engine and drivetrain Fuel line questions.

[Guest Anonymous]

I am running EFI in my 2002, and the fuel line runs out of the firewall near the stock location and into the fuel rail. I am using high pressure fuel line, but after running the car for about 6 months with EFI, I started to notice little cracks in the fuel line in the engine compartment, but none anywhere else. I closly watched the section, and the cracks were clearly getting bigger, so I replaced the section. This was six months ago, and the cracks are back. I think it must have somthing to do with the heat, because it dosen't crack anywhere else, only in the engine bay, but I would think certified high pressure fuel line should last more than 6 months! I had also insulated the line the last time I replaced it and it made no diffrence. Ideas?

Thanks!

Jeff C.

70 Granada 2002 MS-EFI sunroof now with Cruse Control

66 Turf 2000a

[Guest Anonymous]

I'd be surprised if there would be enough heat there to cause this. Could it be the inner diameter of the efi line is too large and the cracking is due to pressure to clamp it?

BTW, I am currently looking at injecting an '02.

[Guest Anonymous]

I'm thinking that the cracks are from the pressure. When I did my FI conversion, I used the steel line underneath the car for the pressure side and the plastic one for the return. No problems in 4+ years.

I do not think that plastic line was made to take the 40PSI pressure that it is seeing now.

Good Luck,

Mike (#87)

[Guest Anonymous]

First, what is material of the lines? plastic like a tii line? i dont think heat would create that kind of structural problem. Heat makes tii lines discolor and brittle, but not crack. Based on my tii MFI fuel line set -up, i know that the slightest contact of the plastic lines with anything ( even themselves)can cause lots of grief. so, every place there is possible contact, i have zip-tied a fuel line "cover" over the actual line. Related warning: there are some guys with my A4 set-up who want to run nicer lines from pump to throttle bodies. Wire reinforced fuel lines have been considered and i even have a prototype wire mesh covered line that was built for a PO of my car by a race shop in So Cal. The problem is that if there is any breach of that line, the metal could be part of a spark sequence, and kaboom. So, I have been advised to never use the wire mesh covered lines for a fuel line application. For what it is worth... Hope you get to bottom of your line deterioration.

[Guest Anonymous]

I am not using the plastic line for the feed line. I have a 318 fuel prepump, going to a main pump, fuel filter, and then rubber fuel line inside the car all the way to the engine. I zip-tied the new rubber feed line to the original plastic one, so they go the same way. I am wondering why the section in the engine bay is cracking, but the rest of the line is not anywhere. The cracks are most serious around a bend, and less noticeable when in a straight section.

Thanks!

Jeff C.

70 Granada 2002 Sunroof, Mega-Squirt EFI

66 Turf 2000 Automatic

[Guest Anonymous]

That could be, I think I got one size too big, but it clamps down and doesn't leak. Had not thought of that.

Thanks!

Jeff C.

70 Granada 2002 sunroof MS-EFI

66 Turf 2000a

[Guest Anonymous]

Try buying another batch of the HIGH pressure stuff in the correct size, but from somewhere other than where the first batches were bought...who knows how long the line sits around on the shelf at the parts store before we get to it, your "new" line could already be pretty old....

just a though...

-ian