73'Vette

When I go out into the garage, there is the smell of gas in the air. I can see no actual fuel leaks on the ground at all. My first guess is that I need to go ahead and replace my rubber fuel lines, and also the charcoal canister. I read that alot of you guys have found a replacement canister from NAPA, however when I called my local NAPA, they didn't show it at all in their computer. Is there a specific part number I should ask for or maybe a different year canister?

mapman

You wouldn't need to replace the canister, only the charcoal filter/absorber in the canister.

73'Vette

Well, if I remember correctly I think they are only 50 bucks for a new one. I'd rather go that route just to be on the safe side. I just have to find one first.

bertmeister

I had the same problem for about a week. I smelled gas but could not find a leak anywhere. Finally after a week of smelling fumes, the fuel pump started dropping gas on the ground. Check your fuel pump.

cardo0

Can't remember the NAPA no. or find it on-line. I recall I got the correct number from the store and then ordered on-line along with other parts. Wish I had just let the store order it and would have saved shipping cost still paid state tax online.
But that gas smell could be the filler neck gasket. When I replaced my tank I found that 30 yr. old cork gasket all dry and cracked-up. But this would only leak with a nearly full tank and a bumby ride. Or maybe the old cap has lost its seal - bad gasket?
Anyways a good parts counter person at NAPA should be able to find that charcoal canister part no. for you. Sorry but destr oyed my receipt.
Good luck. cardo0

Ron71

You might want to also check the metal line under the car that runs to the cansiter. The line on my 74 had actually rusted through and that is what was causing the gas smell.

sjr1971

There is a small plastic tank on the drivers side of the gas tank that's part of the fuel vapor recovery system. You can see it looking up from the drvr rear wheelwell. It should have a bottom half, mine only had the top one. Thats where the gas smell was on mine.

cardo0

Okay 73'Vett, I found the NAPA part# still in my online account from previous order. For my '74 I used #CRB229817 (just 229817 will work online). Best way is bring in old EVC to compare with catalog as 5 part numbers look the same but have different dimensions and tubing sizes.
Again good luck. cardo0

73'Vette

Sure enough, NAPA part#229817 brings up a description for Echlin Fuel System Fuel Vapor Canister. That looks to be the one! Thanks for the help!

As for the other suggestions, I'll be checking all the metal and rubber lines for any signs of leaks. That small plastic tank that was mentioned...is this the check valve that someone had a post on awhile back? I'll try and locate that part and make sure it isn't leaking as well.

87bob

I can not address the replacement issue. But I highly reccomend the hose replacement. Last year at Vettes on the Rockies the return line to the from canister from the tank cracked. Fuel poured out of the crack if we had side pipes on the car we would have had a fire for sure.

On the wifes 79 the tank is sealed the carb is vented to the canister the only place for fumes to vent off is out the canister. So if you keep your tank full as most of us do you may always have a small amount of vapor as a result. The C-3 systems I don't believe can contain the pressure of current fuel systems.

sjr1971

I don't know if there WAS a check valve. The bottom 1/2 was gone. There's a hose just below the filler cap that goes to the tank then it goes to the filter cannister on the drivers side. With the botton of this tank missing it poured raw fuel out when the gas tank was >3/4 full. Non side pipe car might've ignited. Ty-wapped off the rubber hose & drilled/vented the gas cap. No smell/no problems

73'Vette

Thanks for all the advice guys. I just got finished replacing the vapor canister and almost all of the rubber fuel hoses. The only hoses I didn't change were the ones near the fuel pump, because it looks like the prior owner already did that. Also, I didn't replace the rubber line coming out of the bottom of the tank since I'll have to do that the next time the tank is empty. I did find the check valve, so I took it down and cleaned it up to make sure it wasn't cracked. Hopefully with almost all new rubber lines and the new vapor canister my fuel smell will go away.