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Replacement for interior plastic fuel line?


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When I bought my green car, first thing we did was pull all the fuel lines, including the plastic one that snakes through the interior.  My neighbors old M3 recently burned, and the rubber on my car was questionable.  

 

For 914s there is a company making fuel lines out of stainless steel brake line tubing, and its the BOMB.  Is there anything like that for the 2002?  Or are we stuck just putting in a new plastic fuel line and hoping that the ethanol does not eat it?

 

Zach

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The plastic one is designed to melt shut, in the event of a fire.

I don't think it is affected by ethanol.

Replacements are available.

 

I believe Carl (Original Owner) recently replaced his with metal.

Maybe he will chime in.

Tom

     DISCLAIMER 

I now disagree with some of the timing advice I have given in the past.  I misinterpreted the distributor curves in the Blue Book. 

I've switched from using ported-vacuum to manifold, with better results. 

I apologize for spreading misinformation.  

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Have purchased the plastic fuel lines from Blunt and Walloth & Nesch in the past. Blunt's was indeed black and in my opinion shorter than the original. W&N sold me the clear plastic one but have not installed yet into my track car.

JP

 

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Been a while since we did this one...

 

I ran steel line underneath the car instead.

Very satisfactory.  Less flambe'.

Yes, I set the plastic line on the inside on fire with a welder,

he says proudly.

 

t

 

"I learn best through painful, expensive experience, so I feel like I've gotten my money's worth." MattL

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Probably, if it goes inside, it should be plastic.

But then the 60's were the decade of better living through chemistry.

And we were all going to live forever, unlike our hydrocarbon- based tubing.

I ran my steel line outside like 99.7% of all cars on the road.

In all my years, the 2002 is the only car I've ever seen that runs the fuel inside.

 

Not saying it's wrong, but I AM saying that running steel outside isn't wrong, either.

Unless you wrap it around the muffler.

 

t

 

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"I learn best through painful, expensive experience, so I feel like I've gotten my money's worth." MattL

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+1 on retaining the original setup--factory plastic line inside the car, for a coupla reasons:

 

1.  As was stated, the OEM plastic line is self-sealing if heated to its melting point--why you shouldn't replace it with rubber fuel hose or any other non-metallic line if you follow the original path through the interior.  

2. A number of folks have utilized the existing metal fuel (fumes) return line that runs under the car on the later cars that are equipped with the charcoal and condenser canisters to capture fumes and return 'em to the gas tank.  Two objections to this:  first, it's more vulnerable to damage running under the car.  A piece of road debris could either puncture it or flatten it.  Second, it's gonna rust as it's a steel line.  In fact it may already be rusty, inside and out.  

 

I too had a problem with the plastic fuel line melting--while my auto body class instructor was showing me how to weld up a hole in the left rear rocker panel.  That's when I discovered it's possible to remove a 2002 back seat in two seconds--when it's on fire.  However, there was no fire from the fuel line, only the upholstery.  

 

Were it me, I'd stick with the original design.  It was done that way for a reason, and in 47 years of messing with 2002s I've never seen one burned up from a failure of this fuel line...

 

cheers

mike

 

'69 Nevada sunroof-Wolfgang-bought new
'73 Sahara sunroof-Ludwig-since '78
'91 Brillantrot 318is sunroof-Georg Friederich 
Fiat Topolini (Benito & Luigi), Renault 4CVs (Anatole, Lucky Pierre, Brigette) & Kermit, the Bugeye Sprite

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2 minutes ago, TobyB said:

Probably, if it goes inside, it should be plastic.

But then the 60's were the decade of better living through chemistry.

And we were all going to live forever, unlike our hydrocarbon- based tubing.

I ran my steel line outside like 99.7% of all cars on the road.

In all my years, the 2002 is the only car I've ever seen that runs the fuel inside.

 

Not saying it's wrong, but I AM saying that running steel outside isn't wrong, either.

