NHTSA complaint #11760689

Owner complaint summary

Since the first summer of ownership, a strong gasoline odor enters the passenger cabin. It is worst above roughly 100F ambient, a daily condition in southern [XXX], and is present while driving, while idling with the A/C on, and while the vehicle sits parked. The odor is strong enough that the vehicle cannot be parked in an attached garage in summer because fumes enter the house. A small child rides in this vehicle daily and breathes these vapors in an enclosed cabin. Repairs directed at this problem have been performed seven times since July 2023. The rear vent hose was rerouted. The fuel filler pipe was replaced under factory technical service bulletin TSB-25-17-001, fuel smell in cabin during idling, with the cause recorded as fuel smell from rear evap vent pipe positioning. The cabin filter was replaced and the A/C deodorized, the order stating the work was to help get rid of excess fuel smell from previous repair. A fuel line breather hose was ordered and later installed, the technician recording that the rear vent valve on the fuel filler neck was causing the smell in the cabin. A three-day inspection recorded no fuel smell below 90F but slight smell present after the vehicle sat in the sun at 98F. Most recently the fuel filler neck was replaced again under the bulletin with manufacturer authorization, the repair order stating CONFIRMED CONCERN, fuel smell coming from inside cabin when engine idling and A/C on. The odor was present again the same day that most recent repair was completed and it remains present now. The affected components are available for inspection. No warning lamps have appeared at any point. The manufacturer has an open customer case on this vehicle. Dealer inspections report no visible fuel leak, but the odor has never been eliminated after seven attempts over three years. A second owner of the same model year reported the identical problem to me at the same dealership. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)