Fuel Odor?

[pvisser]

Last time out last year I blew the main output shaft on my 1983 3.8l V6 OMC. As soon as this happened (at WOT) the boat of course cam to a pretty quick stop, and I noticed the smell of gasoline quite stringly. Well now, some 6 Months later, all is repaired, the engine runs great, drive works well to, however there is still a strong gas smell in the boat, No gas in the hull..<br /><br />Where should I be lookin?

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Fuel Odor?

Fuel lines & all connections.....JK

 

[elpaso]

Re: Fuel Odor?

Fuel tank vent and line.<br />Did tank shift ?

 

[pvisser]

Re: Fuel Odor?

Fuel lines & all connections

All seem good and tight..<br /><br />

Fuel tank vent and line.<br />Did tank shift

Hard to tell, I don't think the tank has moved. But would have to take out the floor to find out for sure. I don't really want to do that though.<br /><br />Is some fuel odour in the boat normal? I am thinking that maybe it was always there, and now I am just noticing it?

 

[Bondo]

Re: Fuel Odor?

Is some fuel odour in the boat normal? I am thinking that maybe it was always there, and now I am just noticing it?

No,..... Absolutely Not........<br /><br />You've been boating around in a BOMB........<br /><br />So Far,... You've been Lucky......

 

[pvisser]

Re: Fuel Odor?

The odour is NOT in the bilg (sp?).. <br /><br />Just in the seating area.

 

[MRS]

Re: Fuel Odor?

I have a 1970 120 merc and I do not smell fuel in mine. If I do something is wrong but I guess if you drive a truck and smell fuel all the time it would be ok? NOT if you can smell it it is not right.......

 

[Don S]

Re: Fuel Odor?

If you can smell gas inside your boat, that means there is a leak. <br />Where, and why you can smell it from the seating area can only be answered after locating the leak.<br />Since you smell gas inside your boat, find the leak, no matter what it takes and fix it before you put the boat in the water again. <br />Leaky tanks, leaky fittings, leaky fuel gauge senders, leaky pumps and filters, leaky carb, leaky _______ (fill in the blank) are all possibilities.

 

[KaGee]

Re: Fuel Odor?

These guys are right. <br /><br />I have the same setup as you. There is nothing I can think of directly or indirectly related to your drive failure that has anything to do with your gas smell other than coincedence.<br /><br />Pull the spark arrester off the carb and see if maybe there is a chance you are getting some run off from the fuel pump. (Clear tube going to the top of the carb).

 

[jch7450]

Re: Fuel Odor?

Is it comming out of the vent? i'v seen many boats filled to the brim, then the hot son hits it and expand out the vent

 

[sonus]

Re: Fuel Odor?

I also had a fuel odor issue on my 1984 aquasport,also not in the bilge.Turns out it was the fuel fill hose.Not an easy replacement because it was foamed in.At least I had a removable deck which gave me good access to the tank and hose.I could be wrong but I think they changed the construction of these hoses in the mid to late eighties to be more resistant to alcohol in the gas.With the different gas formulations used these days, it could be breaking down that fill hose and allowing fumes to permeate through,enough to stink up the boat but not enough to find any liquid gas.Thats what I think happened to me and my old fuel hose had 1983 stamped on it.It did kind of fall apart after I was through wrestling it out of the boat.

 

[rebars1]

Re: Fuel Odor?

If some fuel leaked into the foamed area of the boat it has saturated the foam and you will need to remove it to get rid of the smell.

 

[pvisser]

Re: Fuel Odor?

Well, I guess its time for some smoke and mirrors to see if one of those lines (vent or fill) have deteriorated. (Well maybe not the smoke ) Luckily my fill hose runs from the rear of the boat through the bilg to the fuel tank. The vent is another issue... I do have access to the tank gage via an access panel under the build in cooler box.<br /><br />Thanks so far. Will report the findings, when the rain stops.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Fuel Odor?

The Alternatives Could get Ugly.........<br /><br /><br />