoggs]

the lock ring that holds the pump in the tank tend to rot out, then the pump is loose and the gas can come out the top hole. with a flash light and a mirror on a stick you should be able to see the top of the tank to see just whats goin on.

 

[rockola1971]

the lock ring that holds the pump in the tank tend to rot out, then the pump is loose and the gas can come out the top hole. with a flash light and a mirror on a stick you should be able to see the top of the tank to see just whats goin on.

Yup. The ring rots out and the fuel pump module is spring loaded so it pushes its head unit up and out of the tank leaving plenty of room for gas to slosh out of the tank OR there is also a possibility one of the fittings cracked/dry rotted and broke off and gas is sloshing out of there. That tank is going to have to come down. I recommend at the very least ordering a fuel pump lockring and oring gasket (some come with the oring) because you can bet the current one will show signs of corrosion if it has never been replaced. Here in the states the parts are very inexpensive.
Rockauto for a 2006 esky the 2 parts are $5 USD each.
Might even consider going ahead and replacing fuel pump module while the tank is down depending on history and time since last replacement.

 

[nonickatall]

I don't think that this is the issue, because of the fact that I drive normally with LPG which is in Germany half the cost of normal gas, my tank is mostly empty. I only fill up with 10 liters when it's going to be empty. Yesterday it was already close to "on empty" when the fuel came out. I guess the pump must pump the fuel on top of the tank..

I have a endoscope camera and I will look today if I can see something...

 

[Scottydoggs]

when you say lpg, thats a propane conversion right? uses a different tank and lines to the engine?

if so, you could have a bad line from the actual gas tank thats only going to leak when using the gasoline tank. id have to think when using lpg the gasoline pump is turned off.

 

[nonickatall]

Yes, this is a propane conversion, it has a different 100-liter tank for the propane. It has its own control unit in which the lines for the injectors are looped. When the gas system is on, the system simply interrupts the electrical impulses to the injector and switches on the gas injection nozzles. Since the injection times are determined by the engine electronics in the normal way, i.e. including O² sensors, air mass meter, temperature, etc., nothing else has changed in the engine. The fuel pump also just keeps running, as far as I know. I'm not entirely sure about that, though.

Anyway, I usually only have 10 or 20 liters in the fuel tank because the gas system needs a minimum engine temperature of 60°C and the engine initially runs on fuel when starting from cold. And it's obviously coming out above the tank. Actually, only a fuel line or the pump itself can be leaking.

Unfortunately, I've currently dismantled two cars on my two lifts. But tomorrow I'll get one of them finished and then I'll put the truck on the lift and take a look with the camera to see if I can see anything.

 

[Scottydoggs]

cool system you got there for the lpg, id agree, its got to be a line leaking, theres a number of hoses up top with quick disconnects, o rings inside fail the clips that keep them together fail too.

if you got a smoke tester that would let you know where the leak is coming from before ripping the tank out.

 

[89Suburban]

The metal lines coming out of the top of the pump can rust out and develop pinhole leaks. This happened to me. Took me a while to figure it out because I never saw gas on the ground.

 

[89Suburban]

Picture of mine for example.