Slight gas smell on oil dipstick

[Newkidonthebloc]

Hey all,

Soo.. I am still a newbie and therefore have no idea if this should be normal but it is better to be safe right..

Last summer i got the car with fresh oil and a new filter. I drove it around 2000 miles and, with my country being relatively small, the car usually gets out and runs about 1-2 hrs with a 1 or 2 short stops. I recently noticed a gas smell on the oil dipstick. I rebuild the carb last summer aswell, however, I must admit that I think it is still running a bit rich. In addition to that, I started the car and let it warm up a few times during winter. I wonder if this would be enough to make the oil smell slightly gassy (its noticable). I plan to change the oil this week but I held off because I might aswell put a new fuel pump on it when I am at it. Should I just get a new fuel pump for cheap insurance or check the pressure and keep rolling with it. (I plan to take the carb of and go through/retune it aswell.)

Best,

Thom

 

[cbodybob]

Hey all,

Soo.. I am still a newbie and therefore have no idea if this should be normal but it is better to be safe right..

Last summer i got the car with fresh oil and a new filter. I drove it around 2000 miles and, with my country being relatively small, the car usually gets out and runs about 1-2 hrs with a 1 or 2 short stops. I recently noticed a gas smell on the oil dipstick. I rebuild the carb last summer aswell, however, I must admit that I think it is still running a bit rich. In addition to that, I started the car and let it warm up a few times during winter. I wonder if this would be enough to make the oil smell slightly gassy (its noticable). I plan to change the oil this week but I held off because I might aswell put a new fuel pump on it when I am at it. Should I just get a new fuel pump for cheap insurance or check the pressure and keep rolling with it. (I plan to take the carb of and go through/retune it aswell.)

Best,

Thom

Probably a bit rich. Been there done that. Not a bad idea to send off an oil sample. I use Blackstone labs here in the states. Cheap & quick.

 

[dvw]

We used to test cars that had fuel flooding at the dealer. See if the oil on the stick lights with a lighter. If it does it definitely needs an oil change.
Doug

 

[Big Bad Dad]

I had a fuel pump diaphram leak on a 318 many years ago, which let gas get into the oil.

 

[Slap Stick]

Never, ever start a car and let it "warm up". The engine never gets warm enough to burn off condensation. It also runs on the choke which adds to the over rich problem and washes down the cylinders, which puts more fuel in the crankcase that doesn't burn off. If you are going start it, drive it. And not just around the block. It also burns condensation from the exhaust. If you can't do that its better to let it sit. Fog the cylinders for the winter layover.

 

[Newkidonthebloc]

Never, ever start a car and let it "warm up". The engine never gets warm enough to burn off condensation. It also runs on the choke which adds to the over rich problem and washes down the cylinders, which puts more fuel in the crankcase that doesn't burn off. If you are going start it, drive it. And not just around the block. It also burns condensation from the exhaust. If you can't do that its better to let it sit. Fog the cylinders for the winter layover.

That is good advice. I did that a couple of time and will not do it any more. Thanks!

 

[Newkidonthebloc]

We used to test cars that had fuel flooding at the dealer. See if the oil on the stick lights with a lighter. If it does it definitely needs an oil change.
Doug

The oil and filter will be changed regardless. I was wondering if I should just change the fuelpump while I am at it and whether it is normal for the oil to become gassy in this amount of time/miles.

 

[dadsbee]

Stop sniffing your dip stick...

 

[Newkidonthebloc]

Stop sniffing your dip stick...

Hahaha XD

 

[WileERobby]

If you have gasoline odor in the oil in that short period of time, there's a chance your oil is getting diluted by fuel leaking in from the mechanical fuel pump. Did you check your plugs for a rich condition ? If it happens that fuel is diluting the oil, you must correct this asap.

 

[Newkidonthebloc]

If you have gasoline odor in the oil in that short period of time, there's a chance your oil is getting diluted by fuel leaking in from the mechanical fuel pump. Did you check your plugs for a rich condition ? If it happens that fuel is diluting the oil, you must correct this asap.

 

[slepr1]

I would hold off on the pump for now. Change your oil, don't warm up, take long enough trips to get the temp up and check your spark plugs. I think its a combination of your short warm-ups, choke and could be running a bit rich.

 

[Newkidonthebloc]

I would hold off on the pump for now. Change your oil, don't warm up, take long enough trips to get the temp up and check your spark plugs. I think its a combination of your short warm-ups, choke and could be running a bit rich.

