Gas smell and the small things
 

Since taking delivery less than a week ago, have smelled gasoline in the garage. Cracked the door at all times, paranoid of a disaster. My roomie says that cars of this era (1968) always smelled of gasoline, but I am not that sure. Replaced the gas cap today, the one that arrived with the beauty was corroded and missing the seal. Will know in the morning if this changes the smell, but in the meantime, please point me to other possible sources of the gas smell. Thanks!
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If you smell gas, it's dripping. Period.

Start by looking carefully at the fuel pump and the hoses connected to it. "Legacy" hoses dissolve with the alcohol added to gasoline, literally turn to mush. Fuel pump diaphragms fail and they leak.

Gas will leave a red stain on a concrete floor. You could also shove big pieces of cardboard, paper, whatever under the car to see where the wet spot is. (broken down boxes...)

GL.

Thanks. I will try the cardboard trick, but the garage is partially covered in really flat material - not quite carpet, but not bare concrete either - and have monitored for any drips or stains and so far nothing. I read where the seams of the tank are known to fail, not enough to drip to the floor, but enough to smell.

check if vapor canister is all connected. replace all rubber fuel hoses and clamps if theyre old

68 thru 70 don't have vapor canisters and vent directly to the atmosphere. 68 thru 69 vent through the gas cap. 70's through the vent used on later years but directly to the atmosphere. The exception is 1970 CA cars which had a vapor canister.

If you can do it safely (RaceRamps or similar), crawl under the car and feel for wetness. Start with clean fingers and sniff test.

My car would drip a bit on the fuel pump. Not enough to hit the ground, but enough to smell. A new fuel pump fixed that.

Do you have a less than full tank? You do know never to top off a Corvette fuel tank, right?

Check the top of your fuel pump!! Very hard to detect a leak there, but you will see it damp if the diaphragm is leaking.

VS

My 68 was leaking at the gas tank sending unit. Look under the car between the spare tire holder and the rear of the body and you will see the unit on the bottom of the tank. In my case it was leaking enough to see the drips hanging on the unit and was also spotting on the floor below the front end of the spare tire holder. Was not red but was a dark gray/black color on my raw concrete. Car has a newer replacement tank and unit but suspect the seal was likely damaged by the ethanol in the gasoline here.

Redvette2

Welcome aboard

Welcome to the unique world of the 68 as well

how strong is the smell?. An odor of gasoline is normal. A stink of "OMG wheres the gas spill" is a leak. If your garage is buttoned up tight there will be a slight odor. When you start your car its gonna really stink inside that garage. ALWAYS have the door open when you start it or very shortly afterwards. These things run pig rich, if you have the choke connected, for the first few minutes until the choke gets hot enough to open, whether its electric or hot air. Its never going to smell like a fuel injected car, start like a fuel injected car but it can run similar to one if you tune it correctly.

Enjoy your 68, theres going to be a lot of things that are only 68, so start learning and searching. When you buy parts some are 68 only like the ignition,wiper motor, door locks, front bearings and spindles which are 67's, etc.. Theres a long list. So be careful of anything that says 68-82 or similar

AND post up some pics. The color looks pretty good in the pic you did post.

:iagree:

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Overnight with the new gas cap and the smell has definitely decreased to almost not noticeable this morning.

Photos . . .

That looks great!!!

Wow! Gorgeous!

It sounds like you are on the right track if the new gas cap helped.

If you are still searching for other culprits, my 68 was / is leaking from three places:
-The fuel pump diaphragm; you could see a little dampness around the weep hole on top, and then it started gushing out a few months later. (replaced the pump, and replace the rubber hose while you are down there)
-The gas cap; the gasket was hard as a rock and cracked. (replaced the cap like you did)
-The gas tank sending unit; this is the circular part on the bottom of the tank where the hoses and wires come out of. (I ordered a gasket, but haven't replaced it yet)

Nice car.
I ran into this with my 71 a few months ago. I made the mistake of overfilling the gas tank. The vent line runs down from the top of the tank, to the area near the left rear suspension.
it got the rear spring and shock wet with gas. Of course driving the car, and getting the tank level lower solved the issue.

My concern was the exhaust is right nearby. what a silly place to put this. recipe for a disaster.

Another leak source is the cork gasket between the tank and the neck. This is most noticeable on a full or almost full tank.

Wow, what a beautiful car! The black sidepipes really work with that color!

I had a fuel pump leak. When I replaced it, the original fuel lines were a mushy mess. If I pinched them fuel would seep right through them. New fuel pump, new hoses - goodbye gas odor in the garage.

:iagree: :thumbs: