I love this car but its giving me a headache everytiime i drive it. 96 850 Turbo Wagon with approx 150k miles on it.

It seems there is a faint gas fumes in the cabin. I thought it was coming from the vents when i have the recirc off. However with the recirc on, i still feel there are fumes in the car.

One thing that i think may be the problem is that the last time i filled up the tank all the way(3 weeks ago) fuel leaked out which made me realize the fuel hose has a leak in it.I then thought that maybe the smell was due to that. Now three weeks later and with low gas, i still get a faint smell in the cabin. I have tried smelling around the gas filler cap but no smell from there. Can the smell get into the cabin from a cracked fuel hose?

Also at startup, i get a strong gas smell from under the hood. I dont know but it may be normal at startup? After driving for a while, if i open the hood, everything is normal and no smells coming from under the hood.

Any help would be appreciated. I need this car for my upcoming trip to Canada, but i dont want gas fumes all the way there and back.

Thanks

 

After reading a few other posts on here, i am thinking it may be the fuel filler hose. I am taking the car in for the fuel tank recall this coming friday. Do they have to take the tank down for the recall? If so, would be a good idea to have them change the hose? As in save me from extra labour charges? Thanks

 

No they don't drop the tank for the recall.
They remove the heatsheilds and install rubber mounts.

Some people can change the hose without dropping the tank.

 

According to what i have read about the recall, they are suppose to replace anything leaking or seeping on the tank as well right?

 

No that is if the Tank itself they replace the tank.

 

Thanks for your help Tech. The fuel hose, is it a rubber hose?Like thecoolant hoses?Is it easy to change, and like you said without taking the gas tank down? Is there anywhere i can get info on this? Thanks

 

What years is this recall? And if I am not the original owner, can I apply for it?

 

I believe its 94-97. I am not the original owner of this car and i am scheduled at the local dealer. I think as long as you are the owner they will do it.

 

Good evening,

>Also at startup, i get a strong gas smell from under the hood. I dont know but it may be normal at >startup? After driving for a while, if i open the hood, everything is normal and no smells coming from >under the hood.

At start-up, the ECU gives a richer A/F ratio, especially in colder climate, so you may smell some fuel, but should be coming from the tail pipe, not from the engine compartment.

I would re-check all fuel lines; metal tubes, hoses, especially at connections for signs of leak.Unless the fuel smell is coming from the tail pipe due to wind pushing it toward the front of the car, it is coming from the engine compartment or fuel lines near the engine. Also, check around the injectors.

Good luck,


JPN

 

The hose is rubber.
Some can be reached easy depends on how the factory sets the clamp.

Remove the covers to see the sending unit and tank pressure sensor. Look for a hose and see if it is cracked.

I willbet if you look under the car on the right side you will see a gas stain coming from the top and running down.

 

SO any one of these can lead to fumes in the cabin? My main concern is acutally that.

I would believe that any fumes coming from the engine compartment would be passed through the vents. However even with the vents closed, the fumes are there.
The fumes however in any condition are faint, yet noticeable.

Is there anyway the fumes can come through where the fuel pump hole is in the trunk? Im thinking of removing the seat and the carpet and seeing if i can find something there.

Thanks for all the help guys.

 

Check there first. But no need to remove the seat just fold it down.
Yes it could very well be coming through the trunk.
The pump might also be leaking from where the wires come from inside the tank.

 

All right, today i decided to do some sniffing inside the car while the car was running. I did not smell anything but then again i may have not noticed since i was closed in the car. I checked under the hood and everything is fine. No leaks from the injectors or from the fuel tank. No noticeable smells or exhaust or gas from under the hood. Smells pretty much like a normal engine should.

Now,I just went for a drive with the fans on but with the recirc on. I got out of the car and left the car running, got some fresh air and went back in. As soon as i got in the car, the fumes were very noticeable.However now it smell like a mixture of gas and exhaust. I am now unsure whether its gas fumes or exhaust fumes however. Im sorry for putting you guys through the trouble of helping me with this.

Literally everytime i drive the car, even for a few minutes, my head starts hurting.

Now is there a cabin filter for the 96 850s? I opened up the vents by the windshield wipers to find a open box type of thing. I thought there should be a filter in there but there wasnt any. I then followed the hose running from it along the firewall and it just goes down and stops there openright behind theengine. Is this how its suppose to be? I will see if i can get a pic of it.

I know there was another post somewhere about someone mentioning the existence of carbon monixide in the cabin. I Have searched but cannot find the thread. Does anyone know which thread i am talking about? I think it would help me out with my problem.

Thanks for the help guys.

 

Mr Tech,

I found this thread in which you mentioned the evaporater valve. Im pretty sure this is not the Ac evaporater. Where is this one located? How can i check it.

https://volvoforums.com/m_24471/tm.htm

 

Huzz,

Does your thermostat function correctly? Because my car's exaust used to run very very rich. But now that I changed the t-stat, I haven't noticed the strong smell...

And thanks for the info about the recall. I'm going ot go get that fixed...I don't know if it's attributed to the gas tank, but a couple times when I filled my gas to full, there would be a small puddle of gas at the end...I've also smelled very very faint gas smell before...

I haven't had the gas smell in a while though...

 

I replaced my thermostat a few weeks ago. It works fine. I hope i figure this out soon.

On another note, i think i have a exhaust leak up front. I think that may the culprit. But would a exhaust leak still force fumes in the car with the recirc on?

 

I think gas fumes can definetely get into the cabin w/o recirc. I highly doubt the cabin is completely encased, and air can't get in....

 

In case its the flex pipe that is leaking whichI think is common on these cars, can i just take it to a muffler shop and have them weld ina new one? I would hate to spend hundreds of dollars to buy the whole downpipe.

 

I know nothing about welding and all that, but I assume a muffler shop definetely could...

Call them and ask...

 

Hi Huzz,

>I'm sorry for putting you guys through the trouble of helping me with this.

Don't worry, sometimes people help you, and other times you help people (not necessarily limited to this forum but in any circumstance), that's the way it should be.

Anyway, if you have an exhaustleak upstream, drive your car with windows down and fix that SOB asap, or you risk your life. I wouldn't recommend welding at a generic shop, I would replace the header pipe (or whatever it is called in Volvo dictionary).

Yes, even with the REC on, some air/fumes can still enter the cabin. Italso depends onhow you set the center vents.

Don't try to save a few hundred $$$ for your safety,


JPN