I have posted some pictures of the spark plugs I pulled after the last trip above. However, being a newcomer I am not that confident in my plug-reading

 

[VFilms]

If you can, check the pressure from the fuel pump. I had a similar issue some years back with a new fuel pump. Checked the pressure and found that the 'new' pump was putting out 11 lbs of pressure. Way too much. Change the pump again and solved the problem.

 

[Newkidonthebloc]

If you can, check the pressure from the fuel pump. I had a similar issue some years back with a new fuel pump. Checked the pressure and found that the 'new' pump was putting out 11 lbs of pressure. Way too much. Change the pump again and solved the problem.

I check the pump-pressure yesterday. It puts out between 4.5 and 5 psi. Also after shutting down the engine the pressure slowly drops to 0 in about 45-60 seconds. The site that I normally use to order parts from states that these pumps are specified to deliver between 5.5 and 6.5 psi. The pressure being lower than the minimum and not knowing how long it is on the block already (with out pre pump filter) I think I will just replace it to be sure..

 

[moparedtn]

I check the pump-pressure yesterday. It puts out between 4.5 and 5 psi. Also after shutting down the engine the pressure slowly drops to 0 in about 45-60 seconds. The site that I normally use to order parts from states that these pumps are specified to deliver between 5.5 and 6.5 psi. The pressure being lower than the minimum and not knowing how long it is on the block already (with out pre pump filter) I think I will just replace it to be sure..

Unless you're planning on doing some competitive events with the car, that pressure will be fine for most
street activities. Of more concern is whether it's leaking into the oil, which is easily verified by simply removing
it from the block and looking/testing.

As an aside, I don't run a choke on my own 440 - I don't like chokes in general, never did.
Most of my critters over the decades didn't need a choke to warm up - once you've "babysat" the car for a couple
minutes on initial cold start up, clearing its' throat is usually enough for it to run on its' own from there.

As long as its' not running pig rich, letting a car sit and warm up is not harmful and I don't understand those
who say they never get hot enough just sitting there running - heck, that's when they typically reach their
hottest operating temperature, sitting still with only fan air to cool the radiator...
Think bumper-to-bumper traffic; same deal - no movement = "she's getting HOT!"

I don't start one up stone cold, get it to hold an idle and then walk away from it for a while, ever....
I blip the throttle, clear her throat, that sort of thing a few times along the way until it's close to operating temp.
What I don't do is drive one cold or cool...that's when higher wear occurs and yeah, driving one "on the choke"
can certainly lead to some excess fuel in the oil later.
I only put "load" on an engine after it's reached minimum operating temperature; it'll "tell" you when it's good
to go.

 

[Newkidonthebloc]

Unless you're planning on doing some competitive events with the car, that pressure will be fine for most
street activities. Of more concern is whether it's leaking into the oil, which is easily verified by simply removing
it from the block and looking/testing.

As an aside, I don't run a choke on my own 440 - I don't like chokes in general, never did.
Most of my critters over the decades didn't need a choke to warm up - once you've "babysat" the car for a couple
minutes on initial cold start up, clearing its' throat is usually enough for it to run on its' own from there.

As long as its' not running pig rich, letting a car sit and warm up is not harmful and I don't understand those
who say they never get hot enough just sitting there running - heck, that's when they typically reach their
hottest operating temperature, sitting still with only fan air to cool the radiator...
Think bumper-to-bumper traffic; same deal - no movement = "she's getting HOT!"

I don't start one up stone cold, get it to hold an idle and then walk away from it for a while, ever....
I blip the throttle, clear her throat, that sort of thing a few times along the way until it's close to operating temp.
What I don't do is drive one cold or cool...that's when higher wear occurs and yeah, driving one "on the choke"
can certainly lead to some excess fuel in the oil later.
I only put "load" on an engine after it's reached minimum operating temperature; it'll "tell" you when it's good
to go.

I fully agree with you. The pressure is probably fine but due to the nice weather closing in I probably just replace the pump since it is cheap and relatively easy to do (I'll just have a spare fuel pump on hand).

I never start the car for just a few minutes. When I say I warm it up I let it run for at least 20 minutes and have it reach full operating temp with the coolant from the rad circulating.

Also important: I have an electric choke that opens fully with in a minute (only closed during initial start up. I also stay with it and bump the gas now and then to make sure the throttle is not stuck on the fast-idle cam.

I also ALWAYS wait for the engine to reach full operating temp before driving it anywhere.

However, I think the carb is the problem and therefore it is running rich. I will look into that asap.

