GuidoCat

I smell a whole lot of gas when I start my car and pretty much the whole time my car is running. Also I get white smoke pouring out the back all the time. I majorly flooded my car recently. Could this stink and smoke come from fouled plugs?
Ron

RETed

First of all, be sure your pulsation damper is not leaking!&nbsp Pop the hood and smell for gasoline.&nbsp If you do smell gas, it's 90% likely the PD is no good.

If you don't smell gas under the hood, it could be that your fuel pressure regulator has failed or one (or more) fuel injector(s) are stuck open.




-Ted

HAILERS

This picture http://home.earthlink.net/~burntoast/images/rx7/maf.jpg and although this pic does not show it, just below and inboard of the boost sensor is that yellow connector with two wires. One black, the other brown. When jumpered, with the key to the on position, you pressurize the fuel rails. You then can look at the engine for leaks without the noise and heat of the engine interfering with your work. No leakage allowed. Take the dynamic chamber off so you can look at the fuel lines and pd. This picture http://www.rhichome.bnl.gov/People/s...ke_removed.jpg shows the pd. You know but just the same its the yeller cap looking outfit to your right on the fwd end of the primary fuel rail. Just above the most fwd intake hole.

sublimeracing

Hey Guidocat,
Get the PD checked on as soon as you can. I had the same problem w/ my 88T2 and thought I had some time before anything serious happened. Wrong! Engine caught fire melting every wire and hose in my engine bay. Now 6 months later and about $5,000 I should get my car back by x-mas. It might be the same or might not but definately get it checked out. I wish I did.

fc3s.org

Here is a pic of it that shows the screw that comes out. The diaphram is inside it. That is the part that goes bad and leaks and will catch your engine on fire. This is shown without the plastic cover that is usually covering it.

Rx-7Addict

iTrader: (2)

My T2 has the same problem.

Runs super-rich, fouls plugs, and fails emissions.

I need to change that fuel pressure regulator or PD as soon as possiable. How much are those and can I get them from mazdatrix, or would you reccomend something else?

Thanks

Good luck guido!

GuidoCat

One more thing...I've got the 3800 RPM hesitation really bad and I haven't fixed the ground wire yet. Could this computer issue be affecting my fuel mixture and making me run rich. It seems that it is my exhaust that smells so bad and not really under the hood. I haven't seen the car in a week because its getting painted so i might just not remember. Anyhow, could the smell be merely a result of really old bad plugs or the computer with the bad ground???
Ron

GuidoCat

my car isn't a turbo. Does it have a boost sensor? I wouldn't think it does.
Ron

GuidoCat

One more question gang.
Is the leak from a malfunctioning pulsation dampener or just a leaking one? Also, what is the purpose of the dampener? And where can I get one?
Ron

Flobb

Since you have the smell combined with the 3800 hesitation, I think you should go check your injector connector plugs real quick. I had the problem of the wires backing out of one of the plugs. It kept coming off the injector and gave me the hesitation and gas smell. Once I got that fixed both problems were solved. It's worth checking.

HAILERS

If you download the manual, you'll see that the N/A get a BOOST SENSOR and the Turbo gets a PRESSURE SENSOR. Talk about screwed up. See section 4A and 4B for 86=88. If you don't find a leak under the intake as in the pd or the fuel lines etc. think about checking out the water thermo sensor by the book. As someone said, if the ECU thinks the car is still cold(a defective water thermo sensor), it will feed an extra rich mixture . Also if your car is a 86-88, you have a variable resistor to set your idle mixture. A small chance that it could be too rich at idle. Wouldn't account for anything other than idle though. You really need to pressurize the fuel rails and find out if you do have an external leak. Have fun.

gvink

I can see how a leaking pulsation damper (PD) could cause a gasoline smell, but why would it result in a rich mixture (ie clouds of white smoke in the exhaust)?

And if the fuel injectors are leaking, that would account for the white smoke, but would you also smell fuel?

this is not an academic question, 'cause I've got the problem with occasional flooding/white smoke in the exhaust (esp. after the car has sat for a few days), which would seem to indicate leaking injectors. But I've also got a strong gasoline aroma on startup.

