i just recently noticed a very, very faint odor of fuel coming from,i think, the outlet end of the cat where it just begins to turn into the muffler. the odor was noticed while walking by on my way thru the garage. it was not arresting or showed no wet spots on the floor or around the cat for that matter. this odor appeared the next morning( after a run) with a stone cold engine bay and no recent fill-ups. i would guess there's 1/4 tanks. i never blip the throttle prior to shut-down so that's not a source of raw fuel laying in the exhaust system. i sniffed all the fuel-related hose areas, but no odors.i could see nothing on the underside of the f.i.system either. this is a very peculiar situation that is making me concerned something more serious may be developing. i would appreciate any thoughts on this quandry. thanks, bb _____________________________________ curiouser and curiouser!
First get a fire exthinguisher and put in your car. You never know. Did you fell a loss of power in your last run? Maybe you have piston not firing and fuel is going into the cat. From what I read so far it usually burn in the cat and then big problems might occur. Get it into a shop for a real inspection. don't take any chance with such an occurence. One of my friend here almost lost his 308 a month ago because of fuel burning in the cat. To be safer have it towed to your mechanic...My 2 cents
well, i don't have any noticeable performance loss. i looked inside the muffler tips. all looked good with no odors coming out. the chrome tips are not sooty or blackened either. hmmmn...
no slow down light. i'm not implying the problem is necessarily inside the exhaust. nor am i suggesting an exhaust leak at that area. i was just trying to get a feel for what might cause the odor. please keep in mind we are talking an odor way down on the ppm scale, not an overwhelming blast in the face.
Maybe just one misfire just before you shut down the motor. If everything was not up to full temp then maybe gas going in the cat didn't burn...
I just bought a 1987 328 GTB, (23,800 miles, GREAT condition) last week, and going over her carefully. Will be doing belts/tensioners, plugs, fuel and air filters, possibly drive belts, etc... I notice a rather present fuel odor after I drive the car. Haven't been able to localize the source yet. I'm coming from a 77 GTB, where I replaced all the soft fuel hoses on that car, and knew where to look exactly for anything fuel-related. This FI 328 is a more complex beast! Can anybody share info as to where to locate all the soft fuel hoses on a 328, or maybe where a connection could be compromised? Don't worry, I'm not driving her until I solve this! Greg in Houston
If the gas-tight cat/muffler joint was leaking enough gas fumes to be smelled, you'd almost certainly hear an exhaust leak buzzing there. If the odor persists, get the fuel hose diagram for the 328 from the Parts Book (http://www.ferraridatabase.com/The_Downloads/The%20Documents/Spare%20Parts%20Catalogue%20328%201988.pdf) and start tracking down a leak. Replacing ALL your 25 year-old gas hoses is a no-brainer anyway. They're not only ancient; they weren't designed for ethanol or MTBE. You can join the frequent debate on SAE spec NAPA gas hose vs. $$$ F-car specialty hoses, but just get them replaced.
Well, the search begins, for a complete list of all the 328 rubber fuel hoses. I did download the PDF listed above. If anybody has compiled a list of lengths and "gauges" of all the needed hoses for a 328, I'd appreciate a pointer to that page or link. My aim is to replace the filler neck hose, crossover pipe hoses, tank to pump, and all the other soft hoses. Ricambi has a kit of the above large hoses, but it's very expensive. Gotta be a way to put these together for a bit less $$.. ?? Greg
Try this: http://ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=64460&page=5 Post #87 has a list of fuel lines w/sizes. This list is not for the 328 but will get you started, maybe.
Thanks Crowndog. Actually that list is for a carb 308, a very different set of hoses. I did this exact same project, using that list, on my 77 GTB years ago. I just did a search and found several hits on 328-specific fuel hoses... Greg
Can somebody explain what this hose is? I think it's the hose that runs off the filler neck back into the tank to catch overflow/spill at the fuel filler? Greg 87 328
Or, is is a line/hose combo from fuel distributor to passenger/right-side tank? Would like to know.. Also, I'd like to know if there is a need to relieve fuel pressure on the 328 before I start cracking these hoses open and off. If so, how? I've had my car only a few weeks, and it's been parked since I bought it home. Too much fuel odor in the garage, can't risk a fire. I plan on starting the hose replacement project this coming week.. Thanks, Greg 87 328 GTB
If you are replacing all of the fuel lines I suggest removing the engine lid as it will provide easier access to the lines that run between the two tanks along the firewall. In regards to removing the excess fuel, when I replaced my fuel lines I removed the gas cap and drained the tanks utilizing the drain plug under the car. I did this in a well ventilated area and turned off my gas water heater for extra safety. I also disconnected the battery. Here are a few links to point you in the direction to locate the fuel lines. http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=2390 http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=2389
I replaced mine 2 years ago (87 328) and there is a clear plastic hose that runs from the filler neck to a cross-over pipe. Why it is clear plastic, I don't know, but mine had a blister (bubble) about the size of a quarter and it was hard as a rock. When replaced, the gas odor was eliminated. I think that blister had a crack as well and vapors escaped. Due to the location, driver's side and up by the firewall, it allowed vapors into the car when the top was off or the window was down.
