Gas smell - wifey no likey

[bcOH67]

Hey everyone

So my wife doesn't ENJOY riding in my car because of the delicious smell of gas and carb and oil and power...if there any way to get rid of the smell without switching to efi? I assume the smell is because it's got a carb- but I don't know crap, I'm young(ish) and dumb.

And i don't believe it is an abnormally strong smell as to where somewthing is wrong. it just doesn't smell like a Mercedes.

Didn't know if there were any tricks anyone else who's afraid of being alone forever with a cool car has come up with over the years haha. Other than leaving her at home.

Thanks

 

[Big Bad Dad]

Check around the carb for a fuel leak while its running....

 

[Beekeeper]

Agree with big bad dad a well tuned carb motor shouldn’t smell like gasoline when running.

 

[440 4 speed]

Few questions.
If standing outside with the hood open or closed does it smell?
Does it smell while driving with windows open?
“””””””””””” “””””””””””” Closed?
Any sign of oil leaking?

 

[kiwigtx]

Make sure all the firewall holes are sealed or plugged up.

Check float levels in your carb - and a good tune-up.

 

[69 Sleeper Bee]

You talking raw gas smell or exhaust fume smell ?

 

[6PK2GOBEE]

Start looking, you shouldn’t smell any raw gas or exhaust in the car.
Like others here have already stated:
Make sure the firewall is sealed up, check for raw fuel leaks not just the carb but the entire fuel system not forgetting of course rubber lines, and make sure the trunk is sealed up otherwise it will suck exhaust & what smells like raw fuel into the passenger compartment.
Also, make sure your exhaust system doesn’t have any leaks and it is a full system including tailpipes!
What fun is it leaving the wife home?I mean, it’s your date car, right?
Her complaints have merit that “stink” = danger.
In fact, have her help you find the source of the trouble!

 

[66 Sat]

If you're driving with the windows down then fumes can get sucked in the interior. The fact is old cars exhaust smell different to new cars with their catalytic converters etc. When stopped at lights my exhaust wafts in sometimes depending on the wind conditions. When I'm really getting on it there is always an "engine" smell for a a few minutes afterwards too.

 

[Richie]

Would it come from a tank vent tube?

 

[PlymCrazy]

If it’s running rich that strong gas smell can come right out the tailpipe(s) too! Can be very noticeable stopped at a light or in heavy traffic.

 

[Jesse6869]

Those smells are the only reason i drive my old cars. Just saying, i know that I’m no help but..

 

[1967coronet]

I have to ask. What do you have on the car for a exhaust system ?
If your vented cap or vent tube is fine, and no leaks are found.
Start checking things like trunk seal if pipes go all the way back.
How do the plugs look ?
I chased that fuel smell myself in my 67. Checked everything I could think of.
I switched carbs just for the heck of it. Pulled a 750 eddy and installed a thermoquad.
I did the swap to check preformance but it helped a bunch on the fuel smell , plus it run better. Lol.

 

[91r/t]

There is a difference between burnt exhaust fumes and actual gas fumes. If it's burnt exhaust then its part of the experience. If it's raw fuel, then its either leaking somewhere or pig rich but I'd think it'd hafta be really rich to smell like raw fuel.

 

[68gtxman]

I traced down a gas smell in my convertible and finally found a crack in the gas tank on its topside. Of course I was replacing it when I found the crack. I just decided that to track down the smell, I had to ensure the tank and sender gasket were not the culprits. My smell was apparent after parking it and it seemed to emanate from the rear. I would have looked in the engine compartment had the smell been coming from that area.

 

[6t4polara]

I have heard of people with bad trunk seals having those issues.

 

[Shenango]

I had fumes in my A body, not really gas or exhaust just a nasty smell. Windows up and no odor. Crack a window and the odor was there. Sealed everything from the engine bay to the cabin and no help. The great people on FABO to look at the steering column seals and that was the problem all along.

Windows up and no path for airflow from the engine bay. Put a window down and it will create a path to vent the engine bay through the steering column.
Hope you find the problem.
Jerry

 

[RemCharger]

Check carefully for cracks anywhere in the rubber, and steel, fuel lines along the car. They can leak, but evaporates.

 

[69ChargerR/TSE]

Check your fuel cap and fuel vent, to make sure its working. I had a similar issue, and replaced everything from the fuel cap to the intake(I added EFI) and it went away. It would had went away if I had a carb.
Check your fuel lines as well. Clean everything and then drive it and look for leaks.

 

[Dennis H]

When moving in traffic at full warm up, you should not have the odor. When starting, walking around outside etc, some odor is normal. We have forgotten how odors were “back in the day.
Now that everyone here has you tearing up everything from the headliner to the exhaust fo the bumpers-make sure you really have a problem. When I started the Hellcat cold, wife said “I don’t smell any exhaust! Different standard and expectation of normal. Not talking about raw gas odor while driving, that needs attention.

 

[slepr1]

I heard that cops aren't fond of pulling over older cars like ours because of the strong exhaust smell. EFI won't help. I have a carb on one car and EFI on another. No difference. Its just the way it is. Premium higher octane fuel does add another layer of smell too. You could dampen the smell somewhat by adding some cats.