okay today, took off the rubber elbow, opened the throttle body blades and its got a pretty good odor of fuel in there. I think i saw on another post that it could mean I have a bad fuel injector? or any other possibilities. tryin to get rid of an intermittent fuel smell when i turn on the heater. thank you in advance.

 

or can a leaking Fuel Pressure Regulator cause that as well? I'd need a fuel pressure guage to test it?

 

Yeah a regulator that was leaking through into the vacuum line could cause a smell. Pull the vacuum line to the regulator and check it for gas or gas smell.

A pressure gauge would be helpful/needed in determinining leaks of the regulator or injector(s).

 

so shoebox or anyone else, got the fuel pressure regulator. so i hook it to that shrader valve near the FPR. do i leave the vacuum line on the top of the FPR on or off when i prime the fuel pump? or any other tips will be apperciated. thank you

 

well okay, I did it anyway, but i left the vacuum hose to the regulator on, as I wasnt sure if i'd have to block off the hose or leave it open when i primed the pump. so hooked up the FP guage to the shrader valve and primed the pump and turned off the car, it was at 40 psi (at least for the 10 mins i let it sit after I primed the pump) Then I started the car it went to 37 psi, and as soon as i shut the car off it went to 30 psi and stayed there till I primed the pump again, to which it went back to 40psi. now is this okay? I know the fuel smell is not normal when I open the throttle body blades right? so what you all think?

 

nobody? ttt

 

I've had the same problem now for months myself. I can't find an external leak anywhere and it's intermittent, so I don't think the regulator is bad. Hopefully someone has an answer.

 

After you prime the pump (engine off), just leave the gauge on, not starting the engine. If you have a leaky injector, the pressure is going to go down in a short time.

The other things you posted sounded reasonably normal.

 

alright I put the guage on the shrader valve and primed the pump, it was at 40psi, left it for about 1 hour and it was 41psi. so I assume I can rule out a leaky injector for now, right??? I took off the fuel pressure regulator vacuum line and sniffed it, there's definitely a little fuel smell in there. So at this point Im leaning towards a possible pin hole size leak in the fuel pressure regulator thats letting a slight amount of fuel to enter the vacuum line and hence my intermittent fuel smell from my heater vents? What you all think, I really really would like your opinions. thanks

 

IMO, any kind of fuel smell in the vacuum line to the regulator means there is some fuel getting past the diaphragm. You could use a vacuum tester on the regulator to see if there is any leakage.

 

hey shoebox, you know I was just doing a search on how to use a vacuum guage. when this very post came up on the search so I just have to connect the guage on the FPR and to the intake manifold where it FPR vacuum line runs too? Im just learning all this stuff. Also since we're talking about it, where would be some other places to test vacuum? thank you!

 

I am speaking of a tester (like a Mityvac), different from a gauge. It lets you simulate/apply vacuum.

 

hey, i bought of them mityvac vacuum testers, but couldnt test right now b/c engine is hot and its getting dark out. So I'll do it 1st thing tomorrow, question is to test the FPR, when i connect the tester to it, I leave the car off?? and how much of a vacuum do you recommend? dont want to put too much and do more harm than good.... thank you again!

 

You have a new toy.

Just disconnect the hose to the regulator at the intake manifold end. Put your Mityvac on it and pump it up to about 20-25 inches of vacuum. This will test your hose and the regulator. The vacuum should hold if everything is tight.

 

haha yeah I acquiring a bit of new toys lately!

so today I put the vacuum tester on the hose of the FRP on the manifold end and it didnt lose any vacuum in 15 mins. So now I dunno what to do Any other recommendations will be appreciated?