What fuel line?

[NickOcean]

What replacement fuel lines should i be using, i see most people are say 12 mm - im assuming this is outer diameter. Though the ones i have removed have 7x13 >nbr/cr< e4219GA 177-96 printed on them at the rear of the car. At the front the 2 lines into the plenum one has WP 12 bar 5/16 13062, the other one i need to check, but they appear to be different as well. These lines are original to the car ex factory i think as i bought the car in 98 and it only has 11k on it now!.

Then I go on the internet and Iam confronted with a whole host of different hoses, im very wary of cheap knock offs, and wary of ethanol fuel resistance. Any guidance as to where to go and what to buy would be great.

i know nothing about fuel hoses! Anyone know what they are talking about who can help?

[Belle427]

You need 8 mm ID for most of it and then some 12 mm ID for the rear tank to crossover pipe and crossover pipe to pump.
I would buy this personally in both sizes.
https://www.carbuilder.com/products/ethanol-proof-...

[taylormj4]

Belle427 said:

You need 8 mm ID for most of it and then some 12 mm ID for the rear tank to crossover pipe and crossover pipe to pump.
I would buy this personally in both sizes.
https://www.carbuilder.com/products/ethanol-proof-...

Good recommendation. Avoid braided. I had braided rubber hose on my Range Rover V8 and the inner rubber had perished but the hose looked great from the outside. Was doing some tuning in the engine bay, engine running and noticed the air looked misty. On closer inspection it was fuel vapour being sprayed around the engine bay through cracks in the hose that were invisible beneath the braiding!

[NickOcean]

Many thanks gentleman, especially the link. Lines ordered, stainless steel fuel line clips ordered, Bosch fuel pump ordered (that was expensive!). Mann fuel filter ordered. Next Sunday we will fit that lot. First part of the reanimation of the dusty TVR will be done. Really appreciate the help!

[Sardonicus]

taylormj4 said:

Belle427 said:

You need 8 mm ID for most of it and then some 12 mm ID for the rear tank to crossover pipe and crossover pipe to pump.
I would buy this personally in both sizes.
https://www.carbuilder.com/products/ethanol-proof-...

Good recommendation. Avoid braided. I had braided rubber hose on my Range Rover V8 and the inner rubber had perished but the hose looked great from the outside. Was doing some tuning in the engine bay, engine running and noticed the air looked misty. On closer inspection it was fuel vapour being sprayed around the engine bay through cracks in the hose that were invisible beneath the braiding!

A customer of mine nearly lost a Jaguar XK150 due to this very thing looks good on the outside but crap rubber hose inside and the known Jag specialist wouldn't refund him (his problem not mine) I ended up replacing the lot with Cohline hose like recommended above because I had it in stock and its well over spec for 6 psi fuel pressure

[Belle427]

Never really looked at marine grade stuff, is it any higher spec wise or just thicker walled?

[Sardonicus]

Belle427 said:

Never really looked at marine grade stuff, is it any higher spec wise or just thicker walled?

I think the outer wall is more resistant/tolerant to fuel and chemicals as I recall for kick off cant say I have ever really looked into it TBF

[NickOcean]

Marine line, a pinch of salt as im not an expert, but i did ask a ships Captain. They have to cover international safety standards specifically US Coast Guard standards essentially higher resistance to everything. To be honest i think thats just thicker walls in most cases. But i would guess the main thing is high temperatures as unlike a car that has some airflow, marine engine compartments do not, higher fire resistance (no where to go if you have a fire on a boat) Also as fuel lines are likely to run through bilges and areas where there will be water ingress, constant submerged exposure to water. And of course higher UV protection as not alot of shade at sea and fuel lines running to out boards will be constantly exposed. Sun (UV) damage to materials on boats and ships is surprisingly destructive.

I dont think they would be necassary on a car, they will be less flexible i would imagine, if your car is exposed to conditions that a boat is. I imagine fuel lines is the least of your worries.

Edited by NickOcean on Wednesday 1st April 09:42

[Sardonicus]

That actually makes good sense

[NickOcean]

glad to make a contribution rather than soley asking daft questions - Im a shipping guy - anything shipping if i dont know the answer, i certainly know a man who does.

[Sardonicus]

NickOcean said:

glad to make a contribution rather than soley asking daft questions - Im a shipping guy - anything shipping if i dont know the answer, i certainly know a man who does.

The user name is very apt then

[PabloGee]

I have the marine grade stuff on my car - Carbopomp Marine - the first part of it was installed by the previous owner just before I bought it, as the R9 hoses had started to crack in the engine bay and around the fuel pump - he had done a full body off resto 7 years before I bought it, barely drove it and kept it in a lovely garage.

I replaced the final section of the return line with the same hose, as that last bit of R9 was cracking.

