3sgte GTT Caldina - fuel smell after cambelt change.

[steve74]

Hi guys, I've not been on the forum in years, glad to see its still going strong. I replaced the cambelt, power steering belt and alternator belt in my wife's 1998 GT-T manual Carldina about 3 weeks ago and she's been complaining about a strong petrol smell after doing short trips. I didn't touch any of the fuel lines that I recall and the car runs and idles as good as it ever did? All the timing marks on the belt, cam pulleys and crankshaft pulley lined up before I bolted everything back together? I did yesterday smell it when I first got in the car but after a 10km drive I couldn't smell anything?

Any ideas?

Steve

[RS13]

You didn't accidentally knock a pipe off the charcoal canister or kink/block the piping going to it? I assume you've checked the fuel piping for leaks?

[steve74]

I've not taken the drivers side wheel and plastic inner guard off for a good look but I can't see anything from above? We just drove back home and I could smell it at start up but then it dissapairs or our noses just get used to it? We did have the heater vents on? There's no way fuel can get into the heater though? I was wondering if there was a crank angle sensor or some sort of sycronizd sensor that Tells the Efi to give it a shot of fuel at the wrong time that I may have missed timed but it's not flooding or running rough?

[RS13]

If you didn't disturb anything under there I wouldn't imagine that would be your source. You probably got used to it, no I can't think of any way fuel can get into the heater system other than fumes. If your car is running fine then I wouldn't think your issues would be EFI related, if you'd mistimed that badly it you'd be getting lots of other symptoms. The heater fresh air intake is under the scuttle panel at the bottom of the windscreen, if your bonnet seal isn't the best or with all the various air pressures around the front of the car circulating fumes you're likely to smell petrol that way. I still think you've got a leak somewhere in the engine fuel system or the charcoal canister system is blocked or unplugged somehow.

[steve74]

Before I started I turned the bottom crankshaft pulley and aligned the mark with the "0" indicated on the plastic cover. Once I removed all the covers the marks on cam pulleys were 180 degrees out and were not pointing upwards to aligning with the marks on the engine. I turned the bottom pulley with the belt in place a complete revolution and the marks then lined up on the cam wheels. I removed the old belt and the cam wheels moved slightly under valve spring pressure I guess, I then had a shit of a job getting the marks all in line but they were all in the correct position when I finished? The car wouldn't run if it was 180 out would it? It would miss and fart and backfire surely? Maybe I should unplug the Efi fuse and let the computer "retune" itself???

[steve74]

SOLVED!!!

Well after 2 weeks of the wife complaining I finally found time to flick the old head lamp around the engine bay. As I was looking over the intercooler at the inlet manifold I notice that while the car was running I had oily bubbles bubbling from under the no4 spark plug coil pack / plug cap. I took the intercooler off , removed the cap from the no4 cylinder and the plug pretty much came out with it. All four cylinders run but one would be low on compression I'm guessing. Runs better now. A simple coincidence thankfully.