Nissan Repair: gas odor, fuel hoses, fuel needle

Question
Von. I filled up the fuel tank in my '94 Nissan Quest GXE for the first time in two years recently.  it had been sitting in the neighbor's yard with 1/4 fuel tank and was given to me recently.  after i filled the tank i had a gas odor in the vehicle and outside the vehicle(stronger smell on the driver's side) after i stop and park.  But once the fuel needle drops below 3/4 the smell vanished.  when i was filling the tank it never clicked off or overflowed so i know it wasn't overfull($40 doesn't go as far as it used to with gas prices).  I'm baffled but this smell is just enough to bother me. Also it seems to be burning gas quickly.  the trip meter says about 80 miles and the fuel gauge is in between 3/4 and 1/2 tank.  is this normal fuel consumption rates for the VG30E engine in my van?

Answer
Dave,

The fuel hoses are probably rotten and need to be replaced.  I had a 92 Nissan where the hoses on top of the tank had rotted so much that the gas was weeping out.  The only bad thing here is you will have to drop the tank to get to the hoses that cause the problem.  Funny thing is that the hose looked good coming from the tank and it was not until the car was full, sitting in the garage, that I noticed.  Jacked up the car and did not see the hose.  Ended up dropping the tank and found the hoses that were weeping gas.  Replaced the hoses and the problem was corrected.  Be sure to use good quality hose and fuel injection hose for the lines that go to the engine and back.  The rest are not high pressure and normal fuel hose will work.