Fuel line popped off - advice on repair

[Red Shift]

My fuel line separated at the connection two feet before the tee into the fuel rails. This happened when I went key on, and didn't crank the car because I heard fuel dripping on the ground. When I pulled on the rear fuel line it wasn't attached at all!

Any idea why this would happen? Note: This is a Roe car with a Walbro in tank pump using the factory fuel pressure regulator.

I am interested in your opinion on the repair. There is a hose clamp on the blue line in the photo, but it seems it might happen again if I simply tighten it down again.
There are small bits of rubber missing on the interior of the blue hose inside of where the hose clamp is. It seems like these were ripped out when the hose separated.

Please respond with a recommendation for repair. I am considering replacing the two foot section of blue hose in case it swelled (not noticeable on my inspection).

Thanks in advance.

EDIT: I didn't do this! A previous owner did, so I'm looking for improvement now.

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[plumcrazy]

that looks terrible.

 

[Red Shift]

I didn't do it! I'm looking for advice to make it better.

 

[345s-bspinnin]

That situation could have been catastrophic. My advise would be to upgrade to stainless/nylon braided lines with the proper AN fittings. Its not cheap, but worth every penny.

 

[plumcrazy]

sorry about the lack of help. but what he said above is a very good idea and really needs to be done

 

[bluesrt]

for now bubble flair the end of the line- it cant come off- or a flair- or knurl the end, or put about 3 clamps on it- but that needs to b gotton ridin of big time

 

[GTS Dean]

You need to spend some time with an Earl's or Aeroquip catalog. Take that line off from the transmission tunnel connector and carry it to a big hydraulic motor/cylinder repair shop. Ask them to set you up with a 37degree female flare end on it, or double-flare it with an inverted flare nut. Then, get a barbed socketless hose adapter to match.

 

[speedracervr4]

Off topic, but is that a **** nozzle in the back? Do you run them on both sides? I'm woundering if there is any performance difference from running them pre throttle body (that's the way mine is).

 

[Red Shift]

You need to spend some time with an Earl's or Aeroquip catalog. Take that line off from the transmission tunnel connector and carry it to a big hydraulic motor/cylinder repair shop. Ask them to set you up with a 37degree female flare end on it, or double-flare it with an inverted flare nut. Then, get a barbed socketless hose adapter to match.

Thanks for the advice. I'll get more familiar with this as this is a critical connection. The main fuel connection right above the headers - I'm happy for everyone's help so I can get this fixed correctly.

 

[Red Shift]

Off topic, but is that a **** nozzle in the back? Do you run them on both sides? I'm woundering if there is any performance difference from running them pre throttle body (that's the way mine is).

Good eye. Both sides. Probably no performance difference. I'm not running it currently because I didn't like how the line got pulled dry because they see vacuum. I'm going to install it again with a more solid system including solenoids, flow gauge and all that fun stuff.

 

[supersnake]

First off, I would flare the end of the tube. Also make sure the hose you are putting on there is for fuel, Not just any old hose will do. Fuel hoses are rated to not break down with petroleum products. That blue hose looks like a antifreeze hose. No good for fuel!!

 

[IDM]

The first thing that nobody mentioned is fire extinguisher, make sure you put a full size one in your car before driving again, even going forward I think all heavily modified cars should have one, you never know what is routed strangely or may not hold up during racing etc. If that would have happened while your engine was hot or while you were in boost you would have burned down your car or popped the engine I'd guess.

I would not panic, this is a quick fix. I bet you that hose clamp is broken or that your fuel line falling apart made it slip off. What it looks like from here is that the clamp is too small and wasn't tightened all the way or was tightened too far and broken. I would replace the line with high pressure fuel line from any auto store, go one size higher on the hose clamps and put three of them in a row there and I guarantee you will be okay. You should do the same on the other end. Many fuel systems are held together with hose clamps. You can do this with AN fittings if you would like but it will hold up the way I mentioned and you can actually be driving your car again within 15 minutes instead of hunting down parts for a week. Lastly I would poke around the engine bay for anything else suspicious around the mods.

