So the other day I went out to start the 7, dead battery. No biggie, it was old. Bought a new battery popped it in cranks over and over no start. Give it a few pumps a bit of starter fluid. Cranks over. Then nothing. no starter clicking. Nothing but a smell of fuel and a splash sound. I look under the car and gas is dumping from where the fuel filter is. I assumed maybe a hose popped off the filter or even maybe broke somehow, but today when I looked under the car the hoses/hose clamps seem to be fine same for the filter. Are there any known suspect/usual areas to start looking?. Its 100+ degrees here so any ideas to save me time on figuring this out is a huge help.

Thinking the lack of attempt to start may just be my starter going out at the best timing but the fuel thing is my more major concern.

 

Did you remove the fuel pump cover and inspect the hoses and clamps? A cut/broken hose may not show itself until fuel is flowing. If you don't know the last time the fuel hoses have been replaced, make the assumption that they have never been replaced. 30-40 year old hoses are prone to cracking. This also includes those on top of the gas tank that cannot be replaced without lowering the tank.

I'm going through this process right now. The fuel line inner dimensions (ID) are 6mm and 8mm.

 

A common rust point is the metal hard line that feeds fuel to the filter from the tank. The fuel ine is bolted to the body above the rear axle. A rubber fuel hose connects this line to the filter. The metal line is susceptible to rusting and causing a fuel leak.