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Post by BigLouis1971 on Aug 31, 2019 18:39:25 GMT -5
Hello forum, this is my first post ever in this forum!
My scooter is one month old. Yesterday it started to leak gas after I filled it first time at the gas pump (second time ever). The very first time I filled it from a gas can because it was new and it came with no gas at all. I noticed the leak after first trip with second gas fill. The gas started to fall over the motor and left a fairly big gas pool over concrete sidewalk. Between the leak and a long trip, I emptied the gas tank because I wanted no gas leak over my carpet (I need to keep my scooter inside my apartment). The leak stopped after I nearly emptied the tank, now the tank is at reserve level. I'm not sure if the leak will come back after I fill my gas tank again.
I know is difficult to find a leak over the internet but I was hoping to hear some possible causes. I removed the seat to take a look and a possibility are some gas hoses that I saw right over the motor. I have low level mechanical skills so I don't want to go too far fixing the problem yet. I would like to hear some advice first before I go any further. Thanks in advance for any help!
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Post by pinkscoot on Aug 31, 2019 19:28:19 GMT -5
It could be many places. Start at the bottom of the tank and looks at the petcock, is it tight? Check the hoses, are they tight. Does it only leak when the engine is running? If so check the fuel line at the carb. if not that see if it leaks from below the carb, it could be the drain screw on the bowl is open or the float is stuck open and just dumping fuel out. What model is your scoot?
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Post by GrumpyUnk on Sept 4, 2019 10:33:13 GMT -5
If it was not leaking before, odds are that something got loose or got stuck. Starting at the bottom of the fuel tank is first the vacuum-operated petcock, which shuts off fuel flow when there is no vacuum in the intake manifold. The petcock could be loose where it is attached to the tank. A crescent or adjustable wrench can be used to tighten it if loose.
A length of fuel line should next connect to the filter, most are white plastic with a yellowish paper element visible through translucent plastic. They can come apart or have cracks.
Next would be fuel line leading to the inlet port on the left side of the carburetor. All lengths of fuel line can leak, have splits or pinholes that allow fuel leakage.
The carburetor has a float bowl on its bottom that is supposed to receive a limited amount of fuel, at which time the float floats on the fuel high enough to push a needle into a seat, thus the name needle valve. The float can get stuck, the 'hinge' pin get hung up, or the needle get jammed in the bore, all leading to the float bowl overflowing.
Most times when overflowing the float bowl, fuel will flow out the air cleaner onto the floor. You would see fuel dripping from the plastic(STOCK AIR CLEANER ASSEMBLY) onto the top of the CVT, and then dripping onto the ground.
You, if you decide to become mechanical, can replace the vacuum petcock with a manual shutoff valve. That gives you complete control over fuel flow from the tank. All hoses can be replaced with locally available lengths as can the fuel filter.
tom
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Post by BigLouis1971 on Sept 30, 2019 2:07:13 GMT -5
Forgive me but I meant to say that the leak was coming from something on top of the transmission and not the engine because the cover was spilled with gas. Here is a stock pic of what I meant. (not the actual leak but a transmission pic)  The scooter leaks only when the engine is running. I removed some body covers to have a better look and also filled the tank with gas and started it and now the leak looks from beneath the intake. I'm not 100% sure about where exactly the leak is coming from. I'll take it out later today and have a better look. Do this new piece of information gives you more ideas about the possible cause of the leak? |
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Post by lunatuck on Sept 30, 2019 7:56:11 GMT -5
The vacuum activated fuel valve is right above that area. If it only leaks when the motor is running, then the leak is after that.
Otherwise, follow the fuel feed up.
It should be obvious.
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Post by pinkscoot on Sept 30, 2019 9:32:46 GMT -5
Possibly the fuel bowl drain on the carb isn't closed all of the way.
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Post by GrumpyUnk on Sept 30, 2019 10:52:32 GMT -5
BigLouis, look closely at the image you posted. The tapered box directly above the CVT and output gearcase is the air cleaner assembly. If fuel drained from that, it likely came from the float bowl overfilling, and leaking air backwards out the intake side of the carburetor. In that case, the float valve is suspect.
For the float valve to have fuel to leak out that way, it must get the fuel from the filter and the petcock. Most filters don't leak, but if they do, observation is the best method to determine. The petcock could fail and allow fuel to flow at all times instead of just when the engine is running. If so, you can test by removing the fuel line from the left(as if you were seated) side of the carburetor. If fuel flows with the engine off, not just the odd dribble or draining of the filter/fuel line, but actual full-diameter fuel flow, then likely the petcock has a leak, and is not controlling the flow.
If you remove the seat & bucket, you should be able to determine by observation what things are leaking, and when.
tom
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