Good luck.

 

[speedracervr4]

^^^good temp fix, but clamps like that are not used on OEM systems for a reason. Fix it right.

 

[bluesrt]

anymore suggestions

 

[plumcrazy]

The first thing that nobody mentioned is fire extinguisher, make sure you put a full size one in your car before driving again, even going forward I think all heavily modified cars should have one, you never know what is routed strangely or may not hold up during racing etc. If that would have happened while your engine was hot or while you were in boost you would have burned down your car or popped the engine I'd guess.

i cant DISAGREE more. i dont want a partially burnt car. id rather let it burn to the ground....

 

[Dan Cragin]

This is the kind of stuff that can be very dangerous. Whoever did this install did not have a good understanding of how to build a proper fuel connection. I would be happy to give you some advice on how to plumb your fuel system.

 

[IDM]

i cant DISAGREE more. i dont want a partially burnt car. id rather let it burn to the ground....

I can't disagree more with you either and it's almost laughable and not even worth replying to you. Are you serious? You could totally prevent a fire from spreading, there could be 0 damage if you have it out quickly, oh and you may prevent others from injury around the car.

 

[Red Shift]

First off, I would flare the end of the tube. Also make sure the hose you are putting on there is for fuel, Not just any old hose will do. Fuel hoses are rated to not break down with petroleum products. That blue hose looks like a antifreeze hose. No good for fuel!!

Good advice. A tiny bit of rubber seems to have pulled away from the inside of the hose when it ripped off. That rubber could go downstream to the fuel injectors, don't want that!

The first thing that nobody mentioned is fire extinguisher, make sure you put a full size one in your car before driving again, even going forward I think all heavily modified cars should have one, you never know what is routed strangely or may not hold up during racing etc. If that would have happened while your engine was hot or while you were in boost you would have burned down your car or popped the engine I'd guess.

I would not panic, this is a quick fix. I bet you that hose clamp is broken or that your fuel line falling apart made it slip off. What it looks like from here is that the clamp is too small and wasn't tightened all the way or was tightened too far and broken. I would replace the line with high pressure fuel line from any auto store, go one size higher on the hose clamps and put three of them in a row there and I guarantee you will be okay. You should do the same on the other end. Many fuel systems are held together with hose clamps. You can do this with AN fittings if you would like but it will hold up the way I mentioned and you can actually be driving your car again within 15 minutes instead of hunting down parts for a week. Lastly I would poke around the engine bay for anything else suspicious around the mods.

Good luck.

Thanks for the advice. I may use the quick fix to get me rolling JUST for the weekend using a new hose and proper hose clamps. Will check it out before driving the car off too.

This is the kind of stuff that can be very dangerous. Whoever did this install did not have a good understanding of how to build a proper fuel connection. I would be happy to give you some advice on how to plumb your fuel system.

I'd love to hear your advice! Please do tell.

 

[Red Shift]

You need to spend some time with an Earl's or Aeroquip catalog. Take that line off from the transmission tunnel connector and carry it to a big hydraulic motor/cylinder repair shop. Ask them to set you up with a 37degree female flare end on it, or double-flare it with an inverted flare nut. Then, get a barbed socketless hose adapter to match.

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Flare the existing male end to mate up with the above barbed hose adapter. Where is the best place to buy the fittings? Summit or Jeg's?

 

[GTS Dean]

That's a great start. Get one of those with a male JIC (37 degree) end. Then, get yourself a Versil-Flare tube adapter set for the other end. I have used the flareless system on many industrial hydraulic assemblies. If your hose will see regular disassembly, then I would recommend the flared tube setup, as it will be easier on the male sealing surface. This will hold you fine until you have researched a permanent solution.

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[Red Shift]

Thanks for the pic Dean. I checked out the hosetraining.com site and there is good info there too.

I have decided to eliminate one connection to decrease failure points. The length from the tee before the fuel rails to the quick connect to the hard line is about three feet. I will get socketless hose and connectors to replace the existing line and the failed connection.

Thanks everyone for the help.