Transporting small outboards - always a smell of petrol in the car!

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Jaguar 25

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Every time I move an outboard in the car there is always a smell of petrol in the car. I always run the engine with the fuel lever to 'off' to drain (most) of the petrol from the carb reservoir. The petrol tank filler cap and the air bleed valve are always tightly closed. Yesterday I had two outboards in the car - double trouble!
Is this smell to be expected or am I doing something wrong? Any advice would be appreciated.
 
Jaguar 25 said:
Every time I move an outboard in the car there is always a smell of petrol in the car. I always run the engine with the fuel lever to 'off' to drain (most) of the petrol from the carb reservoir. The petrol tank filler cap and the air bleed valve are always tightly closed. Yesterday I had two outboards in the car - double trouble!
Is this smell to be expected or am I doing something wrong? Any advice would be appreciated.
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can't say for other motors, but when i first bought my Yamaha 2.5hp 4 stroke it stunk and i dreaded bringing it along on journeys, i found out is was because of user error and with the tank filled up to the max line when you lift the motor up out the water without shutting the air breather it flows a little out the top then runs inside the cover leading to a smelly car journey. - have to isolate everything on mine before even lifting it up on tilt.

since then i can safely report it doesnt have a whiff about it at all - i have even forgot to run the carbs empty and its still smell free, since then i have ditched the carry bag and now it simply gets strapped with a ratchet strap on a small sheet of tarpaulin,

i dont think they're meant to stink, Fuel must be escaping somewhere if you can smell it, like i say could be leaking during use and its a remnant smell,.
 
In my experience all smelly compounds pong in the car, even a sealed pot of thinners. It might help to run the carburettor dry at the end of use, which is normal practice with 2-strokes anyway.
 
I have found that making sure I refill the tank as soon as I return from the boat helps. Any spillage has thoroughly evaporated by the time I use it again.
 
It only takes a few drops of petrol to stink out a car.
There will be some petrol in the carb when the engine stops, even if you try to run it dry.
Some engines, it's a few moments work to take off the float bowl and empty it.
When I need to take my petrol strimmer to attack Mum's garden, I carry it in a wrapper of thick polythene. It seems to help.
But I still drive with the windows open as much as I can.
Maybe a pickup or a roof box would be the answer?
 
Running an engine 'dry' does not empty the carbs. It only runs until the fuel level in the float bowl is below operational level so the engine stops.
To empty the float bowls you either remove the drain screw on the bottom of the bowl to drain it or leave the engine on its side so the fuel leaks out and evaporates before you put it into your car.
 
We use a large heavy duty plastic bag to contain petrol fumes.Noticed fumes a bit worse on last trip turned out that the rubber washer was split in several places on the air bleed at the top of the tank.
 
SAMYL said:
To empty the float bowls you either remove the drain screw on the bottom of the bowl to drain it or leave the engine on its side so the fuel leaks out and evaporates before you put it into your car.
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Given the size of drain screws in outoards, it would not be long before the drain screw finished up on the sea or lake bed!
How does leaving the engine on its side allow fuel to leak out. Do you mean from the carb or the tank?
 
Jaguar 25 said:
Given the size of drain screws in outoards, it would not be long before the drain screw finished up on the sea or lake bed!
How does leaving the engine on its side allow fuel to leak out. Do you mean from the carb or the tank?
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Its the fuel remaining in the carb bowl that spills

If you have a Seagull you get used to it/ learn to leave it on the ground on its side while you pack the rest of the gear/ open the windows/ fold the hood down.
 
VicS said:
Its the fuel remaining in the carb bowl that spills

If you have a Seagull you get used to it/ learn to leave it on the ground on its side while you pack the rest of the gear/ open the windows/ fold the hood down.
Click to expand...

If you have a Seagull, you're probably clinically adicted to that smell!
 
The only solution I've found is to only travel with the engine fuel tank 1/3 full or less. This gives room for the vapour to expand without forcing fuel out past the cap sealing ring or vent. I always keep spare two stroke with the engine in a plastic five litre can and you can see how much it expands and contracts in changing temperatures. On a warm day a full 5 litres of fuel looks fit to burst with the plastic can resembling a football.

With a spare can always available I don't worry about under-filling the engine fuel tank.
 
NB 4 strokes usually have a recommended position to lay down, so lube oil doesn't fill the combustion chamber with possibly expensive results if one tries to start it like that.
 
I have had this problem. I found that there was a tiny, and almost impossible to see, crack in the tank upstand (the bit that the filler cap screws onto). The crack followed the line of the root of the thread. After a bit of trial and error, I welded the crack, using a small electric soldering iron, and a "rod" made out of apparently similar material (actually cut from a plastic fishbox).

In normal use, the crack was unnoticeable, but when the outboard was placed on its side, a small amount of petrol appeared to come from the filler cap. Tried a new cap, and new seals to no avail, and eventually with the aid of a magnifying glass, detected the crack. Since "welding" no further problem.

Suggest that the OP checks his fuel tank very carefully.
 
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