fyne82

Hello All,
I've been having some fuel pressure issues with my '82. After looking into it and tearing things apart I believe I have found the problem (see picture) The fuel line and the entire assembly are only around a year old.
My question is can I replace the ruptured rubber fuel line with standard 3/8 rubber line or is it a special type? The piece that ruptured looks thinner then 3/8 rubber fuel line that is currently on the car or even laying on the bench in the garage.

71VetteLover

Yes, use ordinary fuel hose. I noticed yours appears to be misaligned a little bit which may have contributed to the rupture so see if you can tweak it straight.

fyne82

Thank you for the prompt reply. I was hoping it'd be ok to use standard line. I thought I'd ask because the piece that broke had a real thin wall. (Hence the reason it broke) As far as misaligned maybe I did that pulling it out of the car. They are a pain to get out sometimes. I'll try to be more aware when I stick it back in the tank.

Thank you again

TimAT

1982? Crossfire Injection? That runs about 35-40PSI. I'd use fuel injection rated hose for that one.

fyne82

Tim I'm not so sure of those psi you noted. The stock pump which I'm running I believe is somewhere 13-15 psi. I think the pressure regulator in the stock throttle body is set at 15psi.

terry82

stock pump is 11 to 14 psi. that's why so many change to the 85to 87 pump.

carriljc

You need FUEL SUBMERSIBLE fuel line. Not all fuel line is submersible in fuel so be aware. Shop carefully.

TimAT

Sorry, I'm thinking of later systems that run more pressure,- Regardless, plain old fuel line would not be good. SAE30 specs at least. Hose that is marked for Fuel injection use.

carriljc

Looks like 3/8" hose. Submersible is Gates 27097 if so. I got mine at the local auto parts store so I did not have buy a whole foot.

Check it out below.

https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/g.../27097/4330538

71VetteLover

No, only 11 psi for the twin throttle body CrossFire Injection. It was the 1985 and later Tuned Port that needed the 43 to 45 psi because it had 8 individual injectors.

fyne82

I seen the Gates 27097 online and that's what provoked the question.

Buccaneer

OK, fuel pumps are not rated in PSI, they are normally rated in GPH/LPH or in other words "X" amount of flow per hour at a "X" amount of fuel pressure. The GPH/LPH is regulated at the TBs to give a PSI reading. A normal stock CFI motor needs 13psi to run well with any pump, unfortunately a stock 82 pump doesn't always cut the mustard when you raise the fuel pressure/PSI to what it needs. The stock pump is rated somewhere around 30/40 GPH at 9-13 PSI.

Anyway, install a FUEL rated hose that will be marked on the hose on the pump and you'll be fine. Do not use just a regular rubber 3/8" hose, it will deteriorate and do what yours did. Set your fuel pressure on your 82 to 13PSI and it will run great and pull all the way to redline.

Hope this helps.

fyne82

Yes this does help and thank you. I went to the local parts store and got the submersible hose (ouch a little pricey) if I have the chance I'll put it all together next weekend

carriljc

If you're really curious you can go read about some selected pump for pump characteristics.
You can try rock auto, and for example "delphi FE0115", which is one of the available pumps for an 82 corvette. It will show system pressure characteristics, flowrates, pump pressure, etc. No pump curves as far as I can locate, but for any given pump, there can be found a lot of technical information .... I guess if any one was really curious, they could ask the manufacturer. Just FYI in case you want to look.

Lakeside49

Ok, back to your original question, I nearly had the same thing happen, though not even after a year. do yourself a big favor and go to your auto parts store and specifically buy a fuel immersion rated section of that tube. Yours ruptured because the fuel and any related fuel company additives started to dissolve the hose that came with the pump - many of the Chinese suppliers don’t understand this and let the original spec slip when nobody is watching.

fyne82

Yep, I already went to the local parts store and picked some up.

Buccaneer

Great! You should be fine now. Even if it was a few dollars a foot, it's well worth it in the long run. I'll look for the 82 FPA as well for you.

Lakeside49

I agree with our C3 forum bretheren"Bucaneer", except that you will benefit both in the SHORT and the "long" run. Good job being proactive - you will be good to go. Hopefully, the last time you'll have to think about the heart of the fuel system assuming you bought a quality pump. Enjoy your beautiful ride! Be wavin'

Dave

fyne82

Thanks for checking on those FPAs I'll look in on the forum from time to time to see what you came up with.

71VetteLover

I clearly remember back in the 1950's thru 1970's when MADE IN JAPAN meant junk but now days everything made in Japan is top notch. China is suffering from the same growing pains and soon they'll be producing top quality parts too. Just be patient.