1996 Sierra Ext Cab Gas Smell

jaysdogjazz · October 1, 2008

I thought I was a proud new owner of a 1996 GMC Sierra ext cab short bed. vin numer 2GTEK19R4T1552424 WITH 5.7 VORTEC MOTOR. When i stop the I notice a smell of gas. While me and a few of my friends were looking at the vehicle tonight we have come to the conclusion that the smell is coming from the intake portion of the of the motor. I notice that fuel lines come into a metal plate and there is no way to see the fuel injectors. Someone was saying to me that on this model the fuelrail kind of has a spider apperance inside of there and it should be like the same type of a fuel rail that you would find on a vortec V6 like on a chevy astro. He claims there was a recall for this. But he was claiming that the fuel rail was leaking inside this plenium area. Reading on the forums I see where people having a smell of gas normally haveing a problem with the gas tank. I am I going in the wrong direction or is there a problem others have seen with the fuel rail. Is it something like changing a gasket or is this looking like a fuel rail change my friend was saying to me. The truck starts great everytime and I dont seem to notice any hesitation with the motor while I am driving. The motor runs smooth, so I am having a problem understanding this problem. So if anyone could find me any links or answers to this problem I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you in advance. I will add pictures later today.

jaysdogjazz · October 1, 2008

Here is some pics

I hope this explains what my problem is.

Please help

95Sierra2500 · October 1, 2008

You COULD have a leak at any number of places. If you're sure it's in the engine compartment, then you need to check, first and foremost, where the fuel lines come into the plenum. The rubber o-rings that seal this connection can easily be torn and leak. You could also have a bad o-ring on one of the injectors in the 'spider' assembly inside the plenum. It's doubtful that it's leaking through the regulator, but it's always possible. A more common problem on '95s with the V6 was for the 'nut kit' to begin to leak, but that was 'solved' with the move to the CMPFI system that you have (which is no better). BE WARNED, THERE IS NO RECALL ON THIS FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM unless you live in California.

If that system has never been touched, I would lean more toward you having a bad fuel line under the truck, or perhaps a leaky gas tank (very common in trucks).

jaysdogjazz · October 1, 2008

thanks 95sierra2500. I do live in California but the truck was just brought here from Wyoming. I think I SHould call the dealer to see if there would be any recalls on the vin#. I will take a closer look after work at the fuel tank and the input of the manifold thing again. thanks

Just called the dealer the only recall for this thing is for the wiper motor... they said for $100 bucks they can diagnose it and see if they can locate the problem think this might be a good start instead of running around hoping I can find the problem. He was a little worried when I told him I had no ck engine light on. Sounds like he might be a little worried about how to find the problem.

jaysdogjazz · December 19, 2008

Just a quick update, the problem turned out to be a metal fitting on the fuel line going into the intake manifold. The previous owner must have stripped the line. I dont know why he was in there? Strange that i couldnt see a visual leak but the dealer found the problem and charged me a couple hundred to fix it. but it works and I enjoy driving it.