Fuel line repair...

[Ifixyawata]

Today I realized that using a half-tank of gas while driving 80 miles in less than one day is not normal.

I have a fuel line leak that's dripping near the drivers door under the car. I reached up under and it feels like a steel line, do these cars have all-steel lines? or that plastic crap or what? If the steel section is leaking can I use a compression fitting and a new section to fix it? How might I go about bending the tubing?

Guidance appreciated. I'm thinking my gas mileage evens out to about 10 highway.

[Grand Marquis GT]

well mang, it is indeed a steel line.

you can get creative if you have an old V-belt pulley in a vise as a bender.

Hope this helps.

GMGT

[marquisman]

i jus cut out the old section and put a peice of high pressure injector hose on with clamps! i belive it 5/16''s.

[Grand Marquis GT]

I still dont like to use rubber line.

for EFI, I like to fix it right.

[marquisman]

the problem is if u dont have a lot of healthy line to put on compression fittings, you have to change a whole peice and we dont always have time to change lines.

[Ifixyawata]

That is my concern... I might not be able to find a section of solid line on which to attach my fitting.

[NitroNic]

YOu can buy tubing benders for pretty cheap, and at my house we use brake line tubing for custom fuel lines.

IF it were me, I"d probably replace the whole fuel line, unless it was just leaking at a fitting.

[Ifixyawata]

While I had the car up doing an oil change today I looked and it appears as if it's leaking up at the front where it seems that the line goes up into the floorpan..? If I run new line, how the F will I get it up into there?

[marquisman]

witch side has the leak? if its on the drivers side, it goes on top of the frame behind the wheel well cover. iv done that repair to my dads 88. that should be the return line.

[Ifixyawata]

Yes, driver's side. It's been confirmed now by you and Tom that it's the return. When I looked I could see three lines along the frame rail. One was a newer brake line, the other one, rusted, must have been the old brakeline, the third and larger one must be the fuel return line. Quite large for a return, IMO.

[marquisman]

well, the fuel lines are 5/16'' lines and the brakes i belive are 3/16'' lines so you cant mix up the lines!

[Ifixyawata]

Tell me more about what's involved in repairing this. How'd you do it... use rubber or steel? Tell me what you can... this gas mileage sucks, it's eating my money up.

[marquisman]

what i did was pull the wheel out and peeled out the well cover enoght to get at the line. i cut the line from the wheel well area and from undernith the car.(i found the 2 points to cut that had the best condition of line)then i took my rubber 5/16'' fuel injection fuel line and spliced the return line! i clamped it and put everything bact together. never had a leak since 2001. hope this helps!

[Ifixyawata]

Yes, thank you. I'll be going to Autozone soon and getting a few feet of the return crap. Once the wether breaks I should get some steel line and re-do it the right way. (Probably, won't though... drove my t-bird a few thousand miles with no fuel filter because the fittings got torn off.)

[marquisman]

no prb man! good luck on your repair!