engine and drivetrain Pop Quiz: Why Is My Car Leaking Oil And Fuel?

[evoldog]

1974 2002.

 

Complete engine rebuild finished a couple weeks ago. It's been driving great.

 

Drove it for about an hour tonight then parked it at my apartment's parking space.

 

An hour later I came outside to see pretty much all the oil on the ground underneath it. I think it is oil because it is black and oily. Shit!

 

What's crazier, I also see these hoses hanging down in the front, behind the stock air dam, kind of on the right side if you are facing the front of the car.

 

 

Oh, one hose appears to be attached to a fuel filter that is disconnected and dripping gas. I think it is gas because it is clear and smells like gas. Awesome!

 

It's dark. With my flashlight I couldn't see where these hoses and this fuel filter are supposed to go. I can't see an unconnected hose in the engine bay. Or where all the oil came from (not the oil pan, I think. I didn't hit anything and the car seemed to be running fine earlier).

 

So, what do I look for in the daylight tomorrow? If you can't tell by this point, I don't have much engine experience. But I have tools and an auto supply place a block away. Plan is to tow back to shop on Monday but I'd like to see what the fuck is up first. And attach those fuel lines back together I guess.

 

I'm am now walking to the pub for a drink. 

Edited January 4, 2014 by evoldog

[Chamonix72]

Well that fuel filter should lead to the carburetor. I'm guessing a hose clamp came loose. That should be easy to fix.

 

The oil could be many things. Look around the oil filter. Maybe the filter burst. It happens. 

[LimeySteve]

The gas will melt black top, so if you are parked on the street it is "melted" black top , when the gas evaporates you will se depleted blacktop left behind, a horrid mess but will dry up fine. You will need to reattach the fuel filter & put a clamp on the hose & tighten it up. Don't smoke anywhere near the spill

[cosm3os]

I thought the answer to this question was always "so you know it has gas and oil in it".

[FB73tii]

Check oil level with dipstick. If fine then it is just gas and as said the hose clamp came loose. Recent rebuild supports that, it was just not tight to begin with.

 

If no oil in engine then [a] two unrelated things happened at the same time, or something caused both symptoms. If , perhaps you hit some debris while driving (a board, metal rod, etc) that flipped up, poked a hole in the oil pan or oil filter, and caught that loose hose and yanked it out. You probably would have heard that, though. Whatever it was, it happened close to where the car is now parked as you cannot get far without the gas line hooked up!

 

Let us know what you find. --Fred

Edited January 4, 2014 by FB73tii

[Hans]

There are few ways oil can get out of the engine in major quantities by gravity. If it had been coming out in quantity, you'd probably see a trail up the driveway. So as suggested, check the oil level first. As for the hose and filter, it is hard to imagine how it got down there - the normal feed if I am not mistaken on a carb car is up the firewall behind the engine. So see if there is a hose from carb to fuel pump and from pump towards (eventually) the rear. Perhaps there is an electric pump in the trunk, or someone re-routed a new hose.

[turbophil]

You need a complete check over on the install.  There isnt a clamp on the other end of the fuel filter which leads to think that there was no clamp on the side that came off either!  Make sure that all of your fuel line connections have clamps and are tight.  

 

Looking at the condition of the hoses they have been hanging down there for a while. Why would the fuel hoses be hanging out the bottom?  Did somebody re-route the fuel lines for some reason?   Maybe something caught it and pulled on the line 

Edited January 4, 2014 by turbophil

[Hans]

Or the lines got replaced. Is that the same car in your other post about the mystery vent hose? If so, how did that get down below the front apron? But then where did the gas come from? Weird.

[M3M3M3]

Or the lines got replaced. Is that the same car in your other post about the mystery vent hose? If so, how did that get down below the front apron? But then where did the gas come from? Weird.

+1

there are enough question marks in that engine bay to warrant tracing all the hoses in there looking for routing issues, mcguyvers, clamps, etc.

[evoldog]

Update time!

 

By the light of day and after talking to my mechanic I have these answers:

 

The engine has plenty of oil in it. That must have been dripped fuel plus disolved blacktop. Bingo LimeySteve!

 

Here's another clue: I had just filled up the gas tank last night.

 

Which jives with my mechanic's theory: that is the fuel vent hose from the gas tank. It should be tied up higher but otherwise it is supposed to terminate like that. If anybody has pictures of where that is supposed to be tied up behind the radiator please share.

 

Thanks guys for the calming support. That and a few whiskeys last night helped immensely.

Edited January 4, 2014 by evoldog

['76mintgrün'02]

The "fuel vent hose" is a small plastic line.  The line in the photo is the fuel return line.  It would have taken excess fuel back to the tank in the original fuel system, which is often simplified and that line is plugged.  It is important to vent the tank, but not through that line.  There are a lot of threads on the topic of venting the fuel tank.  A search will be fruitful... and fun  

 

Here is a photo of the return line as I found it on my car.  

 

[peterschop]

I bet it's the old fuel return line that is no longer being used. I had a similar experience when I first bought my car. I filled the gas tank then drove and parked the car. I came out five minutes later and saw fuel pouring out of the front of the car under the battery. The fuel return line had been disconnected in the engine compartment but was still connected to the gas tank. It was never plugged and after filling the tank, the fuel started to siphon out onto the ground. I put a bolt and hose clamp on the end of the line, problem solved.

[evoldog]

Ok I searched for fuel return line and fuel vent and I'm deep into the forums. Interesting stuff!

 

So I'm going to plug it with a 3/8 bolt with smooth shoulders (so it gets a good seal) and a hose clamp.

 

Then my next question is whether that will create a vacuum problem in my tank. I'm not sure I understand the venting in my car.

 

This is the charcoal canister I've been reading about, right? The hose appears to come from the gas tank, or from the plastic container attached to the parcel shelf. So it's venting fine through this?

 

[peterschop]

The fuel return and vent are two different lines. The fuel return line is a hard metal line that runs under the drivers or left side of the car before going into a rubber hose. That is the one that should be plugged if unused. The charcoal canister is fed from the vent line and should still be connected for venting of the gas tank through the plastic tank under the parcel shelf.

[Hans]

I wondered about those return lines but that didn't explain the filter. Where do those hoses go that are hanging down?