Fuel leaks in the engine compartment on Fuel injected 5.0 pushrod Mustangs.
The 40 PSI fuel pressure in 5.0 Mustangs will find places to leak that may be unexpected.
You will need to check for leaks with the system pressurized; here’s how to do that.
Clue – listen for the fuel pump to prime when you first turn the ignition switch on.
It should run for 2-5 seconds and shut off. To trick the fuel pump into running, find the ECC test connector and jump the connector in the upper RH corner to ground.
1.) The two couplings just behind the alternator are a prime source of leaks. There are O rings in the couplings that provide the seal. Look in the A/C repair section for the fuel line tools. They look like little plastic top hats. You will need the 1/2" & 5/8" ones. The hat shaped section goes on facing the large part of the coupling. Then you press hard on the brim until it forces the sleeve into the coupling and releases the spring. You may need someone to pull on the line while you press on the coupling. Put some motor oil on them when you put the line back together.
2.) There is nylon tubing that connects the couplings to the steel tubing on the car body. There is another section of the nylon tubing that connects the two fuel injector rails together. This is another auto parts store part – Dorman Part # 800-062.
You will have to heat the nylon tubing in hot water (not boiling or over 150°) to get it to slide over the barbs on the tubing. Use a flaring tool block to hold the tubing while you press it onto whatever fitting it needs to slide onto. Note: just tighten the flaring tool nuts hand tight, no wrench should be needed. Make sure that the tubing fits all the way over all the barbs on the fitting.
See http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/search/Nylon+Fuel+Line+Repair+Kits/N1652/C0290.oap for more help on repair parts for nylon fuel injection tubing. They are all Dorman parts, so almost any good auto parts store will have them.
3.) The fuel pressure regulator mounted below and behind the throttle body has two O rings that provide a seal for the regulator and its mounting. See your local auto parts store for GP Sorensen, Fuel Injector Hardware Kit, Part Number #800-9401
4.) The fuel injectors may leak where the injector fits into the fuel injector supply rail.
Fuel injector seal kits with 2 O rings and a pintle cap (Borg-Warner P/N 274081) are available at Pep Boys auto parts. Cost is about $3-$4 per kit. The following are listed at the Borg-Warner site ( http://www.borg-warner.com ) as being resellers of Borg-Warner parts:
Most of the links above have store locators for find a store in your area.
Use motor oil on the O rings when you re-assemble them & everything will slide into place. The gasoline will wash away any excess oil that gets in the wrong places and it will burn up in the combustion chamber. Heat the pintle caps in hot water to soften them to make them easier to install.
One other possible cause for smelling fuel other than a fuel leak in the engine compartment...
Missing or damaged carbon canister plumbing
Charcoal canister plumbing - one 3/8" tube from the bottom of the upper manifold to the rubber hose. Rubber hose connects to one side of the canister solenoid valve. Other side of the solenoid valve connects to one side of the canister. The other side of the canister connects to a rubber hose that connects to a line that goes all the way back to the gas tank. There is an electrical connector coming from the passenger side injector harness near #1 injector that plugs into the canister solenoid valve. It's purpose is to vent the gas tank. The solenoid valve opens at cruse to provide some extra fuel. The canister is normally mounted on the passenger side frame rail near the smog pump pulley.
It does not weigh but a pound or so and helps richen up the cruse mixture. It draws no HP & keeps the car from smelling like gasoline in a closed garage. So with all these good things and no bad ones, why not hook it up & use it?
The purge valve solenoid connector is a dangling wire that is near the ECT sensor and oil filler on the passenger side rocker cover. The actual solenoid valve is down next to the carbon canister. There is about 12"-16" of wire that runs parallel to the canister vent hose that comes off the bottom side of the upper intake manifold. That hose connects one port of the solenoid valve; the other port connects to the carbon canister.
The purge valve solenoid should be available at your local auto parts store.
Purge valve solenoid:
The carbon canister is normally mounted on the passenger side frame rail near the smog pump pulley.
Carbon Canister:
check for fuel leak at injectors, FPR, or bad fuel filler rubber neck grommet- (connecting neck to tank) or the most obvious culprit CARBON CANISTER for fuel tank.