2006 Chevrolet HHR: gas smell in the cabin

Filed Oct 27, 2017 · Fuel system · 152,800 miles · OH

Both the fuel line (tank to engine compartment) and the return line (part of the egr system) have rusted and are leaking fuel. The rust on both lines extends from just in front of the rear wheel (on the driver's side) to within about 6 inches of the fuel tank. The lines leak when pressurized, I.e., when fuel is pushed through them by the vehicle's electric fuel pump, and they seep gasoline after the vehicle is shut off. The smell of gasoline permeates the passenger compartment when stopped, and the engine is running, as at a traffic signal. The vehicle leaves a thin puddle of fuel, about 6" in diameter, beneath the car when parked. The leak is quite near the exhaust system, as well. The vehicle has approximately 152,800 miles. I am the original owner, having purchased it from robinson chevrolet, in wheeling, wv on july 1, 2007. I am very reluctant to drive the car, because of the fire hazard that it presents. Fortunately, my wife and I have another vehicle that we can share, at least until the fuel leakage situation is resolved on the hhr. I did not have an opportunity to photograph the rusted lines while the car was on a lift, but I did shoot a photo of the lines with my mobile phone. The photo is of the area just forward of the driver's side rear wheel. (see uploaded photo.) it's not the best image of the problem, but it is the best that I could do with the car in my driveway.

Filed Jan 14, 2017 · Fuel system · 165,200 miles · PA

Fuel line rusted and began leaking very badly. I thought it was the evap system in the beginning, but today the gas smell was very strong, to find in a walmart parking lot, a puddle of fuel back by the rear tire. This seems to be common problem, there should be a recall on them, and there probably weont be till someone dies; the leak is very close to the exhaust elbow, before the muffler. I have owned seven cars before this one, and not one of them ever developed bad fuel lines, and never leaked fuel. Not even a gas tank leak.

Filed Jul 8, 2016 · Fuel system · 110,000 miles · KY

My car was taking longer to start and I noticed a strong fuel smell while driving. I stopped the car and discovered a small but rapidly expanding spot of fuel on the ground in front of the driver side rear wheel well. There was a near constant dripping of gasoline and by the next day there was a spot the size of a dinner plate on the driveway stained with gasoline. My mechanic examined the car and said that the fuel line had rusted through and that the vapor line also showed signs of serious rust. He also said that due to the design of the guard around the fuel line, rainwater would pool and keep the fuel line submerged which greatly accelerated the rusting process. Due to the amount of fuel leaking this could have very easily have turned into a fire, particularly on the fourth of july with so many people shooting fireworks. My car is still at the mechanic, he tells me the dealer told him these fuel lines are in high demand and it may be a while before they get them in. With as widespread as this problem appears to be, I suspect an investigation and recall may be in order.

Filed May 4, 2016 · Fuel system · 131,000 miles · GA

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet hhr. The contact noticed that the rear of the vehicle was leaking fuel. In addition, a fuel odor entered the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the main fuel line needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 131,000.

Filed Mar 30, 2016 · Fuel system · 105,000 miles · AL

Fuel lines are rusted out. Vehicle smells like fuel after being parked for just a short while, so I checked and sure enough the fuel/evap lines are rusted and need replacement. After a little research I see that not only is this is a widespread problem on these vehicles, but the replacement parts are very hard to come by as well. This is hazardous and should be recalled.

Filed Jan 14, 2016 · Fuel system · 142,000 miles · VA

While on vacation, the car had not been started in 2 weeks. The weather had turned from warm and rainy to very cold. After getting back and starting the car, noticed a heavy fuel smell and thought the exhaust was burning extra rich due to the cold temperature. Getting out of the car to walk around to inspect the exhaust noticed a steady drip forming a circle on the asphalt just in front of the rear passenger tire on the driver's side. The location of the leak seems to be where the fuel line bends up and into the body channel. The car was taken to a dealer repair shop the next morning where it has been waiting on parts to replace the rusted steel fuel lines because the car is not safe to drive. Was advised the heat shield to protect the fuel line from the nearby exhaust system retains moisture and leads to the lines rusting and perforating. I did not take pictures, but I don't believe this an isolated issue with this vehicle's fuel lines after checking online for similar complaints.

Filed Jan 6, 2016 · Fuel system · 93,000 miles · IL

Fuel lines rusted out to the point of leaking. Leaking gas is on the left side in front of left rear wheel by the rocker panel.the straps that hold up the fuel tank are also rusted. My research on this shows that that this is a prevalent problem with this car. I've owned cars for more than 40 years and have never had this type of rust in the undercarriage. My car is a 2006 and has 93,000 miles on it. I had noticed a gas smell after I parked my car. After several days, I noticed a wet spot under the leak. Upon further inspection and pictures, it was clear that the gas was leaking from the fuel lines on the left rear of the car (driver side) in front of the left rear tire. I've provided pictures.

Filed Dec 18, 2015 · Fuel system · 136,391 miles · IA

Noted strong smell of gasoline near drivers side rear door after exiting vehicle after driving, but not after vehicle sat and did not run. Dealer service said gasoline lines had corroded and need to be replaced. Replacement lines not on hand and over $1,000 to fix. Definite fire hazard. Car currently not being used. Rydell chevrolet (waterloo ia) service invoice #438253 - gm case #8-1717132969 mileage 136391

Filed Oct 30, 2015 · Engine · 125,000 miles · MS

Whenever the engine was running, there was a strong smell of engine exhaust coming into the vehicle through the A/C vents. The flex hose coming from the engine to the catalytic converter had developed a large crack. The exhaust fumes were being sucked into the ventilation system and out through the A/C vents, filling the cabin of the vehicle with exhaust fumes. The design of the flex pipe is seriously flawed as if it's made to fail. It was too dangerous to drive with my kids in the car because of the threat of the carbon monoxide that we were breathing from this issue. I believe that this may also be the cause of severe headaches that I had been suffering from.

Filed May 10, 2015 · Fuel system · 49,500 miles · KY

We noticed a gasoline smell when you shut the engine down, but since we were having a very frigid winter we just though it was from the temperatures. As it got warmer weather the odor was getting worse.we seen gas dripping from around the gas tank. Our son took it today to see what was making it do this and found that the upper gas line is rusted and has several pin holes in that is making it leak. After doing a search on this I seen that this is a common problem with this vehicle. We have already had the ignition recall, power steering recall and 2 more that I can't remember what they were. Another problem we've had is the clear coat paint that gm wouldn't even listen about. The issue is that my husband and I are both in poor health and have to have the car to get to dr. Appointments but we live on fixed income. The gas leak is a very volatile problem that could start a fire while we are driving down the road. I feel that gm should do a recall and fix this problem before people start burning in their vehicles. A car that has less than 50,000 miles on it should not be having these kind of problems. This is the reason people are turning away from american made and that is sad.

Filed Apr 4, 2014 · Fuel system · 113,277 miles · MD

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet hhr. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, there was a sudden smell of gasoline without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that there was a fuel line leak that needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure and current mileage was approximately 113,277.