9 replies to this topic

[bandit]

hello

need to replace fuel lines on a 92 cooper any idea where i can get a set or could i run copper pipe??

cheers

[Ipod]

Try these mate....

Linky

[AndyMiniMad.]

I cut a bit of the old pipe off and took it to my local hydrolic hose supplier. Asked for a length of braided fuel line of the same size. Cost me £2. ran it through the car so it wont get damaged.

Its the one on the right in the white clips. comes through the rear seat back and down through the hole to the floor. then its cliped against the tunnel to the front. the other things in the picture are my brake line and battery cable. Remember to use rubber gromets in the holes if you decide to do it this way.

[bandit]

I cut a bit of the old pipe off and took it to my local hydrolic hose supplier. Asked for a length of braided fuel line of the same size. Cost me £2. ran it through the car so it wont get damaged.

Its the one on the right in the white clips. comes through the rear seat back and down through the hole to the floor. then its cliped against the tunnel to the front. the other things in the picture are my brake line and battery cable. Remember to use rubber gromets in the holes if you decide to do it this way.

was this hose run the complete length???

i like this idea, will it be a safe option???

cheers

[bandit]

Try these mate....

Linky

cheers for this had a look cant see the complete pipes will keep looking and poss call them

thanks again

[AndyMiniMad.]

yep same pipe all the way from the pump in the boot to the carb. If you are still useing a mecanical pump then just connect it to the same place the old one came off. totally safe as long as you ask for fuel pipe. wont ever get damaged so a one time job.

[bandit]

yep same pipe all the way from the pump in the boot to the carb. If you are still useing a mecanical pump then just connect it to the same place the old one came off. totally safe as long as you ask for fuel pipe. wont ever get damaged so a one time job.

great thanks, just need to find where to get it local now lol, i'll need 3 full lengths to get

cheers again

[AVV IT]

"ran it through the car so it wont get damaged"

So if your now involved in a road traffic collision and the fuel line fractures, are'nt you going to end up with the fuel spilling out inside the car. (& in the event of a roll over, the same fuel spilling all over the occupants!!) Call me paranoid if you like, but I think I'd rather risk an external fuel line getting damaged, at least that way the fuel escapes safely(ish) outside of the car.

Also if its clipped next to the tunnel isnt it running directly above the hot exhaust? Meaning that unless your floor pan is 100% water tight, any leak is going to drip down onto a potential source of ignition?

I do appreciate that internal fuel lines are used in motorsport, but is'nt that because of the high risk of the fuel line getting damaged during contact. Also on the track the occupants are wearing flame retardent race suits and the emergency services are a few meters away armed with fire fighting equipment!

Don't get me wrong I'm not having a go, it just doesnt sound very safe for road car use!

[AndyMiniMad.]

The fuel line isnt solid its flexible but with a braided cover to stop it getting cut. Sooo in the event of an accident the hose will flex with the rest of the car. And if it gets to the stage of being damaged by a crash then im afraid im already going to be pretty minced up anyway so wont be to woried about a bit of petrol driping on my shoes. how exactly will the petrol get on to the hot exhaust from inside the car? will it jump out of the hose eat my floor and then go in search of a hot pipe!!! I think not. Its a lot closer to a hot pipe when its going into the carb and i dont remember any one complaining about safety or fire risk when mr Issigonis designed that bit. So yes you are a bit paranoid. But im glad of your comments because it does need to be done with the correct fuel hose, and not just some bit of pipe you may have lying around.

[AVV IT]

With regard to your inpenetrable floor, am I to take it that you have never had a mini with an internal water leak where your foot wells fill up with rain water? Thanks to my leaking sunroof this happens to me occasionaly and the water eventualy drains itself out through various joins in the floor (hence i said "unless you have a 100% water tight floor"). But if you do have a fully sealed floor pan, I'm not sure that it will protect you from other sources of ignition inside the car.

Whilst I wouldn't claim to be an expert, I do deal with car wrecks fairly regularly in my line of work. It is therefore possible that my perspective is different to yours beacuse of this, (e.g because I am regularly exposed to what could be considered the worst case scenario). I have however seen many examples where the forces involved in road traffic collisions have been significant enough to move the fixed contents of a vehicle a number of feet (far enough to fracture the most flexible or armoured of fuel line) and for the occupants to still walk away with just minor or no injuries. Whilst I agree that petrol splashing on your shoes may seem like an insignificance wether you are fataly injured or not, I do not feel that being trapped in a burning wreck is a particularly pleasent encounter, and therefore it probably should be avoided in most cases.

It is true that the carb and fuel line does sit above the exhaust manifold, But again this is outside the passenger compartment, which is not a good place for a fire but is prefferable to inside it! As for issigonis, correct me if I'm wrong but did'nt he originaly design the exhaust manifold to exit at the front of the engine, but then it had to be moved by design engineers to beneath the inlet to stop the carb icing up? (not that I think that 50's vehicle design is a particularly good example of safety standards in the first instance)