Classic/Antique Car Repair: 1971 RR Corniche Coupe - strong gas smell, pierburg fuel pump, fuel leaks

Question
Hello Vern, Five years ago I bought a 71 RR Corniche coupe.  The car always smells of gasoline.  My mechanic (who specializes in RRs and Bentleys) has not been able to identify the problem (though he's done a great job fixing other problems with the car - timing, etc.).  Do you have any suggestions?

Answer
Hi Sean:
Since you had a RR/Bentley mechanic look at it, I am sure he had explored many of the obvious possible causes, such as fuel lines leaks and leaks around the carbs. Assuming none of those are the problem, it could be your fuel return unit or your fuel pump. The fuel return unit returns unused fuel back to the gas tank. Sometimes it may just dump excess fuel on the ground if there is too much to return. I had that happen when I was having fuel pump problems, so if you have the original Pierburg fuel pump, it could be malfunctioning and feeding too much fuel from time to time. I developed a humming noise in my pump that would come and go, before I finally replaced it.

So, check it good for any apparent fuel leaks and if you are sure all fuel lines and carbs are tight, then check the fuel pump and the return unit.

Hope this helps...