Gas smell through vents

Post by **mecheng** » 19 Jul 2019, 00:20

Hello all. After my wife had her front drivers fender hit, she started to notice a gas smell through the ventilation system.
When the car is moving you don't notice it, I guess because the fresh air is getting to the intake, but you notice it when you are at a stop. I removed the fender and I don't see any damage to the purge valve or canister and there is no engine codes. I don't see or hear any exhaust leaks.

Any idea what the cause could be? Would the purge valve make this kind of smell? I don't see any leaks or notice any smells in the engine bay. If it were bad, wouldn't it throw a code? Maybe the seal that covers the long shroud sealing the cabin filter has been disrupted? That is the only thing I can think of. All the screws are still present.

Post by **abscate** » 19 Jul 2019, 03:22

Tough one. Maybe there is a way to plug or vent the purge system overboard to see if that is the problem

The damaged evap system does seem most plausible. Though

Post by **mecheng** » 19 Jul 2019, 08:27

Ok I did some more analysis. When you have the ventilation on recirc you don’t smell anything.

I did the glove test and it failed, it didn’t blow the glove fast but it did inflate it. When I pulled the dipstick I saw smoke. When the pcv system fails does it get into the vent? The smell is smells like engine bay, I’m not sure if it’s oil or gas. The top rubber seal that seals against the hood seems fine. I’m confused

Post by **ZionXIX** » 19 Jul 2019, 11:49

I purposely leave my dipstick open to relieve pressure and I routinely smell oil smoke when I have the fresh air vent on.

Post by **mecheng** » 19 Jul 2019, 13:42

I took a video of the smoking dipstick, I will leave it slightly open.

I also noticed the hose connecting to the ptc valve is oily. I believe that hose is part of the pcv if I’m not mistaken. Does that hose rupture or seep due to pressure?

What do you guys think?