My Chaser is killing me slowly. First the brakes, then the window, a fouled spark plug and now..... There is an odor of gas inside the car. It is coming from the A/C vents. Where in the world should I start looking for this problem? There are no visual leaks anywhere on the car and nothing on the ground. Any help would be appreciated, thanks in advance. 8O
Start with the charcoal canister.
Does anyone know where the charcoal canister is? The most I can get out of the Japanese locals is it?s under the hood. I don?t even know what it looks like. I tried to google it but that was little to no help at all.
You can say "sumi no can wo misete kudasai" (sue-me no cahn wo me-say-tay koo-dah-sai), which means "please show me the charcoal canister."
Or
Open the hood and look for the top of a canister (the body may be underneath sheet metal) with vacuum hoses leading into the top. One of the hoses will lead towards the gas tank and disappear under the firewall and another will go towards the intake.
Unless he thinks you are using an Americanism ("can") for "benjo".
Well... Armed with my new Japanese sentence and my already broken Japanese I set out on my journey. This is what I found.
#1. I should stick to speaking english! The mechanic just assumed that I could speak japanese fluently and started talking away. Needless to say I stopped him and got him to slow waaaaay down.
#2. The ?94 Chaser does not have a charcoal canister.
#3. The fuel leak has mistified 5 mechanics now and after all of us chased the fuel line and found nothing we gave up.
#4. I will probably junk the car after I make one last attempt to find the leak. It is going to cost to much to have someone trouble shoot it and fix it. I guess being out $2700 bucks after having the car a full year ain?t bad. Oh well. Now I?m on to fix my damn Nissan?s radiator fan. Man life is swell :o
LOL! Although I speak Japanese fluently, my Japanese reading is about kindegarten or 1st grade. I can read all 50 Katakana, all 50 Hiragana, and maybe 50 or 75 out of the 8,000 Kanji characters.
When I went to Japan for a dealer convention, my co-workers would ask me to ask for directions at the train station. So, I'd go ask someone in Japanese, they'd look at me like I was an idiot, and point to the map or directional signs. So, after that embarrassing moment, I had my Caucasian friends do the asking.
Must be a U.S. thing.
If fuel is not leaking from the line or the tank and the fuel cap is good (you should hear the "whoosh" when you open the cap on a hot day with the tank almost empty) then the car is probably misfiring.
I think "Please show me your t*ts" would be a better phrase to learn!
Only along with "I want to call my embassy!"
The drama continues. I took the car to the hobby shop and started tearing it apart. Things got interesting fast.
Where it looks like the fuel line comes straight up from the underneath side of the car, on the passenger side, there was a very well hidden treasure. After taking the wheel well out and some retarted looking cover there was the coveted charcoal canister. Now, unless your lucky, like I was, you would have never looked there b/c of the way the fuel line runs. Doesn?t even look like the fuel line makes it to the canister! Very weird. This was overlooked by all b/c we assumed, don?t ever do that, that there was nothing underneath the cover.
So, having found it... I went to a junk yard a pulled one and put it on my car. The verdict is still out on the fix, but I don?t think it helped. The wife and I took a cruise around town and there was still a noticable gas smell inside the car. The smell is still just with the A/C on.
I looked at the miss firing scenario and replaced the spark plugs in the process. Every one of them were charcoal black.
The fuel tank shows no signs of leaking, I can?t find a leak in the line and now the charcoal canister has been replaced. The A/C vent is opening and closing when you switch between recycled air and outside air. The smell is not in the seats or carpet. I?m still at a loss. As well as everyone I talk to. The car is running sound as can be, at least from the mechanical standpoint.
Oh, and just as I pulled into the parking space a light in the shape of a car with lines on the back, as if the brake lights were out, came on. What the poop is that one.
Well, I?ve got to go to work for now. Hopefully I?ll get to look at it again later today. Thanks for all the help so far.
"americanjap" wrote: > The drama continues. I took the car to the hobby shop and > started tearing it apart. Things got interesting fast. > > Where it looks like the fuel line comes straight up from the > underneath side of the car, on the passenger side, there was a > very well hidden treasure. After taking the wheel well out > and some retarted looking cover there was the coveted charcoal > canister. Now, unless your lucky, like I was, you would have > never looked there b/c of the way the fuel line runs. Doesn't > even look like the fuel line makes it to the canister! Very > weird. This was overlooked by all b/c we assumed, don't ever > do that, that there was nothing underneath the cover. > > So, having found it... I went to a junk yard a pulled one and > put it on my car. The verdict is still out on the fix, but I > don't think it helped. The wife and I took a cruise around > town and there was still a noticable gas smell inside the car. > The smell is still just with the A/C on. > > I looked at the miss firing scenario and replaced the spark > plugs in the process. Every one of them were charcoal black. > > The fuel tank shows no signs of leaking, I can't find a leak > in the line and now the charcoal canister has been replaced. > The A/C vent is opening and closing when you switch between > recycled air and outside air. The smell is not in the seats > or carpet. I'm still at a loss. As well as everyone I talk > to. The car is running sound as can be, at least from the > mechanical standpoint. > > Oh, and just as I pulled into the parking space a light in the > shape of a car with lines on the back, as if the brake lights > were out, came on. What the poop is that one. > > Well, I've got to go to work for now. Hopefully I'll get to > look at it again later today. Thanks for all the help so far.
Well, it?s been two days and the gas smell is still there. The charcoal caninster must not have been the problem.
Ok, I decided to edit this post b/c I went back and read what you said Ray O about the car misfiring. Wouldn?t I be able to tell if it was misfiring? Wouldn?t there be a noticeble power loss or excessive gas consumption?
Also, could the fuel pressure regulator be the problem if it is operating at to high a pressure?
Someone also said to check the gas cap. It was good. When I opened it I heard the vaccum sound.
Thanks again for all the help. Sorry if I?m a little erratic at times with my post but working 12+ hours a day on aircraft my brain becomes a little mushy and I don?t remember everything. 8O
OK, get some Lysol or spray disinfectant, turn on the AC and set to recirc. Under the passenger seat, spary the disinfectant into the intake - watch your eyes and nose! See if the smell goes away- it could just be gunk on the AC evaperator.
Black spark plugs are either too rich mixture or misfire. More likely too rich.
Misfiring would probably cause performance issues. Too rich mixture may not. The increase in gas consumption may not be noticeable, only 2-3 MPG.
Possibly, not likely.
That is good.
still
OK, get some Lysol or spray disinfectant, turn on the AC and set to recirc. Under the passenger seat, spary the disinfectant into the intake - watch your eyes and nose! See if the smell goes away- it could just be gunk on the AC evaperator.
I sprayed the lysol, neutra air brand, and all was good until Sunday morning. It only last for about 2 days and it?s back to the gas smell. Is there a A/C filter anywhere that can be replaced? If not I?m just going with the lysol method and calling it a day. With the neutra air there is no smell at all coming from the A/C.
You may have to repeat the spray several times before everything that has collected on the evaporator over time is neutralized, unless it is getting re-contaminated. May sure you see water dripping from under the car on the passenger side when the AC is operating on a humid day. If not, the drain hose for the evaporator is clogged or mis-routed, which can aggravate the smell.
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