Stuck on Fuel Line and Oil Tank Installation near Portland, OR: 82 911SC

[mike621]

Hi Friends,

I'm stuck on tunnel lines and oil tank install. 1982 SC Targa. I'm near Portland, Oregon.

Late last year I struggled with no success to install my oil tank refurbished by Pacific Oil Cooler. I scratched the tank and destroyed the aftermarket gasket. Ordered a new OEM gasket and repainted the tank. Dreading picking that job up again so I went onto tunnel lines.

Engine/trans/axles are out. Pedals are out.

I'm in the middle of installing new tunnel fuel lines from Len, and my fuel line is stuck about 18 inches into the tunnel.

My car has been apart since May 2022, and I have been dreading this job/have had fuel lines in hand since late last year.

Finally attempted it today.

Started with the line closer to the right/passenger side of the car.

Going back to front.

Used the coupler supplied by Len, with a bit of masking tape on it.

The line will not go forward or back more than a couple inches, appears to be hard up against something.

I've exhausted my patience and am afraid I will ruin the new fuel lines in the process here. I think of myself as a pretty good mechanic, have a garage with ample space/creeper/tall jackstands, but I feel like I need the help of someone more experienced.

Willing to accept/compensate for advice/assistance/therapy on getting through this fuel line replacement and oil tank install. These jobs have been haunting me since last year.

Thanks in advance for any kind words.

Mike

[boyt911sc]

Mike,

Get yourself a cheap endoscope camera from Amazon to make this tedious job an easy one. You are frustrated because of the unseen obstacles inside tunnel preventing the installation of the fuel line/s. A visual inspection of the interior of the tunnel will give you a better understanding why you were having such a hard time threading the new fuel line. You can even take pictures and guide the new fuel line get through the tunnel from end to end.

Tony

[mike621]

Hi Tony,

This is a good suggestion. I have such a camera so I will try if I can work up the patience.

I cannot move the line front or back, and it is stuck in the tunnel.

If there is a good shop near Portland, I will consider taking the car there.

I need to get out of being stuck on these two projects.

Mike

[nickelplated5s]

For a shop you only have three choices around here. There is a fourth but they are not taking new customers. First and easiest suggestion is to get a reel of weed eater line. Run it from the back to the front. If it comes out clean the line is fine. If not you can put a PEX ring on to pull in the new line. Smaller OD than a hose clamp. Old lines pulled? That's a bigger problem. Try the weed eater line anyway. Cut more line than you need. You can rotate it for obstructions that way.

[GH85Carrera]

I replaced my tunnel fuel lines wit the engine in place. It is not fun. The "trick" is to have a buddy at the other end. I connected my old lines to the new lines with Len's handy little connector, and with a push me-pull you wiggle, twist and communicate, the lines went through in no time at all.

The real challenge was getting the connectors in the engine area apart, and back together. There is very little room, when the engine in in place.



I ended up using a crow foot line wrench and a long extension to get the torque needed to pop apart the connections and to get them back together as tight. And I really recommend using a quality Snap On line wrench to get a very snog fit to avoid rounding off the nuts.

I used a standard old Craftsman wrench for the photo just to show how hard it is to get to the lines.

[47silver]

do not know who provided it

[PeteKz]

Mike, I'm north of PDX in WA state. If you get desperate, send me a PM.

[mike621]

Thanks for the suggestions, friends.

I was able to twist and remove the line that I had only made about 18 inches in.

Unfortunately, the new tunnel line has been kinked/damaged as a result of my installation attempt.

I have emailed Len/boxstergt to order a replacement. Hopefully he will respond and I can buy another. I threaded up the second line and started the installation on the other side, but ran into a snag again. The tape I was using got gummy immediately, too, so I will try it with electrical tape next attempt.

Feeling pretty low about this and hoping that I can get a replacement tunnel line for the kinked one.

[HarryD]

If it was me, I would first run an electrical fish tape or fishing line through the tunnel and use it to pull the actual line.

[PeteKz]

Ditto HarryD. I've fished a lot of wires in old houses, and it's a lot easier to pull it than push it. Same here. Get a stiff wire (coat hanger works well) through and then pull it. Use your camera to see where it's going.

[porschedude996]

Maybe a stupid question. Are the factory lines steel? And Len’s replacements are poly?

[PeteKz]

On early cars they are steel. At least mine are--1973T

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by porschedude996

Maybe a stupid question. Are the factory lines steel? And Len’s replacements are poly?

Not on the later 911s. I don't know when Porsche changed to the plastic lines, but my 85 911 and I suspect all 3.2 Carreras came with plastic lines like Len sells.

His greatest "hack" or trick is the connector he provides with his lines. They allow you to connect the new line to the old line, and pull the new one through screwed to the old line. No tape or string needed, just screw the lines together.

It is a pain to do with the engine and transmission in place, but I did it. Supporting the transmission, and then removing the transmission cross member is required. And it took me a lot of cussing as well. And a crow foot, line wrench set is really handy. It was the only way I could get a wrench on the fitting to apply enough torque to break the old connection apart in the engine compartment.

[rokemester]

I feel your pain. I did this job on my 87 earlier this year. I could have done this job at least three times quicker with an able assistant. I’m stubborn and hate to bug people so I muddled through solo. I used Len’s kit and magic connector but I found the connector did tend to get caught up in the tunnel. There are MANY good suggestions on the forum particularly from Len and Glenn. I had success using coated steel cable taped to the new lines to pull through the tunnel.



Duct tape was strong enough to link them together. There can’t be any play!
Don’t be stubborn like me. Get a helper!

[porschedude996]

I just checked the long fuel lines on my 1983 911SC and they are plastic. What was the the reason to prompt replacement. Leaks, age of line, ???

Originally Posted by porschedude996

Maybe a stupid question. Are the factory lines steel? And Len’s replacements are poly?

[mike621]

I decided to replace mine for peace of mind based on experiences of folks dealing with brittle lines.


I exchanged some emails with Len and a new line for the one I boogered up is on the way. Thanks Len!

Next attempt, I'll be going at this with a helper and some more patience for how fiddly this job is.

[mike621]

Further, I am going to use some kapton tape over Len's coupler. This should smooth out the ridge that was getting hung up in the tunnel, without widening the hose significantly and impeding the fishing/pulling. We'll see how that goes.

[porschedude996]

I had the same feeling about peace of mind. I planned to replace all my rubber lines for that reason. I had a internal brain fight whether to replace the long lines. I needed this thread to convince me, well not really convince, more to add a response to myself with brain fight. Saying to self, “Are You Stupid?” “Change the lines dummy!”

Originally Posted by mike621

Further, I am going to use some kapton tape over Len's coupler. This should smooth out the ridge that was getting hung up in the tunnel, without widening the hose significantly and impeding the fishing/pulling. We'll see how that goes.

[mike621]

A big thank you to everyone who responded in this thread and offered advice.


A friend came to visit for Thanksgiving and wow, am I thankful. They were able to help me with both the tunnel fuel lines (we used a little dish soap to make them slide in easier) and the oil tank installation.

For the latter, I did not glue the tank gasket on, and we R&Id the tank a couple of times to get the alignment correct and used a fresh oil filter to ensure the gasket/filter clearance was appropriate.

[mike621]

Big thanks to Len for helping me out, too!