8/11/04
Fixing Fuel Leaks

Although I’m leaving for Monterey for the Ferrari events tomorrow, I still wanted to work on my car today and get that pesky fuel leak fixed. I originally planned on doing this last Friday, but Geoff at Partsource was temporarily out of stock. Luckily, he got some more in a couple of days, and sent me my hose.

Not wanting to have leaks again, I asked around to see what people use to seal these hoses. Although François doesn’t use anything to seal is hoses, I was not having any luck, so I was looking to see what other people use. One suggestion came from fellow restorer to use a product called Hylomar by Permatex. Luckily, my local Napa Parts store had some, so I got to work finishing the fuel lines. Thanks Lance!

The Hylomar stuff is blue and very sticky. I managed to get it EVERYWHERE! At first I didn’t want to use too much, but after putting everything together, I found one fitting still leaking, so I had to take everything apart again! The fitting you see pictured here screws into the yellow fuel hose, and is supposed to be good to go, but I wasn’t having such luck.

I also would have taken more pictures, but I didn’t want to get Hylomar all over my camera!

Checking for leaks required me to connect all the hoses, and pressurize the fuel system with the electric fuel pump. Once the system was pressurized, I have to crawl under the car and watch for leaks. The first time it leaked today, I was half way installing the exhaust when I noticed a drip. On my second time, I gave the system a good twenty minutes of sitting with pressure to make sure there were no leaks. Unfortunately another fitting started leaking at the fuel filter! After 2 1/2 tries, I think I stopped all the leaks. Only time will tell if things are finally fuel tight!

Last week I was showing you how I found a carbon brush to replace my worn out one.

This week I installed it. This also gives you an idea of where and how it’s mounted. The shot is looking up under the dash at the steering column. The carbon brush rides on the brass collar which allows the circuit to continue up the steering column to the horn switch.

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