2017 Volkswagen GTI: gas smell in the cabin

Filed Oct 21, 2025 · Fuel system · HI

Description of the Problem: The fuel pump failed and began spraying gasoline during operation. The malfunction was documented on video by an authorized Volkswagen mechanic and confirmed by a Volkswagen dealership in Honolulu, Hawaii. The component is available for inspection if required. Safety Risk: The failure caused pressurized gasoline to spray within the engine compartment, presenting a serious fire and explosion hazard. This defect posed a danger to the driver, passengers, and others nearby due to potential ignition of leaked fuel. Reproduction and Inspection: The condition was reproduced and confirmed by both an independent authorized Volkswagen mechanic and a Volkswagen dealership in Honolulu. The issue has not yet been inspected by Volkswagen of America, insurance representatives, or police authorities. Warning Signs or Prior Symptoms: A strong smell of gasoline inside the passenger cabin was present prior to discovery of the leak. No dashboard warning lights or error messages appeared. Summary: Fuel pump failure caused gasoline to spray under pressure. The problem was verified by an authorized VW mechanic and dealership in Honolulu, HI. The defective component remains available for inspection. Immediate safety risk due to potential ignition of fuel vapors.

Filed Aug 12, 2025 · Fuel system · OH

I had fuel leaking from my carbon canister. I was driving the previous day and noticed a gasoline smell. I thought it was something I ran over. The next day, while performing errands, I noticed the smell even more. Then I exited the vehicle to see the fuel pouring out of the car. The dealership has it now.

Filed Jun 24, 2024 · Fuel system · 77,304 miles · NJ

The contact owns a 2017 Volkswagen GTI. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH up an incline, the vehicle lurched forward without warning. The contact then stated that while the vehicle was idling, there was an abnormally strong fuel odor coming from the vehicle and the fuel gauge went from half tank to empty. Upon inspection of the vehicle, the contact discovered that the fuel had leaked out of the fuel tank. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to the dealer. Upon investigation, the contact discovered that the VIN was included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 24V110000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and the contact linked the failure to the recall. The dealer confirmed that the failure was linked to the recall and that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 77,304. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Filed Oct 12, 2020 · Fuel system · 35,000 miles · FL

First noticed strong fuel smell coming from rear passenger side wheel well. Fuel smell dissipated after around 45 minutes. The next time I drove the car, it began bucking as if there was a fuel pressure error. By the time I limped the car into my driveway, fuel was pouring out of the same wheel well. The car has leaked fuel on two more occasions since then. I've since found out that this is a known issue that volkswagen addressed in safety recall 20y6. Faulty elements in the fuel tank are causing gasoline to purge into the evap system and then leak through the evap canister, down onto the wheel well. Vw apparently made a business decision not to include 2017 golfs in that recall, despite being identical cars. A quick look through these complaints or in various volkswagen forums will show that this issue is common and popping up in more and more 2017 cars at around 35k miles.

Filed Jun 8, 2020 · Fuel system · 55,578 miles · PA

Started to notice a fuel odor in the vicinity of the right-rear wheel while the car was parked inside my garage. Moved the car immediately outside on my driveway. Drove the car once or twice during the following week. As the car was parked on the driveway the odor persisted. Then one afternoon a puddle of gas was on my driveway (about one pint of liquid) - the car had not been driven in 2 days when the puddle appeared. Notified my local vw dealer and scheduled the repair. The dealer determined that the charcoal canister was filled with fuel - assuming that I overfilled the tank, which I don't believe happened. When the leak occurred the fuel tank was approximately 3/4 full. The dealer replaced the leak detection pump, n80 purge valve, and the charcoal canister. The repair was not covered under warranty. The car has 55,578 miles on it and I have owned it just less than 3 years.

Filed Feb 6, 2020 · Engine · 40,150 miles · IL

2017 vw gti 4 door. Se trim. A couple weeks after reaching 40k miles, after driving several blocks and making it onto a main road, the vehicle stalled out and died while in motion at about 20-25mph. This was after what seemed like a very clunky feeling shifting transmission for a few days leading up to the car breaking down. Car smelled like fuel in the cabin. Car needed to be towed to vewdealership in late hours of the evening. Dealership called the next day to say they were able to turn the car on and drive it. No obvious error codes on vehicle and they would do some deeper diving into what can be wrong. They held onto the car for 4 days and were not able to "duplicate the issue" so they returned the car back to me. They thought "maybe a piece of dirt got into a fuel injector but worked it's way out" after not even a week, the car stalled out and died in the middle of a main road again while moving about 20mph. This time after about 10 minutes I was able to get it to turn on and drove directly back to the same dealership with bo error fault codes appearing on the dash once again. No cabin fuel smell this time but stalled out exactly the same. They have been holding onto my vehicle again with no apparent ideas how to repair it. They are going to open a claim with vw. This was a dangerous situation stalling both times on main roads where I could have been rear ended. Children are driven around in my vehicle which can result in serious injury.