Has anybody ever seen this???

-
Bill Dedman

Bill Dedman

bill dedman
Legendary Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2007
Messages
3,987
Reaction score
140
Location
Conway, Arkansas
We cut the rubber fuel line just south of the metal stub tubing that goes into the fuel pump inlet on our 1964 Valiant slant 6 as we were removing the engine for machine work (rebuilding.)

On inspection of that rubber line, we discovered that the useable area that fuel could flow through, (in the interior of that line,) had somehow closed down to a passageway no bigger than the lead in a pencil!

We bought that car from an old lady who said it was running poorly (I can only imagine!) so she'd parked it about 15 years ago. Hadn't moved, since.

I don't know how that carburettor was getting enough fuel to idle, even, much less, drive.

The outside of that fuel line looked fine; but the interior had somehow, "grown" shut.

The added rubber that filled in, where the original passageway had been, looked just like all the other rubber it was made of.

It was just 90% closed off...

We used a sharp knife to slice through that rubber line because we were in a hurry... or, we'd never have discovered it.

Made me wonder how many other cars are out there, with the same problem...

Anybody else ever see anything like this?

Sorry; I don't have a picture of it, but I couldn't make this up; it's too bizarre...
 
Yea, old line. Swelled up and soft on the inside.
 
Same thing got us on a drive from Atlanta to Albuquerque in 1989 in our 69 Dart slant. Above 55 mph the engine would start sputtering. It seemed to go away in the evening. Finally got so bad I pulled off I-40 in NM. Found the hose at the fuel pump inlet was soft. Changed it in the parking lot while my wife ordered pizza and we drove 70 mph the rest of the way. That was around the time they started putting ethanol in the gas and before they sold hose that could handle it.
 
BillGrissom said:
Same thing got us on a drive from Atlanta to Albuquerque in 1989 in our 69 Dart slant. Above 55 mph the engine would start sputtering. It seemed to go away in the evening. Finally got so bad I pulled off I-40 in NM. Found the hose at the fuel pump inlet was soft. Changed it in the parking lot while my wife ordered pizza and we drove 70 mph the rest of the way. That was around the time they started putting ethanol in the gas and before they sold hose that could handle it.
Click to expand...

I'm glad that somebody (Rumblefish360 and you) could verify that this actually happens; it was like a bad dream to me...

Thanks for the input, guys!
 
so does the engine really need rebuilding now?
if fuel starvation was a problem,

Just curious, Lawrence
 
VDART said:
so does the engine really need rebuilding now?
if fuel starvation was a problem,

Just curious, Lawrence
Click to expand...

Well, I actually mis-spoke when I said "rebuild." What I meant, but didn't say, was "replace."

We wanted to install a turbocharged 225 as an experiment, so the 170 got used for spare parts... and, we needed a bunch! Lucky for us, there's lots of interchangeability. Sorry for the confusion; next time I'll try to say what I mean...:banghead:
 
Bill, Quality of gas,rubber, just about everything has gone down hill.Get this,, I got new "Gates" hose from the parts house thinking "Gates, Good"? Didn't last a year.I replaced it with a piece of 40 year old O.E. hose (that I took off in the first place) to get me home.Glad I thru it in the trunk.Now I just use Fuel Injection spec hose.Seems to hold up better.
 
Yup seen it alot over the years, old fuel turns the inside of the hose to muck and swells from the inside out. I know that you can get Ethanol compatible fuel line today, bought a few feet of it for my Merc outboard. Said right on it made for ethanol fuels. Probably reinforced Viton rubber.
 
YES! F.I. line should be used with today's fuels no matter what. Pricey by compare, it is the only thing that will hold up for any amount of time worthy of note. Regular line, if left unattended for a time, will do what happened to Bill.

Today's fuels vary a lot by state and brand.
 
This is why I run the lined EFI hose, even on carbs.
 
When pulling some parts, I noticed the hard plastic fuel line used today, do they make fittings for that stuff? We had a Ferrari brake hose completely close under pressure, locked the front caliper tight. Had to drag the front tire about 15 yards into the garage...ouch! Cut it and it was SOLID rubber, no hole whatsoever.
 
Darter6 said:
Bill, Quality of gas,rubber, just about everything has gone down hill.Get this,, I got new "Gates" hose from the parts house thinking "Gates, Good"? Didn't last a year.I replaced it with a piece of 40 year old O.E. hose (that I took off in the first place) to get me home.Glad I thru it in the trunk.Now I just use Fuel Injection spec hose.Seems to hold up better.
Click to expand...

I had a bad experience with Gates hose a LONG LONG time ago, and I used to SELL Gates products.

My 70 RR body, in the last years I owned it, had a 340 swapped in. I had scored some braided line, and the ONLY rubber line in the fuel system was about 3" of "store" Gates hose between the fuel filter and the carb, at a slight bend, maybe 10-20* bend.

One day after work, I started the car, and though I smelled gas. I don't know why I did not shut off the engine, but it might not of mattered. Opened the hood to be greeted by a fire. It wasn't TOO serious, but it DID cook part of the underhood harness. So that week I had the harness laid out on a table, replacing each wire one at a time with some surplus teflon insulated, silver plated wire I had. Only RR in the world that had "all white" color codes under the hood.

THAT PIECE OF GATES HOSE WAS LESS THAN A YEAR OLD!!!
 
67Dart273 said:
I had a bad experience with Gates hose a LONG LONG time ago, and I used to SELL Gates products.

My 70 RR body, in the last years I owned it, had a 340 swapped in. I had scored some braided line, and the ONLY rubber line in the fuel system was about 3" of "store" Gates hose between the fuel filter and the carb, at a slight bend, maybe 10-20* bend.

One day after work, I started the car, and though I smelled gas. I don't know why I did not shut off the engine, but it might not of mattered. Opened the hood to be greeted by a fire. It wasn't TOO serious, but it DID cook part of the underhood harness. So that week I had the harness laid out on a table, replacing each wire one at a time with some surplus teflon insulated, silver plated wire I had. Only RR in the world that had "all white" color codes under the hood.

THAT PIECE OF GATES HOSE WAS LESS THAN A YEAR OLD!!!
Click to expand...
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX


Wow; I didn't realize that the rubber deterioration problem was so widespread. Thanks for all the good information guys!
 
Happens a lot with old brake lines too.
 
rumblefish360 said:
YES! F.I. line should be used with today's fuels no matter what. Pricey by compare, it is the only thing that will hold up for any amount of time worthy of note. Regular line, if left unattended for a time, will do what happened to Bill.

Today's fuels vary a lot by state and brand.
Click to expand...

I had some USA made FI line fail in less than a year on my 85 fi turbo Chrysler. It split in 6 places. Can't trust anything these days.
 
Ever installed new braided, and hook up a temporary glass filter? The crap that comes out; Takes 700 miles to clean it up.
 
Just after I bought my 51 Plymouth, it would idle, but at highway speeds it would lay down, spit & sputter, replace the rubber fuel line from the frame to the fuel pump. Yhe old line was soft and mushy, the inside was completely blocked off.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top