So which problem am I likely to have, or is it both? Car is an 87 NA, 90k miles. Any ideas from the other people who contributed (excellent) advice to this thread?

GuidoCat

gvink asks a good question. Which is also my question. Let me know if you find anything helpful. I guess the first thing that I'll do is find where the smell seems to come from. Then I'll check my wires going to my injectors. I'll also fix the ground wire on my computer. The gas smell seems to go with the white smoke more than from under the hood. I'm going to assume that I have too much fuel going into the engine. After that I'm going to change my spark plugs and fuel filter. If that doesn't work I'm going to need a PD. If anyone knows where I can get one cheap I'd like to get one. I haven't had a chance to look at the car yet because it's being painted and it won't be done until I go back to college. Any more tips would really help.
Ron

HAILERS

Gvink, the car could have a rich smell due to low compression which would also result in an unusual amount of flooding. Do the compression check. Also check out your water thermo senor. Its on the back of the water pump. Green in color. It tells the ECU if the car is warmed up. When the ECU sees a cold engine it injects more fuel. If the thermo senosr is defective it could be why you are running rich. Unfortunatly with the smoke at start up, it sounds like the oil control rings are getting a bit aged and leaking oil into the combustion chambers, especially when sitting overnite. Also could be leaking injectors, but I'd put my dough on a slightly worn engine. Go to the http://www.iluvmyrx7.com/Technical_I...ice_manual.htm manual for compression figures and how to checkout the water thermo sensor in section 4A or 4B.

GuidoCat

I think the water temperature sensor may be a good thing to check first. My car has another unique problem. When I start the car cold I have to tap the gas or it will die right away. If I tap it right after starting it, it will idle high like a cold engine should. Could the rich smell and this problem be related?
Ron

BBW

I had three experiences with gasoline smell with my 87 base.

The first time was the pulsation damper. The gasoline smell was very strong, even after the car had been parked overnight.

The second time was a leaking injector (I think it was one of the primary injector). The gasoline smell wasn't as strong, but I could smell it when the car was idling with the ventilation fan on. I didn't experience any flooding problem.

The third time was a leaking fuel line. I think that line was connected to the fuel rails. The gasoline smell was weaker than the leaking injector case.

gvink

an update on my problem (gasoline smell in passenger compartment, white smoke on startup, sometimes).

After taking apart the various manifolds, I discovered a leaking rubber fuel line to the bottom-most fuel rail (it had been replaced at some point and was about an inch too short!). So fixing that should solve the gas smell. Also checked pulsation damper while I was there and it's fine -- not leaking.

since i've taken apart everything, i'll send in the injectors to RC Engineering for checking and cleaning. also will be replacing vacuum lines with silicon. and will be decarbonizing the intake manifold -- it was gummed up pretty well.

also discovered that my six-ports weren't opening because the actuators were mounted without any GASKETS, so they weren't getting any compressed air to actuate.

will put it all back together and then start diagnosing the white-smoke on startup problem. glad I found the leak, though -- definitely a fire hazard.

ghebert

HI Guido, you can find a Pulsation Dampner at Mazdatrix.com for about 120.00. Just had a experience with a bad dampner, when that screw comes out it restricts your fuel going into your primary fuel rail. I had this after I put in a rebuild. I smelled gas and could not get the car running without pulling the plug and doing the ATF method and running my battery down all the time. Sometime when the screw falls out you'll hear a hissing sound coming from the dampner. It gives you a flooding symptom but your really not getting enough fuel. The white smoke could be you burning more air and oil than fuel? Take the cap off and see if the screw is there, if it is, plug the injector holes with your fingers and blow thru the fuel tube going into the dampner, there should be no restriction. I hope this helps let me know, I just hope I didn't ruin my rebuild because of this. I believe this had something to do with my first engin failure at 60,000 miles. Also it's good your having your injectors cleaned and balanced. RC does a great job. The things we learn at our own expense!!!!!!!!