Strong Petrol smell in my Vn

[SAMO-87]

Hey all,

I have noticed that when I have a full tank of petrol, there is a strong smell of petrol aound the filler area. It is starting to annoy me, so I decided to investigate.

I have been told that it is the breather pipe from the tank. Which, when the tank is full releases fumes.

Just wondering if anyone has had the same sort of thing, and if they have fixed the problem?

Any help much appreciated

Sam

[jolly_97]

my car smells like fuel when i fill it right up. but by right up i mean trickle fill until the petrol starts overflowing :-P every now and then i get a little whiff or petrol but not too often. im sure its nothing too serious mate

[Lost_Pete]

It is a common problem. There are some breather pipes from the top of the tank to a canister near the filler pipe. The hoses perish and often break off. Take the guard in the wheel well and expose the filler pipe. You will see the canister and hoses. Check for cracks and breaks along the hoses.

I replaced mine with fuel line and hose clamps. You need to drop the tank a bit (not all the way) to access the top where the hoses connect to the tank.

Also check the filler pipe and hose and the other pipe running to the bottom edge of the tank.

[SAMO-87]

Thanks mate, thats really helpful. I'll give it a go on the weekend.

Thanks

[vn calais manual]

ahh how full..... you know you wreck these hoses by overfilling our tank.. til it is overflowing is not good for your car, them vent lines as said go to the canister which vents the fumes from expanding petrol vapour back into the inlet manifold, by overfilling you are putting fuel in a vent line. it stuffs up the material in your canister blocking it up

[RockyVX]

..depends on the line

Had the abbo next door pull mine out in an attempt to milk the tank the other year. Cheeky bugger!

Just make sure your tank is pretty empty before playing with the line. It's easier to drop the tank 20cm than twist your arm in 50 places. and its easier to lift a 15kg tank with 10L of petrol, than a 15Kg tank with 75L of petrol!

[vn calais manual]

..depends on the line

Had the abbo next door pull mine out in an attempt to milk the tank the other year. Cheeky bugger!

lol! hahaha i like that

[wrx884]

It is a common problem. There are some breather pipes from the top of the tank to a canister near the filler pipe. The hoses perish and often break off. Take the guard in the wheel well and expose the filler pipe. You will see the canister and hoses. Check for cracks and breaks along the hoses.

I replaced mine with fuel line and hose clamps. You need to drop the tank a bit (not all the way) to access the top where the hoses connect to the tank.

Also check the filler pipe and hose and the other pipe running to the bottom edge of the tank.

AAhhh i was just bout 2 start a new thread till i read this i just filled up my car 2day n noticed fuel was spilling (only while i was filling up) out down the the same side of the tank could these hose ur talkin bout b the problem i have? i didnt get a chance 2 take the inner guard off but only hoses i could see was a 2" roughly hose connected 2 the tank with some clamps and then a smaller hose running horizontal infront of that big hose r they the hoses i need 2 replace?

[Lost_Pete]

The breather hoses are small hoses probably about 10mm in diameter (guess). You need to take the guard off. The big hoses are much thicker and probably okay unless you can see a split or hole.

[308vkcalais]

Did these just recently on my son's VN only we just removed his tank completely for a paint & new fuel pump.I did sum yrs back aswell in my VKC.Mine were fossilised & just broke up as soon as I touched them.The thinner 'Vapour' lines u can buy anywhere, however the thicker black 'Vent' pipe(made of plastic on VN's) is difficult to buy as it has to be fuel resistant.We just went to Clark Rubber.Pirtek & joints like that would sell the thick pipe also...

[RockyVX]

yeah. its the smaller hose. While you have the tank dropped, its probally a good idea to clean all the crap outa the bottom of it at the same time (not sure if thats what your saying 308).

also try repco and coventry for the hose. between those two, you could almost build a complete VP. For a budget price of only around $70,000 !

[wrx884]

i went 2 repco askin bout these brether hoses they said they didnt have nething like it?

[azkwazere]

Just to also note, fuel smells can be casued by:

Damaged or warn petrol cap - Replace/renew @ $20ish
Damaged or Warn breather hoses - Replace Renew (i have no idea, not much)
Worn fuel rail intake o ring - Replace/Renew ($3)
Worn Fuel Return Lines - Replace Renew
Worn Pressure Regulator (or lines) - Reaplce/renew

aZk.

[308vkcalais]

Fortunately his tank is still out so I snapped this.We used Goss 5MM Fuel Hose or the Automotive Fuel hose 3/16th in the old money.Both are freely available at most car part shops & u can buy it by the metre.It'll take arnd 2mtrs of thin stuff to do all the thin plumbing & set u back a few $.For the thick black 10cm pipe we used the clear reinforced pipe with Fuel/Food Ressitant 0622205 printed on the side from Clark Rubber for arnd $2.Bearing in mind it is not a fuel delivery pipe but merely a breather.I had truble buying the thick pipe yrs ago 4 my Calais so I went to Pirtek & bought the real heavy Industrial stuff cost me around $22.This was of course before I found out most of the Fuel/Gas hoses u'll eva need for your car are available at Clark Rubber.

