hey fellas. i got an 89 GTA, and just finally got under to check out why the heck it smells like gas all the time. and i found what i suspected.

previous owner left me an open hose coming out of my fuel pump. there are 3 that connect to the metal lines.

going to the front of the car, there are 4 metal lines. 3 of these connect to my fuel pump, and 1 kind of loops around and heads behind the axle.

just checked the chilton, and for TPI is shows the actual pump with 3 lines coming out of it. so i think... hmmm, wtf??? i go down and pull up my carpet (previous owner also left me with access slot covered in duct tape) and i have 4 lines coming out of my pump.

so just for fun, i flip the the section in the chilton for carb'd models, and it shows 4 lines. just as i suspected. i recently made a guess that my car may have been carb'd out the factory.

anyways, i saw no sign of what it should connect to.

i also have had a mystery with my evap canister.... i have 3 nipples on it. 1 goes to the throttle body, and one hits a steel line to the tank. the other is a larger nip nip that is marked "AIR".

this AIR nipple has stirred up quite the mystery. some say its a vent, some say TB, and some say its a hose that sits open in the fender. is this for an additional tank line??

 

You should have 4 lines coming out of the tank, one for fuel feed, one for fuel return, one for a vent that goes right below the tank, and one that runs all the way to the evap canister. if the one going to the evap canister has been disconnected, it will smell like gas under the hood.

 

If it's a 1989 car - it was never factory carbed - the last 3rd gens factory carbed were 1987.

Do you see a vent/check valve looking thing, usually right at the front of the gas tank? I think all cars with a in-tank pump had a vent - looks like a small fuel filter or check valve, round in shape, about 1.5 inches diameter, white in color (minus the road grime) - that may be what's missing on your 4th line at the tank.

Since the FI cars build quite a bit of in-tank pressure, I believe it acts like a check valve and works with pressure - when the pressure builds so high it allows air into the tank. The in-tank pump always pumping fuel out of the tank creates a vacuum - thus the "wooosh" noise when you remove the cap. I believe this small valve allows air to enter the tank and reduce the vacuum at some point - probably spring-loaded and it takes X amount of pressure for the spring to release (like a radiator cap).

It's been way too long since I had an evap can, so I can't help you there - look at anyone's 3rd gen to see where their lines run.

 

yeah i saw that its probably the vent. it doesnt smell like gas under the hood, its down by the fender. never had the space to jack her up since catalyc install.

i called the dealer, and nothing came up, i told them it was the "pressure vent", thats what someone told me it was called. is that its name? someone else just told me i can get one new at the dealer...

 

If the gas smell is just by the fender, it could just be a leaking evap can or vent hose or something. Like newbie, I tore that evap can out a while ago, so im not much help either.