Fuel Leak At Engine

[Paul Sherman]

Hi all, I have a '93 LS400 with 194K on it.

I started noticing an occaisional slight gas smell when I first got in

the car, which disappeared as in a couple of seconds after starting it.

Today, I was finally able to track it down - There's a small leak

at the top of the engine; driver's side, toward the back. If I

were to guess, it looks like where the fuel line goes into the

injector rail. It's currently just a bit of dampness, no pooling,

but it won't get better by itself.

Since the nearest dealer is 45 minutes in the opposite direction

from where I work (which means I can't even get there before

they close), and I can't find an independant Lexus mechanic in

St. Louis, this may be up to me and my regular mechanic to

figure out.

Has anyone seen this before? I searched the archives once, and

didn't find much, but will search again with different key words.

Since I'm driving across state in a week, I'd love to get 'er

fixed, rather than rent a car. OTOH, I've heard others mention that

Lexus dealers have provided loaners - would that happen with me?

If so, it may be worth taking some time off and run it up to them.

Any guidance is appreciated.

[larryp]

There are a couple of gaskets where the fuel line connects to the injector rail. Perhaps its as simple as a failing gasket.

As far as loaner vehicles, i think that's up to the discretion of each dealer. Some only provide for warranty or CPO vehicles.

Good luck.

[Paul Sherman]

Woo-Hoo! Found and fixed!

The fuel line is attached to the rail by a fuel damper.

That damper failed. It looks like it may have been going

for a while, but finally got bad enough to be noticeable.

Easy part to change, difficult and expensive to find ($130).

Dealer only item, no part # handy, 1st dealer didn't

have it. Also, it's been superseded by another part.

Two hours running around, 20 minutes labor to change.