95 Seabreeze Problem

[seabreezeal]

I have a problem with my 95 National RV Seabreeze. When I am on an uphill climb for awhile the strong odor of either gasoline or exhaust is present in the cab of the MH, especially in the rear. This has been a problem for a few years and I have taken the coach to a couple of Chevy dealers to try to get it fixed but neither of them were successful. I wonder if anyone else has had this problem and, if so, were they able to get it resolved. Any suggestions?

[seabreezeal]

I have a problem with my 95 National RV Seabreeze. When I am on an uphill climb for awhile the strong odor of either gasoline or exhaust is present in the cab of the MH, especially in the rear. This has been a problem for a few years and I have taken the coach to a couple of Chevy dealers to try to get it fixed but neither of them were successful. I wonder if anyone else has had this problem and, if so, were they able to get it resolved. Any suggestions?

[RV Wizard]

seabreezeal, welcome to iRV 2.com. We are glad to have you join us here and look for ward to you being an active participant on the forum. Have you noticed if the fuel level in the tank makes a difference? Does your CO2 detector alarm as a result? Have you tried parking on an incline and get under it to check things out? What if any difference is there during this event on the performance of the engine? Let us know and we will try to help.

[Dave Graves]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by seabreezeal:
I have a problem with my 95 National RV Seabreeze. When I am on an uphill climb for awhile the strong odor of either gasoline or exhaust is present in the cab of the MH, especially in the rear. This has been a problem for a few years and I have taken the coach to a couple of Chevy dealers to try to get it fixed but neither of them were successful. I wonder if anyone else has had this problem and, if so, were they able to get it resolved. Any suggestions? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I had a gas smell once in a while in my 97 Sea Breeze. My RV dealer could never find the source either so we just ended up living with the ocasional smell. I always suspected the generator but could never verify it...I hope you have better luck finding it than I did!

[seabreezeal]

Hello and thanks to all who have replied to the posting of my problem. Sorry I haven't gotten back sooner but other events overtook me. The answer from Mr.Graves was not too encouraging but thanks nevertheless. Answering Mike and Amy's questions: I have not noticed the fuel level having an effect on this problem but will pay more attention to that in future. The CO2 detector does not alarm. No, I have not tried to park on an incline and check things out but I will give that a try. After one of these incidences, I did pull over and take off the engine bonnet but was not able to detect any strong smell of gasoline coming from that area so I don't think there is any sort of leak in the fuel supply lines. Also, when I took it to a Chevy dealer in Arizona, the fuel system "expert" there said that he did a pressure check of the entire system and there were no problems that he could find. I am wondering that since this problem only seems to occur when I have the gas pedal to the metal for a long period of time - with lots of gas pouring into the engine - that this might be a case where not all that gasoline is being burned efficiently and the result showing up in the exhaust and maybe somehow that exhaust is getting sucked into the coach somehow? When this problem manifests itself there is not only a strong smell of gas but a definite irritation of the eyes as well. One of the biggest problems I have is that I can't seem to reproduce the gas smell problem when I take the thing to the dealer - hard to find the same driving conditions near these dealerships. I guess that I need to capture one of these guys and take him on a trip somewhere. It is definitely not my imagination. Other people have smelled the same thing and after our last trip my wife says that she will not get back in the motorhome until it's fixed (this could be a good thing?). Anyway, thanks for the response and I will look into your suggestions. Does anyone know of any resource at Chevrolet (management or tech support) that I might consult or of a good mechanic who specializes in fuel problems that I might contact? Clutching a straws at this point. Over and out.

["007"]

There was some problems with a bad fuel splice point near the exhust manifolds of engine, the metal line would split under heavy pressure from pump, had a friend almost have a fire from gas leak. TESTING never showed a problem. You show no info on sig-profile about your engine my friends was a Chev engine. "007"

Welcome to irv2

[seabreezeal]

Hello "007",

Thanks for your response. The Seabreeze RV is 1995 model manufactured by National RV, Inc. It's 39 feet long and sits on a Chevrolet "Light Duty Forward Control Chassis (P3 Commercial and Motorhome". The engine is a V8, 7.4 Liter (Code N). You mention something called sig-profile - is there a way to automatically attach a signature to postings? If so, maybe someone could tell me how to set that up and what it should include.

A little more background on my pursuit of this problem. Back in July of '03 I decided to see if I could get to the bottom of this thing. I called National RV and they said it was a Chevrolet problem (so much for customer support). I called Chevrolet Service HQ and they referred me to an outfit called Workhorse Custom Chassis. When I called Workhorse the guy I talked to there said that this was really a GM problem but that, since GM had gotten out of the light duty truck business back in 1999 (talk about feeling abandoned), he would try to help me. After listening to my description of the problem the Workhorse guy suggested that the problem might be near the gas tank. The fuel pump is inside the tank and he thought that the pressure might go up when more fuel is flowing - perhaps there were some bad seals or there might be a small leak. He gave me the names of three dealerships somewhat near me. I took the MH to a dealer in Pasadena and related my story to the fuel system "expert" there and told him about the Workhorse guy's theory. The Pasadena dealership guy had a theory of his own and tinkered with the fuel vent system some, charged me a $100 and said good bye. Needless to say, this did not fix the problem and I've lived with it since. I notice the word Workhorse in your signature. Is Workhorse a manufacturer of motorhome chassis? Anyway, that's my story. Any suggestions on how I should proceed? Know of any Chevy fuel system experts in the southern California area who won't sleep until they've solved this problem?

Thanks,

Seabreezeal

[RV Wizard]

Seabrreezeal, you can enter a signature in your profile by clicking on the "GO" button on the top left of a forum page. Then go to "My Profile" then just follow the info boxes you wish to provide. Good luck with the fuel issue and keep us posted.

[toolman1]

Hello Saebreezeal;
Reading through your post, I notice no mention of an ill performing engine, (misfire, etc). Just a wildshot here, but do you have a sliding window and/or a roof vent very near the rear of the coach, and have they been left open while traveling? If so, the low pressure in the interior of the coach, could well be sucking in the fumes you are concerned about. Or is there a basement compartment that in not closing fully and has a pass through capability into the interior of the coach, example, most DP coaches have a tilt up rear bed that allows access to the engine compartment, and if the bedframe seal was not performing as designed, all sorts of odors might be entering the coach. I realize your's is not a DP, and that was only an example. Best of luck in your search.

["007"]

Seabreezeal, I guess you have two options take it to a Workhorse Dealer or to a National Dealer that services Workhorse chassis. Your going to pay no matter what. They may have to drop tank to see what is going on, may have leak in line on top of tank who knows at this point.
Workhorse took over the Chev chassis around 2000 and puts the new 8.1 on their chassis, you can go to the WH site and find a WH.dealer near you, good luck. "007"