The last few times I drove my Mom's 1998 Impreza I noticed a very strong smell of gasoline. At first I thought that the gas tank was leaking but it isn't. Mom doesn't smell it (she is 81 so maybe senses aren't as keen!). She took it to her mechanic (not a dealer) who couldn't find anything wrong. Any ideas?

Are you CERTAIN the tank isnt leaking? Even a pin-sized hole will produce a strong odor.

 

Otherwise, check around the fuel hoses from the tank - under the rear seat - filters and injectors.

Your nose and looking for damp spots around fuel lines are your best bets. Seems like a fairly new car to have a serious issue. Could be the vapor recovery canister/purge valve. Especially if 'overfilling' the gas tank is a common practice, I guess the canister can be saturated. Is there any recent service or damage history? CEL?

The car is serviced regularly but not at a Subaru dealer. Dealers are few and far between and I cannot persuade my Mom to take it to a Subaru mechanic or let me take it, especially because since she doesn't smell the gas so in her mind no problem exists. The car is still as efficient with fuel as it always was. I can smell the fumes both inside and out of the car, but not consistantly. My brother drove it Christmas Eve and there was no smell. This has happened over a time period of about 2 months.