Believe it or not, I saw this on the Wally World (Walmart) web site. There was a complete kit for replacing fuel line on a variety of cars. The odd thing is that the roll of line was some type of plastic and came with a variety of pop on type connections. My Audi has the plastic lines with quick release fittings. I only know because I had to crawl under the damn thing to change the fuel filter and I was amazed that all the lines felt so light and flexible (like the plastic toilet water feed lines you buy in HD for 4 bucks a length) Oddly, the release for the actual fuel filter (on my car at least) is not threaded, but it is like a poppet for an air hose. You squeeze the sides real tight and the fuel filter releases. Seems like it would be easy to work with (cut- run, clamp). Anyone? I know I am asking for it on this one, but tech is tech. Won't rust, better with vibration, connections are all quick release. Pork
Almost all late models have that stuff. Nylon If you spring for the kit ( big $$$) its easy and quick repairs. Fittings are not cheap, but you can make some money with the stuff. Without the installation tool its extremely frustrating and painful to get the fittings in. My local parts store has a kit in the store and every piece in there has a part # and is available separately. So they grab the kit, you take what you need and they charge by the piece. They order what you took to replenish the kit. This works better than ordering the pieces and waiting to find out they are wrong and order some more.
31V, Yeah, the kit at Wally World was 180 bucks online. Figures that it is expensive, right? Shame, if it was as easy to plumb and cost as little as PVC, it would be a hot rodder's true best friend. Although running steel line is no major chore. Pork
Most newer Fuel injected cars have plastic lines, tanks ect.... My 87 Ford had plastic to.... As for the filters connection, they do seem weak, but a hose clamp wont hold much pressure...
I like the stuff and make my own nylon lines when doing FI engine conversions, I have not used it on anything with a carb yet. Fittings can still be a bear to install even with the tool, but without it would be almost impossible. Warming the line and then using a little oil on the fitting helps a lot for installation.
Be careful! The OE "plastic" fuel hose is made from a multi-layer extrusion (3-5 layers), with each layer adding a particular property to the hose. The inner liner is carbon-black that prevents static build up from the fuel p***ing thru it. One of the middle layers prevents permeation of the fuel/vapor, which can weaken the hose. The scariest part of Wally's stuff is that it's all made in China & they've proven to be able to make cheap stuff look like the real thing, but it doesn't work! My advice is to be very wary of ANYTHING from WallyWorld! Crummy fuel lines & poor electrical work have turned more than a few rods into "car-BQ's".
NO.NO.NO. DON'T heat these lines!!!! One of our guys did just that. The fuel pump blew the fkn thing off & we had 4-5 gallons of gas on the floor in seconds. The gods were on our side that day, cuz one of the boys was in the car with Chris & the engine wasn't hot yet. I hate to think of what could've happened with hot headers... Heat weakens the joint, which relies on the elastic nature of the tubing to grab & retain the fitting, esp for the long term. Oil is a NO-NO too, use only water, it lowers the friction for insertion. They make a proper tool for inserting these fitting into the hose, please use it!
Heat as in warm water, not heat as in torch, and I have the complete kit with the insertion tool. What did your friend use to warm the hose? My fittings are still a major PITA to get fully inserted even with the warm water trick. I believe the instructions with the kit said to use lube on the fitting, not just water, I will have to double check. No way could I have gotten some of those fittings all the way seated without it. I actually think the tool is a POS, they should of made it ratcheting instead of like a cheap slide lock clamp, the last bit of getting the fitting seated is a real bear with the tool. EDIT I knew I saw it, oil is suggested to make install easier.
Well, to be honest, when considering cost, pain in the ***ed-ness, and the fact that the stuff seems quirky to work with, I will p*** and go with steel line from AZ or Napa for 8 bucks a length with several unions and hose clamps. Thanks for the many posts; they made my mind up.
Plastic fuel lines are not a new thing. I recall a guy torching off rear shocks on a 67 Ford and melting the fuel line. Customer picked up the car & made it about a block before it quit. After they found out what happen the guy wasnt allowed to use a torch.
Fixed for you Nylon lines last indefinately, rubber lines and modern fuels not so much. The cars I get the nylon lines from use rubber lines on the EVAP system only and it is scary how deteriorated the rubber lines are, they literaly crumble when you move them. If you use rubber lines I would check them every year.
No, DO NOT CLICK ON THOSE X's. Those are not lost pictures but just spam put up by some of the idiots who visit us every day......usually after midnight when they think the mods are asleep. Anytime you see a post that doesn't make sense and the poster has about 4 posts, it is one of those jerks. Don
The plastic fuel lines are another one of those things that aesthetically don't belong on a Traditional Rod but functionally they work fine. Certainly more durable than copper and other stuff typical Back In The Day. Bear in mind that this stuff is intended for EFI or K-Jet applications that feed fuel at 35-90psi and that even for the 3/8in tube you might have a hard time finding fittings with big enough p***ages to adequately feed a low-pressure carb system. Some of the push-in fittings for the 5/16 tube have barely a 1/8in opening. Protection from heat and impact damage is a good idea: I know of at least one race car that burned down due to melting an OE fuel line. And then there was the time a few years back when I had one of the daily drivers up on the lift in the garage, welding on the exhaust... FWOOSH! What was that sound? What's that acetone-soaked rag doing flaming away on the lift ramp? Was I that dumb? OH HOLY **** IT'S RIGHT UNDER THE PLASTIC FUEL LINES! Fortunately grab-drop-and-stomp worked fine, with no damage to the car.
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