[SpeedRacer]

Hello, I was wondering if anyone else is experiencing a fuel smell inside the car when driving as well as outside - even when it's parked? The dealer has checked my 2018 Kicks out (3) different times but cannot find anything wrong and unfortunately it seems to be getting worse each day.

 

[nhoth]

Hello, I was wondering if anyone else is experiencing a fuel smell inside the car when driving as well as outside - even when it's parked? The dealer has checked my 2018 Kicks out (3) different times but cannot find anything wrong and unfortunately it seems to be getting worse each day.

Hello, Yes! Inside and out, parked and when driving!! fumes are making me dizzy and nauseous! taking it to the dealer for a check, but after reading your comment I am worried. Do you still have this issue? My vehicle is also a 2018 kicks!! Let me know.

 

[neutertooter]

Hello, Yes! Inside and out, parked and when driving!! fumes are making me dizzy and nauseous! taking it to the dealer for a check, but after reading your comment I am worried. Do you still have this issue? My vehicle is also a 2018 kicks!! Let me know.

I'm having the same issue on a brand new 2020 Nissan kicks. 15000 miles. I've had the car for 7 months. They found a leak in the canister system and fix that, but less than three weeks later I'm back with the same problem. This time the fuel smell is worse. It's bad enough that I am getting massive headaches. And the dealership is telling me that Diagnostics on the computer are not indicating any problem. They've also indicated that they have contacted Nissan oh, and according to my local service rep, apparently Nissan isn't seeing any issue either and they're telling me my car is ready I can come pick it up even though they have done nothing to fix any problem!

At this point I've contacted the local service manager and I'm awaiting a call back from him. I will deal with the general manager when he comes back into the dealership in a few days. And my next calls are to the Attorney General of my state and the local TV station if they don't get off their seat and do something to fix this issue. I've already inform them that they are going to either replace the vehicle, or replace all of my money including the amount for the trade in on my vehicle if they can't find a way to fix the problem. I like the car, but I bought a new one instead of fixing my old one so that I wasn't spending time without a vehicle. This is a huge disappointment and the way things are going I seriously doubt that I will be purchasing another Nissan! In 57 years I have never smelled gas on the inside of my vehicle, and yet the service rep here is telling me that basically this is normal. Normal as in the fumes are expelled outside of the vehicle. I informed him they weren't being expelled outside of the vehicle, they were being expelled in the cab and making it difficult for me to breathe and certainly wasn't providing me a healthy environment in which to be driving. Maybe the EPA needs to be contacted as well.

 

[SP3CTRYS]

Hey All, I am not experiencing the issue with my kicks, however I have on other cars. Here are some really simple troubleshooting tips to determine the exact cause and then you can talk to service about it.
What is your climate control set too? Is there a fan setting where you no longer smell fuel? Have you tries switching between intake and recirc? For ay noticeable affect it will take a few minutes
Is there any noticeable loss in economy?
Does the smell change based on driving condition? For example, when driving continuously down a highway, without stop/starting, does the fuel smell dissipate?

Lastly, get out of your car while it is idling, smell the exhaust area, do you smell fuel? If you are able, smell the evap canister, rear driver side, do you smell fuel? Open the hood, is there an immediate pungent odor? smell around the throttle body, is there fuel smell?
With smelling, make sure you are not huffing, just waft towards your nose.

Sadly, it seems modern mechanics are relying too heavily on computer diagnostics and not enough on old school methods.

I have a few theories on the cause:
#1 running rich or high idle -- If the car is running rich you will smell unburnt fuel in the exhaust
#2 the kicks is prone to faulty throttle bodies -- though modern throttle bodies do not mix the air and gas, if improper air-flow you could experience the above running rich symptoms
#3 older generations of cars had the fuel pump and filter accessible from within the car, under the rear passenger seats. I am not sure how the kicks is configured, but if the fuel system is accessible from under the rear seat, you could smell any malfunctions. -- talk to service/Nissan and find out the procedure for replacing a fuel pump.


