i have heard this before but my 1982 240d has a diesel odor in the trunk....sometimes when fuel is lower the lines get air and the car does not want to start,,then miraculously after a few hard starts it runs fine just in time to fill it up again with no problems...not sure what this is but the tank and filler neck seems fine...and no apparent leaking..any experience out there??

wes

Had a similar odor problem in my 1985. Turned out to be just a worn fuel fill cap!

whagen,

Check your fuel tank strainer. Do a search for the procedure.

P E H

I also had an odor problem immediately after fill up. I thought great, need a seal, etc, who knows. Did a little investigating and found that the tank overflow hole by the fuel door goes a short distance into the trunk area and then a hose attatches to it and carries it down and out the bottom of the car. My hose had become detatched from the short metal pipe and any overflow from the act of filling the tank would drop into the trunk area (just behind the fuel tank panel). The hose was very brittle, so I heated it up with a heat gun to make pliable and re-attatched to the metal pipe. Upon cooling the hose contracted and formed a tight fit on the metal pipe. Problem solved

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'85 300D - 206K (sold)
'81 240D - 149K (sold)
'03 Jetta TDI - (sold)
'79 300D - (sold)

Since you are getting air in fuel line sounds like you have a leaky tank takoff fitting or rubber hose. You may find some visual indication by inspection. Just a thought.

This hose can also become saturated with diesel oil and itself be the source of the odor. We saw this in one recently and replaced it with some 5/8" vinyl hose (clear) from the home depot.

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Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz

On the "smell in the trunk", My wife and daughter both complained about the "smell", I found the seal around the tank neck, up at the fill was cracked through, Replacing it cured the problem.

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1985 Euro 240D 5 spd 140K
1979 240D 5 spd, 40K on engine rebuild
1994 Dodge/Cummins, 5 spd, 121K
1964 Allice Chalmers D15 tractor
2014 Kubota L3800 tractor
1964 VW bug

"Lifes too short to drive a boring car"

Yup, check the vent line between the filler and the tank. Run a search, it is described here back in the days when this forum was more technical than entertainment.