If you are NOT going to go with SRI (Yep it IS expensive) then watch those NEW hoses CAREFULLY. They could "noodle" on you in a hurry. SRI did not dream up and create that expensive fuel hose kit with Gates Rubber literally right down the street, for nothing. ALSO REPLACE ALL the plastic fuel lines too. Verrel here has the OEM kit. I had about 8 potential fire sources on those lines that I could see and feel and swear were in perfect condition (YEA, RIIIIIGHT), until I took them off. Oh and do NOT forget the plastic line that runs from the accumulator to the fuel filter. Most people do.
Great posts guys! All pertinent to preventing another burned car. I am in progress of refurbing my 328 fuel system and will post it in pics soon. This will include installing SRI hoses below and doing the K-Jet lines. I haven't decided to use Verrell's kit yet (WIP). greg328, if the odor is strong, and you have a fuel with ethanol, I would recommend draining the tanks and "buttoning-up" the car until you are ready to do the work or pay for it to be done. If your fuel has absolutely no ethanol in it, then you don't need to drain. Ethanol blend fuels will separate over time and the boundary layer will cause corrosion in the aluminum fuel tanks.
Save yourself the trouble and Use Verrell's kit too. He has managed to get OEM manufactured parts (near impossible except with a liscense agreement the company does NOT easily give out) and it is inexpensive and well documented. Only one other person who is not in the FI business and over a certain volumn I know can sell the stuff and he is over here in Europe with me.
I agree with you to a point. However the plastic lines are polyamide, which may be ok. However, I'm reading pubs about ethanol mix fuels' compatabilities and polyamide came up as a possible negative. It may not be a problem for fuels up to 15% ethanol. After more review, I will make my choice. OEM is not my real interest here.
just left the p & r section i was afraid it was getting too hot for me. last winter (2010) i removed the cat on gabriella ('87 328) and installed a straight pipe. this spring during the 1st run i noticed some combustion fumes particularly at a stop sign or when making turns from a dead stop. no big deal, i expected that. it could be my imaginination but occassionally when i walk around the back of her i get this same wiff of fuel. if i walk past and return, the oder is gone. since i changed all the hoses 3 years ago, i feel reasonably confident they are not at fault. last year during the 3yr. service we changed the fuel injectors and also the distrbutor lines to each injector. (verrell's kit) my feeling is the problem started then although i can't be sure. one thing for sure is i now have a pronounced stutter or miss when driving which was never there before. we changed the spark plug wires, rotors, new dist.caps and new extenders. none of the old stuff looked bad and the problem persists. these would have been changed anyway. also i noticed this year that she will not start cleanly but a little ragged until the throttle is blipped and then clears up. kind of like an old multi-carb car i guess. the idle is fine and no other anomolies except for the stutter some have suggested there's a faulty fuel injector. i'm aware of bosch's 10-20% failure rate out of the box so that will be explored next spring. meanwhile i'm continuing to monitor the faint/occassional oder and perhaps pinpoint it now that she's up on jacks for the winter pm. i seem to sense the left-rear area as being the source. might be the aux air valve or even the digiplex on that side. i did replace the vacuum hose when i changed fuel hoses so i'm still puzzling over this area. if i only had a hand-held sniffer sensitive to gasoline it would be a snap to locate the source. no one else smells it when around her which makes it very frustrating... hopefully will find out and report.
The lines are OEM manufactured. I cannot say if they are OEM (1980's) formulated. Germany has been leary of Ethenol from day ONE. Of course the Govt never has been but MB, Porsche, BMW, Audi, et-al here, have. They don't trust it in any concoction.