Mazdax605

iTrader: (5)

Hey guys,

I just ran into a problem that you guys may want to rectify now before you have a problem as well.As some of you know I bought a 1 owner 79 GS last October to replace my 83 LE.Well it had been sitting for a few years,and I went through the major stuff like fluids,filters,and such,and replaced the exhaust system with my racing beat unit from my 83.Well about 2 weeks after getting it on the road this spring I had a rubber line near the fuel pump split,and leak fuel while I was coming home from work.No big deal I thought,I probably should have replaced the lines as part of my preventative maintinence,but I didn't.Well about a week or so ago I had another one do the same thing,and before you jumop down my throat I know I should have done them all over when I had the problem the first time,but children,a pregnant wife,and lots of other responsibilitys take up most of my time.Well while talking to a friend he mentioned that maybe I am loosing lines due to the use of 10% ethanol in the gas in our area.I thought you know what he is right I bet that is why they are breaking down.It seems all the lines in my car are factory pieces,so you guys that have these older original motors you may want to check this out before you loose a line,and spill a few gallons of fuel on the ground.This get really expensive at over $3 a gallon,and I am guessing it could cause more problems if left unattended.I am going to get under the car this weekend,and replace them all with new rubber as long as my wife doesn't have the baby.Good luck,and check your lines.

inuissus_cendi

I also have 10% ethanol fuel in my area, but I saw no deterioration in my fuel lines. I replaced most of them recently but they were in fine condition for 24 year old rubber pieces. Maybe if I had run the stock lines longer they would have split, but they look fine.

Mazdax605

iTrader: (5)

The rubber fuel lines that failed on my car looked fine on the outside,but they failed anyway.It could have nothing to do with the ethanol,and everything to do with their age,but I find it funny that we have ethanol in the fuel now,and I am losing lines every couple of weeks.I am just going to change them all even if I don't have the fancy formed lines that are in there now the piece of mind of knowing they are all new is worth it to me.I wonder if it is the ethanol,what will it do to the steel lines?

Chris

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

Ethanol came out in the very early 70s, maybe even the late 60s. It was a substitute for leaded gas at the time. The same rumors were all over the place about the alcohol eating rubber and gaskets, particularly in the carbs. Rumors were usually unfounded. I frequently ran ethanol in my Road Runner, did an amazing job at cleaning up the spark plugs and extending thier life. If I started getting a miss, one tank would clean the plugs. Since I did a bit of street racing back then, I replaced the plugs evey 1500 miles.

Your fuel lines are 27 years old, they are rotting out, alcohol or not. The car was built in 79, it should be alcohol compatable. Replacing all of the soft fuel lines is a good preventative maintinance step. I prefer to spend the extra bucks and use the FI grade hose and solid band clamps for peace of mind. Buy good name brand hose and you should not have to worry about them for another 25 years.

Fwiw, the hose that Mazda used was a very good grade. I have doubts that today's hoses are of comparable quality.