Finally I have a wedge!
Discussion
Hi all.
I have bought G234RGD. A red 400se so thought I would say hello.
I have been studying the wedge forums for ages and getting all sorts of info that you guys chat about. Its been very helpful.
I nearly bought one a year ago but other issues got in the way. Plus there was something stopping me from pulling the trigger so it wasnt to be.
I have to say I am quite chuffed with my new toy.
I come from Esprit ownership so well aware of the little niggles cars with "character" can have.
I know I will have many questions but for now just 1. Its in my garage with is integral part of the house. The tank is full and it stinks.
When I mean stink i mean enough to smell it in parts of the house and worst of all in my 3yr old daughters room which is directly above the garage. My Esprit V8 which I owned previously had a slight whiff but nothing compared to this. Am keeping garage doors open slightly to keep the smell down.
I have no leaks on the floor or in the engine bay with or without the engine running. The cap is laughable so to try to help matters I taped over the filler flap to test which has helped a tiny bit but not enough.
So any thoughts or ideas are most appreicated.
Neil
I have bought G234RGD. A red 400se so thought I would say hello.
I have been studying the wedge forums for ages and getting all sorts of info that you guys chat about. Its been very helpful.
I nearly bought one a year ago but other issues got in the way. Plus there was something stopping me from pulling the trigger so it wasnt to be.
I have to say I am quite chuffed with my new toy.
I come from Esprit ownership so well aware of the little niggles cars with "character" can have.
I know I will have many questions but for now just 1. Its in my garage with is integral part of the house. The tank is full and it stinks.
When I mean stink i mean enough to smell it in parts of the house and worst of all in my 3yr old daughters room which is directly above the garage. My Esprit V8 which I owned previously had a slight whiff but nothing compared to this. Am keeping garage doors open slightly to keep the smell down.
I have no leaks on the floor or in the engine bay with or without the engine running. The cap is laughable so to try to help matters I taped over the filler flap to test which has helped a tiny bit but not enough.
So any thoughts or ideas are most appreicated.
Neil
as mentioned get it up in the air ,almost certainly old past there best fuel lines, use 7840 marine hose to replace dont be tempted with so called good quality fuel hose from other sources 7840 is marine industry standard 30 minutes fire proof and is specified by the us coast guard, could be a leaky tank but my guess is hoses that may well look fine but start bending them about and cracks will appear.
john
john
You are in a very dangerous situation with this problem and need to do something about it right now, if the fumes reach anything that will ignite them people could die
Don't start the car, don't switch anything on
Get the car away from the house by pushing it, try and park it in a place that is safely away from people that may be smoking cigarettes
Now investigate what is causing the fuel leak
Be careful
Don't start the car, don't switch anything on
Get the car away from the house by pushing it, try and park it in a place that is safely away from people that may be smoking cigarettes
Now investigate what is causing the fuel leak
Be careful
I would certainly be checking out the fuel lines, there are inboard disks, hot exhaust and fuel hoses in close proximity.
Mine wiffs a tad but not a great deal (overflows) and a long stand will see the level drop. Tend to park up with half tank max in the garage, always check floor when I take it out and a quick scan around the pump/filter area, easy to see and get to for a feel rear wheel drivers side front of wheel.
Did I read somewhere that modern fuel additives in recent years can still be corrosive to older material lines even if they are looking good and sound?
Mine wiffs a tad but not a great deal (overflows) and a long stand will see the level drop. Tend to park up with half tank max in the garage, always check floor when I take it out and a quick scan around the pump/filter area, easy to see and get to for a feel rear wheel drivers side front of wheel.
Did I read somewhere that modern fuel additives in recent years can still be corrosive to older material lines even if they are looking good and sound?
Engineer1949 said:
as mentioned get it up in the air ,almost certainly old past there best fuel lines, use 7840 marine hose to replace dont be tempted with so called good quality fuel hose from other sources 7840 is marine industry standard 30 minutes fire proof and is specified by the us coast guard, could be a leaky tank but my guess is hoses that may well look fine but start bending them about and cracks will appear.
john
This is the first port of call.john
Modern fuel eats older types of fuel lines.
A long time ago now, but twice when I owned big wedges the cars had a bad petrol smell at its worst when the tank(s) were full. In both cases it was down to a leaking weld in the fuel filler neck - https://tvr-parts.com/tvr-parts/part-details/tvr-0...
Hi and welcome to the fold.
I can only reiterate what has been said already...Get it up in the air and have a real good look at ALL fuel hoses...Including those between the tanks and on the fuel rail.
I had my feed from the pump to the rail replaced with Kunifer copper and only the small sections of hose where needed.
As said modern hose can deteriorate ..this happened to me twice within a year and with new hose.
Wedges can whiff a bit, more so if the seal has gone in the filler cap...(easy to replace)..this can also be responsible for creating a vacuum once it starts coming out of the overflow on the rear N/S wheel arch...sometimes it doesn't stop!..however you would certainly notice this...
I would also remove the rear trim behind the driver and check the filler hose and overflow condition.