A closing thought, how do you refuel? Do you fill the tank and filler nozzle right up? This is common practice with older generations of people for some reason. You 100% want to avoid this practice as it can hurt the fuel system by not allowing it to breathe

 

[SP3CTRYS]

At this point I've contacted the local service manager and I'm awaiting a call back from him. I will deal with the general manager when he comes back into the dealership in a few days. And my next calls are to the Attorney General of my state and the local TV station if they don't get off their seat and do something to fix this issue. I've already inform them that they are going to either replace the vehicle, or replace all of my money including the amount for the trade in on my vehicle if they can't find a way to fix the problem. I like the car, but I bought a new one instead of fixing my old one so that I wasn't spending time without a vehicle.....Maybe the EPA needs to be contacted as well.

I understand you are upset with the situation, I would be too. It is a great call to talk to the service and general mangers on finding a solution or having the dealership invest more time into diagnosing your issue.
I am not familiar with the legal process in America, but you will 100% not be getting reimbursed for your Kicks or the car replaced. The "lemon" clause protects the purchaser from a continuously defective vehicle. Unless your vehicle experiences a minimum of 3 failures within a short period of time the manufacturer/dealer will not replace your car. Additionally in the grand scheme of things, your car is still functioning perfectly fine, as in there is no impact on the overall operation of the vehicle. This also greatly reduces the chance of a direct replacement.

A couple thoughts of relief for you, with owing a new car you do not need to pay for any repairs or defects based on poor craftsmanship. You do need to pay for regular maintenance as outlined in your service manual and diagnostic fees. While undergoing diagnostic you may be carless, however while the dealership is doing any kind of extensive work they provide loaner cars for patrons to use.

I feel the dealer most certainly needs to spend some more time diagnosing your vehicle, also if they can not recreate the problem I would be interested in knowing what steps they did and how long they ran the car. Maybe take a service rep for a joy ride? You could then exactly specify when you smell the fuel.


I hope everyone in this thread keeps us updated on what resolutions or outcomes they experience.

 

[SP3CTRYS]

Hello, I was wondering if anyone else is experiencing a fuel smell inside the car when driving as well as outside - even when it's parked? The dealer has checked my 2018 Kicks out (3) different times but cannot find anything wrong and unfortunately it seems to be getting worse each day.

if the fuel smell is on the outside it is likely the car running rich. Has the dealer indicated that they do smell the fuel?
Lets say it might be running rich, what does your idle look like? Is it high or fluctuating?
Mine on cold starts is 1750ish, when warmed up 750ish.

 

[neutertooter]

Great info, SP3CTRYS.

My car is still in the shop so I cannot test any of your listed items. Something is wrong with my vehicle, they are claiming there is not, stating they have talked with Nissan and basically, come pick it up. My dogs and I have already been exposed to one environmental health hazard (mold), I can't and won't expose myself or my dogs to another (fuel while I am driving the car!).

The first time this was taken in, they explained about the overfill during fueling. So, I have not done that at all in the couple of weeks I had the car back before the problem started again. So backfill and pressure is not the issue in this instance. Also, when this started again after the first reported repair, the fuel tank was only 1/4 full, so at 3/4 empty, I would not expect pressure from overfill to be an issue.

This second even was worse than the first. Started on the weekend, by Monday was so bad I was getting headaches from the fuel fumes. The order does not go away, and gets strong. Rolling windows down did not really help. Problem does not appear to be related to sitting and idling, and while I was not on the highway, I was driving-not sitting-and still increasing fuel smell. And I 100% agree, there is far too much reliance on computers diagnosis vs real common sense trouble shooting going on in solving problems like this these days. We have become an ignorant society that is ponly going to become more ignorant as those skilled with the knowledge you are sharing, die off and move on down the road, no longer able to share their incredible knowledge.

My car is 6 months into my posession when this issue started. Only 15,000 mi and still under warranty, I also purchased additional warranties to cover the vehicle thru 100,000 mi. For me, this is ridiculous, I bought a new car to avoid the need to be in the shop every other week, and yet, here I sit without my brand new car and now a service department relying only on a computer, stating nothing is lighting up as faulty in their diagnostics, therefore no problem, comeand get your vehicle.

Yeah, no thank you! I'm not drving a fire or health hazard and breathing gas fumes while they wait for the lemon law to expire in this state at 22,000 miles. I'm 7,000 miles away from that threshhold right now and the way I put miles on the car,that's gonna get eaten up real quick.