It has a woven texture to the outside, some sort of bonded additional layer. Seems pretty tough.

I keep thinking about deleting the carbon canister and its associated hoses, then running a single length of hose from the fuel pump to the fuel rail to eliminate the joins. It will just need tying nicely to keep it off hot bits as it runs up behind the engine.
Haven't ventured to do it as yet. Might be a project for next year (I keep finding voluntary projects, and need to dial it in ! )

[TarquinMX5]

OP, I thought I'd had mine for quite a while (22+ yrs), but '98 beats that, and just 11K as well!

This thread has reminded me to look at mine again in due course (some replaced years back).

Any chance of somebody who's done it recently being able to state the lengths needed, ie is it
4m of 8mm id (7.3mm id?)
1m of 12mm id.

Does that sound about right?

I'm sure I measured it years ago but no idea where the results are now.

TIA

[NickOcean]

You wont need 4 m, i will be doing mine this weekend and i have ordered 4 m as im estimating its just over 3. Ill revert on exact measurements. (but its irrelevant because they sell it by the meter) on the 12 m you need less than 20 cm again by eye. Maybe im being a skin flint but I see Halfords sell short lengths and as im going there anyway i thought I would see what they have. That bits easy to do later if they dont have anything suitable. I am not doing the vapour line. Surprisingly the lines on it seem in good condition but they have had fuel sitting in them for 15 years and Im concerned i will just be propelling gunge into the injectors, As a cost/risk/effort consideration I think its worth whipping them off. Though I may not do the feed line between the engine and the bulk head unless i can figure out how to get to it without pulling the rest of the ''intestines out''. I may pay a professional to do that at a later date as that appears to be dry of old fuel and again in good condition. Stick the line and clips in the boot and make a note to get that done. If you are doing the breather line I would say length of the car plus an extra 2 meters you should be good.

[crashbarrier]

Hi TarquinMX5,

I have just finished replacing all the rubber fuel hoses on my '99 Chimaera 400. I purchased the Cohline hose from Carbuilder and ended up using:-

6 metres 8mm ID hose
8mm Fuel Hose

1 metre 12mm ID hose
12mm Fuel Hose

4x 17-19mm stainless steel hose clips
16x 13-15mm stainless steel hose clips
SS Hose Clips

You use about 250mm of the 12mm, so you will have some left over, and I've ended up with about a metre, maybe less, left over of the 8mm. The excess does allow you to make a mistake and cut a new piece. Don't forget to change the short hose that connects to the tank outlet and passes through the bulkhead- it does mean removing the tank.

The Bettram Hill write-up is very helpful until I found out that I had a different tank outlet on my tank, but it doesn't cause any issues. I can give details if you ask.
Bertram Hill

Top tip- Don't forget to slide a loose hose clip on the hose before you push it into the copper line, it saves a lot of panic as you try to pull it back off if you forget. I also used a tiny smear of vaseline on the copper line to help the hose on(not near the inlet hole).

Hopefully, this is all helpful.

Paul

[taylormj4]

crashbarrier said:

Hi TarquinMX5,

I have just finished replacing all the rubber fuel hoses on my '99 Chimaera 400. I purchased the Cohline hose from Carbuilder and ended up using:-

6 metres 8mm ID hose
8mm Fuel Hose

1 metre 12mm ID hose
12mm Fuel Hose

4x 17-19mm stainless steel hose clips
16x 13-15mm stainless steel hose clips
SS Hose Clips

You use about 250mm of the 12mm, so you will have some left over, and I've ended up with about a metre, maybe less, left over of the 8mm. The excess does allow you to make a mistake and cut a new piece. Don't forget to change the short hose that connects to the tank outlet and passes through the bulkhead- it does mean removing the tank.

The Bettram Hill write-up is very helpful until I found out that I had a different tank outlet on my tank, but it doesn't cause any issues. I can give details if you ask.
Bertram Hill

Top tip- Don't forget to slide a loose hose clip on the hose before you push it into the copper line, it saves a lot of panic as you try to pull it back off if you forget. I also used a tiny smear of vaseline on the copper line to help the hose on(not near the inlet hole).

Hopefully, this is all helpful.

Paul

Is it OK to use vaseline on rubber. I always use red rubber grease to ease on rubber hoses as it is designed for use with rubber components. Probably fine but thought I should ask just in case.

[crashbarrier]

Aagghh! Don't ask that as it's way too late and I'm not repeating that particlarly joyous job for a long while. I had read that it was OK before I did it.

[NickOcean]

you should be ok, petroleum jelly - is, wel, made of petroleum

[Belle427]

A friends rubber doll has not been affected by it.

[NickOcean]

Perhaps not the forum for this kind of advice - but never borrow a freinds rubber doll.