I'm looking for any suggestions on why my '02 WRX would have started giving off a strong smell of gas when I start it up.

The smell stays around for about 5 minutes until the car warms up and then it seems to dissappear. Sniffing around the engine compartment led me to the giant maze of hoses & wires above the two intake runners on the passenger side, but I couldn't see any obvious leaks. It has never done this before. I'm now at 65 000 km (just out of my 60k warranty period...)

Any ideas would be appreciated. I'll be taking it to the dealer tomorrow, but I'd like to have some idea what it could be.

Thanks,

Greg.

 

Throw a match at the engine, that should find it

Maybe an ill fitting gasket somewhere that when warmed up expands and seals a leak. Not a gas leak, but from somewhere that vapors could come from? Strange.

/\rcanum

 

It is the clamps that link the metal fuel lines beneath the plastic elbow that fees air to the turbo. This seems to be a common subaru problem. Only happens when it's cold outside. If it's not leaking too bad to drive, take it to a dealer. It's a PITA to get to the clamps, it's hard to even see them.
If you want to try to fix it yourself, follow the two metal lines directly below the elbow. They go under the intake manifold. When they were cold I was able to reach under there with a long screwdriver and rotate the clamps upward so I could get another screwdriver on them (they were that loose). Luckily the one I could reach was the one causing most of the leak, and I took it to the dealer to finish the job. If they give you crap I can give you links that document the problem (with pictures).

 

I have had this problem it is a loose clamp. Raw gas in the engine compartment/passenger cabin is not good from a safety perspective. Subaru has heard of this but the rep I talked with had no better suggestion then to call NHTSA. Logging the complaint took little time. (1-888-327-4236)

 

I just bought a used WRX. My car had the same problem for the previous owner. My friend who is a Subaru Mech. had fixed it before I bought it. There is a hose under the intake manifold that has been known to leak on some 2002 WRXs. It requires removal of the manifold to repair. Not all dealers have seen this problem so they may not be aware of where the leak is and how to fix it.

 

I had the same problem, take it back and tell them about this thread. It happens when it's cold. They told me it was a bear to repair but they did it under warranty. They should take care of you under warranty anyway because of the history of these problems. It's a serious safety issue, SOA should rather take care of it than wait for a tragedy and deal with lawsuits.