As far as I knew, all the engine bay fuel lines on my 911 were original equipment. With the danger of 30+ year-old rubber lines leaking and causing an engine fire, I thought it prudent to upgrade. One of our forum contributors, Paul Mason, offers a kit consisting of all necessary fuel lines, made of aircraft quality components. Commonly known as Aeroquip lines (brand name), these consist of a Teflon inner tube surrounded by a stainless-steel braided jacket. Over this, Paul fits a black shrink tube for additional protection. The ends are all black-anodized AN-6 threaded fittings with spherical seating surfaces.
Four adaptors are included in the kit, necessary to adapt Metric to English threads where necessary. The complete kit along with written instructions, appears as follows:
The cost was $400 and well-worth the price, especially when comparing to the OEM cost of replacement lines from Porsche which still utilize the low-tech rubber line material.
Removal and installation of fuel lines is not a project for the faint-hearted the combination of tight quarters, working blind or in a mirror, and the posture one assumes while doing this job (kneeling and bent over the engine) makes for a time-consuming and somewhat unpleasant ordeal. I totaled close to 30 hours for the job, but 2 hours were spent rebuilding, cleaning, and lubricating the rear blower motor while it was removed. Had the engine been out of the car, this job would have only taken probably 3 4 hours at most. Doing it again, Im sure I could knock off 10 hours as one learns tricks that speed up the process.
The most time-intensive part was removing the metal, 90 degree-bend fuel line that runs over the top of the engine. I found that using a hand-held grinder with cut-off wheel (Dremel Moto-Tool) and cutting off the T fitting, allowed for easy extraction of this tube. The grinder again proved its worth in removing the OEM metal crimp that holds the rubber tube to the metal return line. The location of the fuel regulator and damper make for use of a mirror mandatory when positioning wrenches on fuel fittings and finding the fasteners that secure the mounting brackets.
Reassembly with the new parts went much faster and was more enjoyable. Happy to report that I didnt forget to tighten any fittings, thus no leaks on the initial test. A new fuel filter was also installed at this time, as recommended in the instructions.
Now that the bruises and cuts on my arms and hands have healed and muscle soreness has subsided, Im happy that this upgrade has been completed. The only downside is that you cant see the majority of these beautiful parts only line really visible is the outlet from the fuel filter:
There is a lot of value in this very nicely prepared kit and I highly recommend it for the peace of mind that it offers in preventing engine fires. Paul may be contacted at
mason_paul@yahoo.com .