Fuel pipes and rear brake pipe replacement

[chrisg]

Evening All,

I trust you had a fun Christmas and Santa brought all the relevant accessories for your 944's.

A quick question to those who've had the fuel pipes and rear brake pipe(s) replaced :

Do you have to drop the rear axle all the way or can it be done by just dropping it ~ 5-6 inches ?

So far I've yet to get too far (managed to undo the main mount bolt on one side) but would like to avoid removing the driveshafts if possible ?

To date this is the only 'major' job on the 951 that hasn't been tackled, engine & gearbox rebuilds, sills done, suspension rebuilt, etc. As the car is now on a SORN I've decided to tackle this head on - none of the 3 pipes concerned at too dubious, but I don't won't to take the chance = tackling these before they become and issue.

Any advice or suggestions from anyone that's done this job very gratefully received.

Happy New Year !

Chris

 

[Alexw]

I had my fuel lines replaced with flexi pipe over the axle so it didn't need to be dropped. Some people don't like this but if the pipe is rated for pressurised petrol and the correct clips and connections are used, I don't have a problem! The rear brake pipes I also had done at around the same time, the guy who did it said it was a bit of a pain working round the axle but got it done in the end.

So, no, the axle doesn't need dropping!

 

[sawood12]

For brake pipes a temprary / semi-permanant solution is to route the brake pipes under the transaxel rather than over the top of it. Yes this means that if you have to drop the transaxel at any time you will need to break the brake line again, but so what - brake pipes are cheap so if you need to drop the transaxel then you can replace the pipes and route correctly while the axel is out.

I'm not a fan of the flexi-pipe option - again I see it as a temporary solution and would hope that the many sensible people on this forum would replace with OEM hard pipes if they got the opportunity should the axel need dropping at some other point in their ownership. The issue with flexi pipes is not fuel pressure - it is quite low at only 2.5bar, but with robustness and longevity. OEM hardpipes last a good 15 - 20yrs and will give you plenty of notice (years) as corrosion sets in before failing. Flexi-pipes will not last anywhere near as long as hard pipes and no-one really knows how long they will last. Also it is more difficult to spot a flexi pipe about to fail - they tend to give little or no warning before final failure. Lets not forget where the OEM pipes tend to fail is where they are exposed in the rear wheel arch and are in the firing line for all the crud thrown up by the rear wheel (grit, stones, dirty grimey water) and a rubber hose simply is not as resistant to that sort of abuse compared with a metal pipe.

Granted they should last a good few years and will probably see out your period of ownership, but I would hope that anyone fitting flexi pipes would let any other prospective buyer know that the non-standard fuel pipes had been fitted so they at least know to keep an extra eye on them.

 

[chrisg]

Thanks for the input chaps, at the moment, it's my intention to go the whole hog, drop the rear axle and replace both fuel lines and the various brake lines. My plan with the fuel lines is to try and remove both fully intact then take them to a pirtek type hose fitter and ask them to make up similar steel lines. It may be that they only replace the rusty section over the axle as the straight section under the sill is fine.

Will keep you all posted !

 

[JamesBall]

This doesnt answer your questions but as another option, I had my fuel lines replaced with steel braided flexible hose as recommended by the indie I use (RPM Technik nr Tring). More expensive than rubber hose but more robust and a good bit cheaper than OEM hard pipes.

 

[Northern924]

Don't get me wrong but if you're going to the hassle of dropping the axel why do a partial replacement of the pipe? For a minimal extra cost wouldn't you be as well to replace the whole pipe?

When I last did a replacement I was also able to do both brake and fuel without dropping the rear axel, but then I used kunifer for the brakes and steelbraided flexi for the fuel.

 

[chas3.2]

You could try 8 and 10 mm copper pipes with compression joints and olives from all plumers have done this about 20 times and very easy about a 2hr job.

Charles

 

[Hilux]

You could try 8 and 10 mm copper pipes with compression joints and olives from all plumers have done this about 20 times and very easy about a 2hr job.

Just renewed the flow and return pipes in my Mk1 Golf in 8mm seamless copper brake pipes (rated to 2000psi) Used a simple flaring tool on the ends and then mimimum length rubber injection hoses to the fuel pump/tank/fuel rail which minimises the amount of joints/connections

Came in a coil, easy to form and bend in situ (use sockets as formers for small radii)

Simples......

 

[Northern924]

Yep can't agree more and Kunifer pipe (which is what it is lol) will last a hell of a lot longer than steel []

 

[Hilux]

ORIGINAL: Northern924

Yep can't agree more and Kunifer pipe (which is what it is lol) will last a hell of a lot longer than steel []

...............but is harder to form in situ in tight spots.