Fuel Leak after 3k miles

[TIDALWAVE]

"rramo012": my story is essentially identical to yours...step by step the same! 750 miles on the odometer. However, I had the Jeep towed to the dealership and the Rubi dumped at least a quart of gas on the service bay floor. It appears that the gas tank skid plate acts as a catch basin for escaping gas from the tank. My Rubi was not running during the tow...so the gas had to come from the skid plate. I took photos of the spill(s) and gave them to the service department. My photos look the same as yours..even up to the size and droplet trail.
Our stories then begin to diverge. The dealer can't say that the leak didn't occur...they had to clean up the gas puddle. I immediately contacted Jeep Cares and they set up a Case File. I also contacted NHTSA and filed a report. This afternoon I got a call from the US Department of Transportation...and was asked a series of questions...did I overfill the tank? (no), did I modify the under body such as additional skid plates? (no),
did I install a lift to the suspension? (no).
So something is happening...I have never had a phone call from Washington DC before...especially concerning one of my vehicles!

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[old8tora]

Rubi dumped at least a quart of gas on the service bay floor. It appears that the gas tank skid plate acts as a catch basin for escaping gas from the tank.
I also contacted NHTSA and filed a report.
I have never had a phone call from Washington DC before...especially concerning one of my vehicles!

danger ... danger

 

[Rhinebeck01]

drama ... drama

My guess is the nitwit that put the JLU on tow dollies caused the issue in the way he set the JLU up for towing. You would never see me letting a tow truck driver use dollies.

No flat bed... no tow my vehicle.

Good chance the tow truck driver tweaked things so badly that the gas fill pipe was compromised and the full tank of gas or whatever was given an easy way out. REAL COINCIDENCE that the gas leak happened right when it was towed away.

 

[TIDALWAVE]

"Rhinebeck01": You didn't really read this thread...the gas spilling already occurred to several of us before the towing!!!...one of the reasons the Rubi was towed to the dealership was because of the gas spilling on my driveway! I have multiple gas stains on my driveway from the spills that occurred before the tow truck came!!!

 

[Rhinebeck01]

@old8tora

With you I never no whether you are being facetious or not....

Anyway, in today's day and age there, is no reason not to use a towing guy that has a flat bed truck. To not use a flat bed, and to let the driver twist and tweak your vehicle setting it up on a dolly, (which some nitwits do) is asking for issues.

Again, it is a real possibility that the actions of the nitwit with the dolly caused or aggravated, the gas leak. Will be interesting what the dealer finds...

Again, awfully funny... quite the coincidence, that the gas leak did not rear it's head lets say, until just as the JLU was towed away.

Regardless, pound foolish to let a nitwit use a tow dolly. Call a guy that has a flat bed. A guy with a dolly shows up, tell him no way. Unless it was in an emergency situation, no way would I allow a nitwit to use a dolly.

 

[old8tora]

@old8tora
With you I never no whether you are being facetious or not....

Sort of maybe I guess .

Seriously , what all Jeeps need is no more gas fuel leaks : danger ... danger .

 

[TIDALWAVE]

1) Gas Leak
2) Tow Truck Arrives
3) Rubi dumps additional gas on service bay floor
Conclusion: gas leak started before tow...

So remember, if your JL starts to leak gas...look for the tow truck that snuck in and towed your Jeep around the block without you knowing it!

 

[rramo012]

1) Gas Leak
2) Tow Truck Arrives
3) Rubi dumps additional gas on service bay floor
Conclusion: gas leak started before tow...

I had my Jeep towed on a flatbed. Prior to towing the leak had appeared to stop, but as it was lifted the leak started again heavily. As in your case, the leak certainly had nothing to do with the tow.

It appears that the gas tank skid plate acts as a catch basin for escaping gas from the tank.

That's a probable explanation.

 

[TIDALWAVE]

Has any one had a dealer explanation on why Rubicon dumps gas on the floor from gas tank skid plate???

As I mentioned above...my Rubi with 750 miles began to buck as I left my driveway. I found two gas spills on my drive way adjacent to the JL.
I called Jeep and they sent a tow truck. When the Jeep arrived at the dealership, it dumped at least another quart of gas on the service bay floor from the tank skid plate. (The skid pan has inverted drain holes...that is, the drain hole edges bend upward to the holes...so water or gas only drains from the pan when the liquid volume overtops the inverted edges or the Jeep is tilted).

The dealer has had the Rubi for nearly a week, they drove it for 50 miles but could neither get it to buck/stall or dump more gas into the skid plate pan. They found no error codes either. But the dealer agrees that there is a problem because they had to mop up at least a quart of gas from
the service area floor, when it was hauled in.

Since they couldn't reproduce the gas spill...they want me to take it home!!!!

"rramo012": have you had any further leaks?

Has anyone else had a gas leak and if so, did the dealer find a cause?

I garage three nearly new vehicles along with the new Rubi. I don't want them to burn up along with the JL and my home.