[wrx884]

thanx 4 the pics 308vk i know wat im lookin 4 exactly now haha hopefully this is all thats wrong with mine

[308vkcalais]

Cool, np's.Jst becareful ramming the thin hose on the breather canainster nipples as they're plastic & may break off.Slip a bit of fag grease on there 1st....

[wrx884]

Well finally gettin around 2 fixing my leakin problem i took off the stone guard 2day 2 have a much closer look, as i suspected i thought it would b the fuel filler hose pipe that that connects 2 the filler pipe and the fuel tank but im not so sure its leakin from there now? tho i noticed some cracks in each of the smaller hoses thats in the pics below.

Can some explain 2 me how this section works wen u go 2 fill ur car up? then i might b able 2 work out where its leakin from, coz really thats the only time mine leaks.

[Lost_Pete]

Two of the breather hoses go to the top of the tank. You probably find that these have cracked and broken off. When you fill the tank up fuel comes out of these broken breather hoses from the tank.

Follow the breather hoses and see where they go. If they just end nowhere then they have broken off.

[wrx884]

do i have 2 drop the tank fully 2 do this?? also in the 2nd pic theres a short hose thats been cut off and has a self tapper screw in it, is that normal or ment 2 b closed off? wats that thicker hose on the left hand side of the filler pipe 4 and go 2?

[Lost_Pete]

I have a wagon so there are some differences between a sedan.

The broken line with the self tapper is one end of the hose. It should go to the top of the tank. Someone has cut the hose and plugged it and may have done the same for the other end.

Here is what I did when I changed the fuel pump, remember that it is for the wagon. I believe that the sedan has some of the pipes running through a hole in the chassis.

1. Do this when the tank is empty.
2. Support the tank using a trolley jack and a large piece of wood to spread the load on the bottom of the tank.
3. Loosen the large filler hose clamps. It may pay to disconnect the fuel pump and sensor connectors. TRY NOT TO REMOVE THE SMALLER HARD PLASTIC PIPE AS IT IS A PAIN TO GET BACK ON.
4. Undo the two bolts holding the tank strap on.
5. Lower the jack slowly and check for any hoses or cables. I dropped it about 100mm, just enough to see and reach the top of the tank. It did need some help as some of the tar stuff kept it up.
6. You should see two hoses or the pipes they are attached to.
7. Replace the hoses and run them back to the filler area. I used clamps and fuel line.
8. Jack the tank up and refit the bolts.

This guy has some photos which may help;

some of the hoses will need replacing, these hoses dont have petrol constantly through them so what should i replace them with? is the plastic tube sufficient?

also what can i do about the overflow for the tank, its solid plastic with a metal inlay i think. its rock hard and impossible to bend and will make putting the tank back on a mission.

Overflow

Originally came through that gap directly above the hose and red circle.


state of the hoses


more hose

Original thread;
Fuel pump issues

[iRiot]

i busted mine off out bush picking up my brother in law up from work and didnt notice till i lost 1/4 a tank of fuel need had to drive a hour without it being on to get home from bust and fix it i was not happy lost half a tank and when the presurre builts up it flows alot quicker rofl!!

[Lost_Pete]

Re: Hoses

I took the remains of the hoses down to Repco/Supercheap and matched them up to fuel line hoses. Other people on this forum have said that Clark Rubber have a range of fuel resistance hoses that they have used. My local car parts place also had hoses to suit. I also bought clamps to suit. Don't try to join the broken hoses together as it doesn't last (I tested this). Also be very careful about removing the hose from the black canister as the nipples feels fragile.

Gates list in their catalogue "Safety Stripe II" hose and "Fuel Filler Neck Hose" which your spare parts place should be able to get for you.

[slo_firo]

i couldnt figure why my VG reeked of petrol at all times - turned out to be a dodgy weld job on the tank around the fittings.... that tank got turned into a nice garden ornament.... and now probably houses a family of rats lol

i couldnt believe there would be someone dumb enough to repair a tank put it back in the ute and leave it seeping

[wrx884]

thanx 4 the info and pics pete i managed 2 go down 2 holden 2 find out exactly all the hoses and lengths i needed they dont supply the vapour hoses nemore so couldnt find out the lengths of each hose but they said basicly wat u have already said which i did 2day, went down 2 repco got 3 metres of 4.8mm fuel hose (mayb bit extreme on length) got it 4 $10.80 + filler hose tank pipe (part number 92038129) from holden $5.50 so all up its gonna cost $17 2 replace all the hoses back 2 new im gonna give this a go in the next few weeks

[Lost_Pete]

Good stuff. Hope it all goes well. Just remember that the smaller hard black hose is really hard to get back on so try not to take it off.