Gasoline smell through HVAC when really cold?

[Timberwolf530]

So, a couple of weeks ago, it got really cold, and I smelled gas coming through the heater/defroster.  Checked under the hood & the car, and could not see any leaks.  The next day it went away, so I assumed it was because I had spilled some gas filling up or something.  Then today, it dipped below zero, and all the way to work I had the smell every time I stopped at a light.  When I got to work, I could still smell it, so I popped the hood and traced the lines all the way to the tank with a flashlight - nothing.  I can definitely smell gasoline vapor with the hood up though. It warmed up to about 20 when I went to lunch, and the smell is gone again.  Is it possible that the fittings between the metal lines and the rubber hoses are leaking vapor but not liquid?  I've never heard of anything like that, but when I get home tonight, I'm going to tighten all the fittings as much as I can to see.  Beyond that, I'm lost.  Anyone else had this happen?

[CNY_Dave]

Somewhat well known problem, some years the hoses don't seal as well when it gets really cold.

 

Tightening the fuel line clamps usually helps.

[Dave804]

Didn't see any info on your model- but run in to this a couple times with my mother's 04 4banger. 

 

As stated above, tightening clamps and checking connections did the trick once. Second time I took a couple of the supply rubber lines off and when you bend them against their natural lay the cracks are very visible. From my experience you'll need to be under the car to deal with this. Alternatively, shouldn't be much at a shop. Retail price on 3/8 fuel hose is about $.83/ft. Maybe an hour of shop labor. 

[uniberp]

So, a couple of weeks ago, it got really cold, and I smelled gas coming through the heater/defroster.  Checked under the hood & the car, and could not see any leaks.  The next day it went away, so I assumed it was because I had spilled some gas filling up or something.  Then today, it dipped below zero, and all the way to work I had the smell every time I stopped at a light.  When I got to work, I could still smell it, so I popped the hood and traced the lines all the way to the tank with a flashlight - nothing.  I can definitely smell gasoline vapor with the hood up though. It warmed up to about 20 when I went to lunch, and the smell is gone again.  Is it possible that the fittings between the metal lines and the rubber hoses are leaking vapor but not liquid?  I've never heard of anything like that, but when I get home tonight, I'm going to tighten all the fittings as much as I can to see.  Beyond that, I'm lost.  Anyone else had this happen?

 

YMM?

Check the filler tube for rust holes. Remove the cover, they get full of dirt.

In cold dry weather gas fumes may be much more noticeable.

Edited January 4, 2014 by uniberp

[Suzam]

I have a 2001 that does it every so often, tightening the clamps solves the problem. It is currently smelling again and I plan on replacing the small rubber tubes when weather permits.

 

This post on the board had a diagram in the #7 post showing the locations of the hoses with clamps.

 

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/142832-2000-legacy-gas-odor-inside/

 

 

[Timberwolf530]

Thanks guys.  It's -10 now, so I'm not doing anything to it unless it's an emergency.  I did tighten the clamps the other day as much as I could, but this morning the smell, although not as bad, was still there.  The hose clamps suck.  I'm thinking of replacing them with the ones you can tighten with a nut driver to get them tighter.

[1-3-2-4]

The air is very dense and the Subaru runs rich on start up in the cold.