Fuel Smell after morning start and while boosting
 

Hey guys...

This is something serious, i know there're more than a thread talking about Fuel Smell but in different situations.

My engine is stock, except for the Fuel Pump which is Walbro, RE Amemiya Air Filter and the HKS Exhaust System.

it all began when I accelerating hard, , I smell fuel inside the car , but when i let off the smell goes away, i did some search on the net and i've read from atkinsrotary FAQs that smelling fuel from the engine is caused by a bad Fuel Pulsation Damper, so i bought a good like new pulsation damper from ebay (I would've bought a new one instead) and i got it installed.

After replacing the pulsation damper, after a period of time (1 month), the problem develops, when i first start the car in the morning, i smell raw fuel from the engine, i checked where is it coming from, and i noticed that it is coming from under the intake manifold section, could it be the pulsation damper that i changed?

Also i can sometimes smell fuel near tank, i really don't know where's the leak, since we don't have rotaty machanics here in Oman, i can't send it anywhere to be checked, to do so i have to take my car to UAE, Dubai, which is 400km from here.

it's really annoying and dangerous, i don't want my 7 to catch on fire :crying:

Do i need to replace my fuel lines? Do i need to get a new pulsation damper? Do i need to get a fuel pressure regulator? Injectors?

Please help guys...

Thanks a lot

I remember reading a similar symptom "theorie" had and actually posted a thread about a few months back. I believe the cause was one of the little grommets which sit in between the injectors holes on the block and under the injectors themselves. They can be positioned incorrectly when installing, which I think is what had happened to him. They're relatively cheap.

Also you can do a fuel pressure test without the upper intake manifold and see if you can spot the leak. I'm not sure which year you have but there was a fuel recall kit here in the states which replaced some of the components in the fuel rails. I did this a few months back when I had the same symptoms as you did. I didn't locate the leak but after putting replacing all the hoses, fittings and grommets I stopped smelling fuel. I paid 85 for the kit and 127 for the fpd from Ray Crowe at Malloymazda.

the most important thing first -> STOP DRIVING YOUR CAR
If you have it started in the driveway/garage, take a GOOD fire extinguisher with you (not the little things everyone has in his/her car... they do nothing)

Take the UIM off, uninstall your fuel rails give your injectors new o-rings
it will be also a good idea to send your injectors out for cleaning/flow testing as you are already here
change all soft fuel hoses if they are hard/old
take the fpd, throw it away as far as you could, and do this: http://www.banzai-racing.com/pd_elimination_how-to.htm

+1 ON STOP DRIVING IT

My first fd had a similar symptom. It started with a faint gas smell upon start up. Since it immidiately would go away I didnt find the cause right away. So I didnt worry about it very much and figured I would tear into over the weekend. Well yeah the car never made it to there. Lit up like a xmas tree. A 4 year old fd with very little miles and in perfect working condition was totaled. According to insurance investigator it was the injector o-rings.

Is the purge control solenoid and catch tank hooked up properly? If it is deleted you will often smell fuel under hard acceleration.

I see...
Well, i was away for 10 days and when i came back i gave it a start and the smell wasn't there at all, the next day i drove it still no smell, but now i can smell the fuel again, sometimes strong sometimes light smell...

I have a Walbro 255LPH fuel pump and a stock fuel pressure regulator, should i change the fpr?

I think also i'll have to change the injector o rings, i replaced the fuel pulsation damper with a like new one(like the ebay seller told me) i think i should buy a new one right?

it didn't have these issues before changing the fpd, last time i was only smelling fuel when i accelerate hard and sometimes light smell at the tank.

this all happened after replacing the fuel pump and the fpd.

what do you guys think?:scratch:

My Engine is a JDM 1993 13B.

I'm having similar problems after going with an aftermarket rail. My vote is the LIM-side injector o-rings. Had the same problem, could pressurize the system, no leaks, normal driving fine, boosting sprayed raw gas on top of my engine. But it could be anything, especially since we have rising-rate regulators. You're basically going to have to do as other suggested. Start by taking off the UIM and using the diagnostic box to pressurize the system and look for leaks. And another +1 for not driving until this is fixed. Fuel fires are nasty and there's not enough 7's to lose another one!

a friend had the same problem and i think it was a split fuel line. Pretty sure it happened to him more than once, and i think he had fuel on the LIM

i had this problem twice, it was a line situated under the hood close to the driver side.
Is dangerous since there is close to exhaust system. By the way if You have the same problem the line is very easy to replace.

well now the smell stopped, but still i have to do something about, because it will keep on coming back.
from your reply posts... Am going to purchase the o-rings kit, grommets and a new pulsation damper, and replace my old fuel lines, i hope that would do it.

Thanks a lot.

Yeah, for me it was the grommets. I replaced just about everything with no success. Finally, new grommets = no more fuel smell under boost.

Yes, I agree, i just replaced them like you said.
the Complete rings & grommets fuel rebuild kit, now thanks to God the smell is gone. :)

Thanks

Glad that worked for you.

You guys still running cats on your car??

Because I can tell you, smelling fuel is part of rotary ownership if you're running catless. :)

Ever since I got rid of the cats the car smells of gas/exhaust fumes. I kinda like it. Reminds me I'm driving something unique out there. ;)

Before anyone freaks, the car is 19yrs old. Of which I've owned her 15yrs. Since I started modding it (which is roughly 11yrs ago), smelling like "rotary" is just part of the owner experience. :)

Good to hear you found the culprit though.

Another option which I did not see anyone post is the Fuel Line Recall/Technical Service Bulletin that came out shortly after the cars began selling in the US. I've owned a few FD's with a blue sticker in the driver's side door jamb indicating a recall was performed. You can call Mazda and provide your VIN number. They can tell you if it was done.