So do I wait for the next four gas spills for the lemon law to kick in or just hope that the Rubi doesn't catch on fire on the highway or in a forest?

 

[old8tora]

Has any one had a dealer explanation on why Rubicon dumps gas on the floor from gas tank skid plate???

Likely some sort of gas leak . I'd replace the gas tank and the fuel lines .

 

[paulr]

@TIDALWAVE keep us posted! following this thread closely... just curious did you also have the issue prior where your tank wouldn't top off? I know @rramo012 mentioned he couldn't fill up past 7/8 of a tank

Several other threads show people having this issue where it won't top off, wondering if this is all related to potentially the same issue

I'm on my 6th tank of gas now and every time the pump clicks off at about 17 gallons. Even on the slow setting it won't continue to pump. I have to manually hold the gas pump about halfway to the slowest setting to very slowly fill the remaining gas, I usually stop at about 20 of the 21.5 gallons since I'm assuming I have 1 gallon or less left.

Just wondering if these issues might be related to a faulty gas tank. I also noticed my gas gauge seems to be off, after I fill up it stays stuck at full for a long time (80 miles or so) and by the time I'm at half a tank I've gone 200+ miles, and then the last half of the tank only "lasts" 140 miles or so. Seems like the gauge sensors might be off, so just wondering if anyone else is seeing similar issues. Maybe this is all related to a bad tank?

No leak yet on my end (fingers crossed) but following this thread closely!

 

[TIDALWAVE]

"paulr": I never had any fuel problems right up to the gas spills. I never filled higher than the first auto shutoff. The fuel neck never gave me any problems...it would fill at any rate set at the nozzle.

"old8tora": I refuse to have to pay out of my own pocket for a replacement gas tank and fuel lines. The dealer's service manager has told me that they could not find any problems with the gas lines or gas tanks...even tho' he agreed that my Jeep dumped gas all over his service bay floor.
How do you get a dealer to do a replacement when they insist that they can't find the cause of the problem...but acknowledge that the problem exists. When I pick up the Jeep, I am going to insist that the dealer provide me with a statement that the Jeep did leak gas on their floor even tho' they don't know why. If the Jeep catches on fire I want as much evidence as possible for any law suits.

 

[old8tora]

...even tho' he agreed that my Jeep dumped gas all over his service bay floor. When I pick up the Jeep, I am going to insist that the dealer provide me with a statement that the Jeep did leak gas on their floor even tho' they don't know why. If the Jeep catches on fire I want as much evidence as possible for any law suits.

Easy ... easy . He can't deny it happened , as he already told you it happened . Don't push for his written statement if he refuses . He might accuse you and report you to corporate . Don't threaten them with lawsuits . If you mention lawsuits they might freeze you out . Keep everything reasonable and restrained . Easy ...easy .

Carry a small camera to document whatever .

I would seriously ask for an expert opinion from an independent experienced Jeep mechanic , and pay him for a written evaluation . If he says you likely have a gas leak , and recommends replacement of gas tank and/or fuel lines , in writing , then you can take it to Mike Manley CEO and the Regional Customer Service Manager , and get them on your side .

And if you see any leaks , you can take photos , have it flat bed back to the dealer , and you will have the written evaluation to back you up . Keep a log of all the days it is at the dealership , and everything they say about it , and who said it . Get their business cards .

 

[rramo012]

Since they couldn't reproduce the gas spill...they want me to take it home!!!!

"rramo012": have you had any further leaks?

I have not had any leaks since they replaced my gas tank. I would suggest that your Jeep Wave case representative works through this issue with the dealership on your behalf. My leak wouldn't have been solved otherwise. They only identified my issue after filling the tank, then removing the tank. I believe the mechanic said that gas leaked out of the evap hose when he did so, which it shouldn't have.

I personally wouldn't take it home until they take the gas tank off and inspect the system.

 

[TIDALWAVE]

"rramo012": Just got off the phone from Jeep Wave representative...I was told that I was the only such gas leak case in their files!!!
I told him that I knew of at least one other case (yours?) where gas had collected in the gas tank skid plate...he said they did not have any other case on record and my situation was unique.
He also tried to say that the spills were just rain water and/or condensate that had collected in the skid plate. When I told him that the 'water' had dissolved the asphalt in my drive way (I took photos) and smelled like pure gas in the puddle in the dealer's service bay...he quickly jumped to another subject
My dealer had me come and drive the Rubi home...they couldn't find any problems. As I was leaving, they informed me that they had not removed the skid plate to check the tank and fuel fittings. (Jeep procedure is to drive the vehicle and if no additional gas spills...there is no problem).

I have also been in communication with NHTSA and told the Jeep rep that I would be reporting back to NHTSA. The rep then changed his attitude and said that he would contact my dealer and authorize the removal of the skid plate and inspect the tank and fittings. It appears that if gas spills from Jeep vehicles...service techs are only allowed to drive the vehicle to try to reproduce the problem. If the Jeep doesn't continuously spill gas...they aren't authorized to go further such as inspect the tank,etc., unless the customer insists.

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