Blimey this is scary but better being aware and jolted into doing something about it than having the possibility of a fire....Definitely something I will look at before too long as well as the fuel pipe. I had a fuel pipe go in my last van. Luckily it was just sat on the drive at the time. I opened the front door and noticed the smell of petrol - went to investigate and found petrol leaking onto the drive - about a quarter of a tank had poured away. Would have been infinitely worse if it had happened while driving!
Did the one next to spare wheel well this morning, sorry Z .. I used clips also, heres a little photo story. scary off to the bin with this bit,...., or I might have it with a coffee later!
As far as fuel lines go, where do people stand on the PTFE lined hoses? I see them up for sale places like demon tweaks and guess they must be better than the nitrile lined ones.... But what do you guys think?
I've recently replaced all my fuel hoses and fuel filter, next job is the breather pipes and check the tank filler neck. When researching info on the hoses it became apparant there were differing levels in quality, R5 or R6 hose being widely available, but the better choice in terms of protection against the chemicals in the fuel being R9. Is there a similar variation of quality with filler necks as it's not really a job I fancy doing every couple of years? cheers Will
How long would/should it take a garage to check and as necessary change fuel lines and breather hoses (plus the fuel filler pipe if needed) and fit a firetec extinguisher or JK equivalent? Had a quote from the VW garage I use which seems like a lot, so wanted a quick sanity check please... Ta.
Not sure what the going rate would be but is your engine a type 4, if so it is possible to get behind the firewall with the engine in but I find it easier to take the carbs off. The fuel filler is a right b*****d to do, I did ours a couple of years ago and it took a good morning and hands cut to bits. I suppose with fitting the firetec it wouldn't be far off a days work. Interested to know others views on this... I would also do the fuel hoses while your at it, if you don't know the history you will then have a datum to work to...
Thanks - yes it's a type 4. Garage hourly rate is £40 and their day rate £320, but they reckon about 2 days work and have quoted £540 plus parts...
1 day max for all that. 1/2 a day if it went well, no need to drop engine, just lower it down in inch to get the firewall out. No need to discoonect anything.
I see you are in Brum Pablo, if you don't mind me asking, is it a VW specialist you are using (we are in Leamington)? As I said, I am not an expert but have done these jobs myself and I would have thought that 2 days is excessive, the hourly rate is ok I think. also, consider that the filler elbow and rubber lower down are not cheap and the R9 fuel lines again are not cheap, you will have quite a bill. I know last MOT cost me 700 quid at a 'specialist' (did get powder coated wheels with that) but there wasn't a lot done for the MOT, my accountant (Trudy) still mentions how much that cost and why did I need the powder coated wheels.. As we all know, things cost with these vehicles...
Thanks both. Wow expensive MoT my last one was £60! Yes it's a specialist garage. I don't mind paying someone a fair price to do the job and ensure the bus is safe (I'm happy to tinker with certain things but still learning and not confident enough to start messing with fuel lines etc for fear of ballsing it up and making the bus unsafe) but I don't want to pay over the odds. Guess I may need to look for another garage in the West Midlands if they maintain it's a 2 day job... Any recommendations?
Yes, silly cost for an MOT plus a few bits wont get caught again...I think you are right if you are not confident to do a job yourself get the pros to do it, I just have got the engine back in our van and have had quite a few oh sh** moments, have learnt a hell of a lot though and you can always ask questions on here how ever daft it might sound, generally, always an answer is posted which helps. I don't know of any other specialists in the west mids, I know the 2 in Warwick have disappeared now. It may be worth taking to the guy who has quoted you and try to understand what he is going to do and the way he is doing it if he does a need job with the firetec it may be worth biting the bullet.
The firetec is 2 self tappers to hold the bracket and tie wraps for the pipe. 1/2 hour? Really, you could do this yourself.
Do it at techenders. As Baysearcher said its not that hard just takes time and there will be loads of folk there who can give you pointers (and you save £500)
I have to replace my hose from the tank to the steel pipe from the filler, I haven't checked the elbow for the neck yet, and I'm going to replace the joiners as a precaution. can I use off the shelf fuel pipe for the joints? Also what is the best place to get the bigger 55mm internal diameter pipe from, I've seen it at vw heritage, but its not cheap, the straight piece I can get off eBay in silicone for about £20 but the elbow has a flange on it so I guess in going to have to pay the going rate for that one.