Nice looking 400SE.....dont gamble with fuel..please.
Cheers
Ziga
I can only reiterate what has been said already...Get it up in the air and have a real good look at ALL fuel hoses...Including those between the tanks and on the fuel rail.
I had my feed from the pump to the rail replaced with Kunifer copper and only the small sections of hose where needed.
As said modern hose can deteriorate ..this happened to me twice within a year and with new hose.
Wedges can whiff a bit, more so if the seal has gone in the filler cap...(easy to replace)..this can also be responsible for creating a vacuum once it starts coming out of the overflow on the rear N/S wheel arch...sometimes it doesn't stop!..however you would certainly notice this...
I would also remove the rear trim behind the driver and check the filler hose and overflow condition.
Nice looking 400SE.....dont gamble with fuel..please.
Cheers
Ziga
Exactly the same issue I had on my SEAC (before I started the resto)
Only smelt when the tank was full
It will be one of the hoses, either the big joining hose OR the tank to filler hose being the main culprit.
If it was the lower ones / swirl pot it would stink all the time
Good luck as changing the top hoses is a royal pain the ass / time consuming etc
Only smelt when the tank was full
It will be one of the hoses, either the big joining hose OR the tank to filler hose being the main culprit.
If it was the lower ones / swirl pot it would stink all the time
Good luck as changing the top hoses is a royal pain the ass / time consuming etc
Easy to find, get it in the air and with the aid of lighter as it will be dark in places you will find out where leak is no problem 
, As said on here check for leaks my old Wedge overflow pipe was partially blocked and jubilee clip was loose, also when filling up take your time as the tanks have to balance otherwise petrol can go down the inside of the car when it splashes. Open the drivers door and smell by the seat belt if it smells there "like my one did" its probably been overfilled, also filling up too much and parking on a hill causes the same problem
, As said on here check for leaks my old Wedge overflow pipe was partially blocked and jubilee clip was loose, also when filling up take your time as the tanks have to balance otherwise petrol can go down the inside of the car when it splashes. Open the drivers door and smell by the seat belt if it smells there "like my one did" its probably been overfilled, also filling up too much and parking on a hill causes the same problem Thanks for all your replys guys. Very helpful.
Mark-8rlbe yes its the one Tony Gilbert had for sale. Nice guy nothing too much trouble and has been helpful with this issue. Would buy again from him.
He did mention that he did not have any smell of fuel when he had it in one of his lockups. It was parked with 4 others and there was no smell when I looked at it. The fuel was quarter of a tank so well down. Filled it up as soon as I could after leaving TG. Had no smell on the100 odd mile trip home just a really bouncy fuel guage and it went down pretty quick.
The chassis was restored 2015 so maybe some of the hoses were replaced then.
Solitude No filled it up drove 200 yards home. So its full at the moment.
Engineer1949 Thanks for this yes will be making sure its the correct hose.
Will have a good look underneath and see whats what. Dont intend doing anything silly as the boilers in the garage as well just to keep me on my toes.! The cars well out of the way at the moment. Seems theres so few of these cars left, I dont want to be the one to lose another.
Cheers for now
Neil
Mark-8rlbe yes its the one Tony Gilbert had for sale. Nice guy nothing too much trouble and has been helpful with this issue. Would buy again from him.
He did mention that he did not have any smell of fuel when he had it in one of his lockups. It was parked with 4 others and there was no smell when I looked at it. The fuel was quarter of a tank so well down. Filled it up as soon as I could after leaving TG. Had no smell on the100 odd mile trip home just a really bouncy fuel guage and it went down pretty quick.
The chassis was restored 2015 so maybe some of the hoses were replaced then.
Solitude No filled it up drove 200 yards home. So its full at the moment.
Engineer1949 Thanks for this yes will be making sure its the correct hose.
Will have a good look underneath and see whats what. Dont intend doing anything silly as the boilers in the garage as well just to keep me on my toes.! The cars well out of the way at the moment. Seems theres so few of these cars left, I dont want to be the one to lose another.
Cheers for now
Neil
you are far more likely to get fume smells with a 1/4 filled tank than a full one so something is definitely amiss as pointed out already 
lovely wedge and enjoy 
Neil E 99 said:
He did mention that he did not have any smell of fuel when he had it in one of his lockups. It was parked with 4 others and there was no smell when I looked at it. The fuel was quarter of a tank so well down. Filled it up as soon as I could after leaving TG. Had no smell on the100 odd mile trip home just a really bouncy fuel guage and it went down pretty quick.
The fuel gauge is hit and miss anyway...I never let mine go below 1/4...when you have a free afternoon I will explain it..!Now 100 miles in a 400SE should not cost you more than £25-30 in fuel..just over a 1/4 of a tank...combined the tanks hold 60 odd litres..If you are losing more than you may have a leak on the balance pipe or the joining tank hose...its a PITA job...worst case was someone had leaking fuel tank..(Pinhole) and someone else had a cracked collar on the tank..I hope yours if anything is just fuel hose replacement time...
Cheers
Ziga
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