Thanks for the input. I will surely pass it along. If you or anyone else has more to offer, I would gladly like to hear that as well.

Thanks so much for adding to the conversation. Its nice to hear from someone with the skills to troubleshoot instead of relying on a computer!

 

[neutertooter]

if the fuel smell is on the outside it is likely the car running rich. Has the dealer indicated that they do smell the fuel?
Lets say it might be running rich, what does your idle look like? Is it high or fluctuating?
Mine on cold starts is 1750ish, when warmed up 750ish.

Yes, the dealership at the first visit confirmed the fuel smell in my cabin. Their notes on the first repair also state that my concerns were confirmed, that there indeed was a problem, a leak in the system. This second time, they report the computer is not somcing up with anything, so they can do nothing.

Not sure the situation can be replicated on command. Fuel economy dies appear to reduce during the fuel fill that this occurs. Meaning for the tank of gas in the tank at the time it occurs, I do note my fuel economy reduces.

RPM's" I don't audibly notice anything, I have not been looking at the tachometer. Generally speaking tho, I have not noticed any high rpms at all.

 

[neutertooter]

I understand you are upset with the situation, I would be too. It is a great call to talk to the service and general mangers on finding a solution or having the dealership invest more time into diagnosing your issue.
I am not familiar with the legal process in America, but you will 100% not be getting reimbursed for your Kicks or the car replaced. The "lemon" clause protects the purchaser from a continuously defective vehicle. Unless your vehicle experiences a minimum of 3 failures within a short period of time the manufacturer/dealer will not replace your car. Additionally in the grand scheme of things, your car is still functioning perfectly fine, as in there is no impact on the overall operation of the vehicle. This also greatly reduces the chance of a direct replacement.

A couple thoughts of relief for you, with owing a new car you do not need to pay for any repairs or defects based on poor craftsmanship. You do need to pay for regular maintenance as outlined in your service manual and diagnostic fees. While undergoing diagnostic you may be carless, however while the dealership is doing any kind of extensive work they provide loaner cars for patrons to use.

I feel the dealer most certainly needs to spend some more time diagnosing your vehicle, also if they can not recreate the problem I would be interested in knowing what steps they did and how long they ran the car. Maybe take a service rep for a joy ride? You could then exactly specify when you smell the fuel.


I hope everyone in this thread keeps us updated on what resolutions or outcomes they experience.

I do not consider a car that is gassing me out and giving me a headache a 'properly functioning vehicle'. It puts my lungs and my overall health at risk, and since we still do not know if it's a fule leak or not, it's a fire hazard and possible explosion hazard as well, making the vehicle a moving bomb and weapon against myself and anyone around me should it go up in flames at some point in the process. Its unsafe, and in 57 years, and buying cars most of my adult life every 2-3 years, I have owned a lot of vehicles: none of which have ever done this, much less when brand new.

I will ask what they did to recreate the issue and how long they ran the car. Thanks for the tips.

 

[SP3CTRYS]

Yes, the dealership at the first visit confirmed the fuel smell in my cabin. Their notes on the first repair also state that my concerns were confirmed, that there indeed was a problem, a leak in the system. This second time, they report the computer is not somcing up with anything, so they can do nothing.

Not sure the situation can be replicated on command. Fuel economy dies appear to reduce during the fuel fill that this occurs. Meaning for the tank of gas in the tank at the time it occurs, I do note my fuel economy reduces.

RPM's" I don't audibly notice anything, I have not been looking at the tachometer. Generally speaking tho, I have not noticed any high rpms at all.

So the dealership acknowledges the problem. They plug in their fancy computer thing and no problem detected, therefore no problem even though the smell of fuel is prevalent.... I shoulda went to mechanics school instead of apprenticing in the trades

Talk to the managers, see if you can convince them to spend some more time diagnosing the issue. I went out to my car this morning, the rear seats do have handles to pull up on. I was unable to yank my rear seats off though, they are really well attached. I suspect that the fuel pump is replaceable from within the cabin, therefore, I am suspecting the ring gasket or fuel lines are leaking.
Bring that up to the manager and see what he says.
I will try yanking my seats off again tonight and let you know if I find the fuel pump.

At this point, that is the only logical cause I can think of for fuel inside the cabin.