[T3] Fuel leak on type 3 F.I. Fastback

Jim Adney jadney at vwtype3.org
Wed Nov 6 08:04:45 PST 2019


On 5 Nov 2019 at 16:05, William Jahn wrote:

> I didn't read he was smelling gas so it might be brake fluid and if it is
> gas I forgot the steel lines don't have a barbs on them I know they don't
> on the rear yet I can't recall if mine do on the front or at the tank . I
> only replaced the ones on the engine and from the engine to the rear metal
> lines. I don't know if all years were the same deal. Jim has replaced more
> than I have. I think the return at the tank has no barb nor did the
> plastic three way fitting . Sort of a dumb idea at least on the pressure
> side .

Typically, the only trouble spots are the 2 ends of the pressurised tube, on 
the driver's side. The tank inlet and outlets are smooth cylindrical, but 
unpressurised, except for the "head" of the gas in the tank. The Tee has 
barbs. The long tubes are simple, straight cylindrical, making the 
pressurized one hard to seal

The ends of the long tubes are bent downward, so leaks there tend not to 
flow upward past the rubber grommets and into the interior. But I've had 
trouble at times when I pushed hoses too far up, and they got pressed 
against the grommet.

Leaks here get more likely in cold weather and with old, hard gas hose. It's 
likely that new 5/16" hose and full circle clamps will fix this.  

I've never seen one of those lines rust thru, but I don't deny its possibility. 
I've worked on one car where someone had replaced the return line with an 
external copper tube, but we eventually determined that the OE line was fine 
and restored it to service.  

It would be helpful to remove the gas gauge sender and look inside the tank. 
If the tank is clean, the line won't be rusty, unless there has been water 
inside the car and the line rusted from the outside, which I suspect is 
unlikely, because I'm willing to bet that this line does not lay on the bottom of 
the tunnel.

-- 
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Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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