 

[Don Frelier]

Sorry Ed but I disagree with most of your aside comments above.

A properly adjusted choke will allow the engine to start quicker, easier and with less chance of fuel wash on the cylinders.
An accelerator pump shot is not very well atomized and this is not a good thing.

For example you get in a cold car pump it 3 times crank and it fires then quits while you "feather" or pump the pedal to keep it from quitting.
But you just shot some fuel in there before it quit but now your guessing how much fuel to put in there so you pump it another time then fire it etc...
Almost inevitably in this instance someone will end up sending too much raw fuel via the accelerator pump down there. (Flooded or partly flooded situation on a cold motor)

When this happens you are washing the oil from the cylinder walls and creating irreversible wear.

I think we both agree a cold engine causes wear since they are designed to run at operating temperature.

The quickest way to warm up an engine is to drive it slow and put a load on it. Here again if the choke is set properly it should open more quickly while the engine heats up. As long as you have good oil and oil pressure I drive it nice and easy.

I never start and warm up my cars over the winter there is no benefit besides additional wear, gas usage and contaminating the oil. They get shut down in November and sit with the throttle body or carb covered and the exhaust plugged until April (or sometimes May) around here.

For all these reasons that’s why the traditional carburetor has been replaced by fuel injection.

It’s not unusual to see cars with 300,000 miles that run well these days. Back when everyone had carburetors 150,000 miles on a vehicle was pretty high at least around here where they rust out and get junked more than anything else.

 

[Sixpactogo]

All mechanical fuel pumps have a 1/8" hole in the side of the housing and that hole is there to release fuel to the outside rather the pump fuel into the engine in the case of a diaphragm failure. If your diaphragm failed and is pumping gas into the engine oil, you should see a higher level on your dip stick when you read it.

 

[moparedtn]

Sorry Ed but I disagree with most of your aside comments above.

A properly adjusted choke will allow the engine to start quicker, easier and with less chance of fuel wash on the cylinders.
An accelerator pump shot is not very well atomized and this is not a good thing.

For example you get in a cold car pump it 3 times crank and it fires then quits while you "feather" or pump the pedal to keep it from quitting.
But you just shot some fuel in there before it quit but now your guessing how much fuel to put in there so you pump it another time then fire it etc...
Almost inevitably in this instance someone will end up sending too much raw fuel via the accelerator pump down there. (Flooded or partly flooded situation on a cold motor)

When this happens you are washing the oil from the cylinder walls and creating irreversible wear.

I think we both agree a cold engine causes wear since they are designed to run at operating temperature.

The quickest way to warm up an engine is to drive it slow and put a load on it. Here again if the choke is set properly it should open more quickly while the engine heats up. As long as you have good oil and oil pressure I drive it nice and easy.

I never start and warm up my cars over the winter there is no benefit besides additional wear, gas usage and contaminating the oil. They get shut down in November and sit with the throttle body or carb covered and the exhaust plugged until April (or sometimes May) around here.

For all these reasons that’s why the traditional carburetor has been replaced by fuel injection.

It’s not unusual to see cars with 300,000 miles that run well these days. Back when everyone had carburetors 150,000 miles on a vehicle was pretty high at least around here where they rust out and get junked more than anything else.

I respect your differing opinion - and of course, that was the conventional wisdom of far more knowledgeable
engineers and such than I, since cars had chokes installed from the factory for decades and all.
That said, my choice of never running one doesn't produce the situation you describe - you might have wanted
to simply stick to the strong points of using a choke instead, sir.
I'll explain further...

My method of doing things with a cold engine does not "drown" anything - in fact, things are always in some
stage of lean for the entire process, up until the engine reaches operating temperature.
Of course, that isn't good for an engine either, but surely beats loading it up with too much gas...
My method of babysitting gives the engine barely enough gas to keep running when cold - the choke method
typically gives it way plenty; I know which way I'd rather the engine be exposed to cold.

Similarly, have been taught and raised never to abuse equipment, especially when cold.
"Get some heat in it before you work it" was always the mantra and it makes absolute sense to me;
another often heard phrase was "don't beat on a cold engine".
I took all that to heart and to this day, I've never had an engine mechanical issue out of any vehicle I've owned
that was in working order when I bought it - and I typically kept all of them for long periods of time, getting
a couple hundred thousand miles out of engines and passing them on to the next person still in working order.
Now, do I drive like grandpa?
Those who actually know me know what a joke question that is...

Seems logical to me:
Don't drown them, don't beat on them when cold, maintain them when you're supposed to = last damn near
forever.