Unless you wrap it around the muffler.

 

t

 

The air cooled VW's used a steel fuel supply line ran thru the hollow tunnel of the floor pan.  Braided hose connected the tank to the hard line at both ends. 

The brake line ran along the driver's side of the inside floor pan - most wore out or rusted.

 

 

Jim Gerock

 

Riviera 69 2002 built 5/30/69 "Oscar"

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1 hour ago, mike said:

2. A number of folks have utilized the existing metal fuel (fumes) return line that runs under the car on the later cars that are equipped with the charcoal and condenser canisters to capture fumes and return 'em to the gas tank.  Two objections to this:  first, it's more vulnerable to damage running under the car.  A piece of road debris could either puncture it or flatten it.  Second, it's gonna rust as it's a steel line.  In fact it may already be rusty, inside and out.  

 

Isn't that steel fuel line for returning liquid fuel to the tank, in the original design?

The vapors escaping from the tank ((in part) as a result of pressure caused by returning fuel) comes into the charcoal canister, via the small plastic line, no?

 

I reconnected the larger steel fuel return line and learned that it had indeed rusted, near the pedal box... due to a leaking clutch master.  I picked at a speck on the line, beside the pedal box, and fuel immediately started dripping.  I simply cut out the rusted section and added a piece of rubber hose there.

 

This is a digression from the original question, but does confirm Mike's warning.

 

Oh, I have also replaced the VW in-cabin brake line Jim refers to... multiple times.

 

I have left the plastic thru-cabin line in place, because it looks okay, but I did replace the cloth covered lines that connect to it in the trunk.  

 

Enough about my car/experiences, what have you decided to do with yours ?  : ) 

 

 

     DISCLAIMER 

I now disagree with some of the timing advice I have given in the past.  I misinterpreted the distributor curves in the Blue Book. 

I've switched from using ported-vacuum to manifold, with better results. 

I apologize for spreading misinformation.  

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There is no problem running stainless or cunifer tubing along the underside of the car, quite a few people do it.  As Toby can attest, for vintage racing it typically isn't legal to run fuel through the cabin.  Running a fuel line through the cabin is a minority in the extreme when looking at the bigger automotive picture.  There are no pre-made kits, but it is something I've been thinking about.

 

Protip: If you are running lengths of stainless flex line from a fixed chassis point to the vibrating engine, support both ends prior to the fittings so as to not fatigue the fitting.

 

Here was a nice install via Dasfrogger: 

 

 

PS: Zack, if you do end up wanting to go with new shiny brakelines (like what you mention), let me know!

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8 hours ago, AceAndrew said:

Protip: If you are running lengths of stainless flex line from a fixed chassis point to the vibrating engine, support both ends prior to the fittings so as to not fatigue the fitting.

Assume "stainless" here refers to stainless braided covered line.

Also by selecting a point on the engine that has minimal motion will reduce the risk.  My EFI supply flex line connection is at or below the starter level where engine motion is the least, not like up high that can move 1/2" or more.  Line is shown here back in 2004, it has blue colored end fitting.  Metal line on the engine worked it's way up and connected to the fuel rail.  It's the same way on the S14, I just don't have a photo of it.

Contoured Air Inlets 3.jpg

Edited by jimk
Added photo

A radiator shop is a good place to take a leak.

 

I have no idea what I'm doing but I know I'm really good at it.

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Quote

The air cooled VW's

 

Now, THOSE suckers were as likely as not to be the car fire by the side of the road...

...not really the fault of the line in the cabin, usually, but the fuel hose that ran all over the

top of the engine was the culprit.  Had a Squareback with fuel injection- ALL of the high pressure

plastic fittings were brittle to the point of snapping from ennui, and ALL of the (original!) rubber line was

checked and brittle, too...

 

t

 

"I learn best through painful, expensive experience, so I feel like I've gotten my money's worth." MattL

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