petrol leak solved

[RichC]

I put 1st lot of fuel in for 13yrs and the pungent smell of 4 star lingered for days .
.. traced it down to fuel line which was replaced during rebuild in 1990's . I don't know if the standard type of olive used on metal piping was commonly used then on the red plastic stuff , but you can see in the picture below that this had been overtightened , which is a very easy thing to do . The pipe on the left is really pinched...
The correct olive (non -compressible ) for plastic piping , is shown on the right.
it worked a treat , solved the problem & the smell has disappeared.
I've got 9 spares left in the pack if you need one.
RichC

[Frank Howard]

Rich,

Nice photo and a very informative post. I did not know there were two kinds of olives (actually 4 if you include green and black ).

Despite your solution, I would be wary about leaving the plastic fuel line in your car. It is my understanding that some modern fuels are not compatible with the plastic lines that Lotus installed decades ago and this sometimes leads to fuel leaks. That's why you hear so many stories about Lotuses suddenly catching fire. One of the first things I did when I purchased my Lotuses years ago was to convert all of the plastic to metal brake line. Think about it.

[RichC]

hmmm, by "modern fuels", what do you mean Frank?
I've read only a few of the items herein about lotus fuel lines as I'm a newbie , and I recall just 2 issues
1 contact with hot surface causing melting
2 leaks caused by poor unions (c.f. my own experience)

if there is also an issue with chemical degradation such as cracking or someother I'd be very interested in hearing more!

thanks for the praise Frank.. i'll do my best to keep things interesting
RichC

[denicholls2]

hmmm, by "modern fuels", what do you mean Frank?
I've read only a few of the items herein about lotus fuel lines as I'm a newbie , and I recall just 2 issues
1 contact with hot surface causing melting
2 leaks caused by poor unions (c.f. my own experience)
RichC

3 Not sure if the Elan is different than the Europa here, but the Europa TC has a plastic "T" connector to split the fuel line to the 2 carbs. To this part and its tendency to become fuel-soluble with age is attributed the attrition of many TC Europas.

Plastic cars do not offer an appropriate aroma for most meats or provide sufficiently even heat for proper backyard grilling. A modern fuel pathway from tank to carbs is cheap insurance and easily accomplished. I personally like the appearance of AN fittings, though they're on the pricey side.

[RichC]

here's a picture of the non compressible type of olive for nylon line

[RichC]

here's a picture of the non compressible type of olive for nylon line

[Fred Talmadge]

I think by modern he means alchohol. Here in the US gasoline often contains 10% ehtanol, sometimes more.

[gjz30075]

Rich, no pic. Unless it is like the olive on the right in your pic from 2009

[RichC]

correct . that's the pic . was on an old harddrive which crashed hence i resorted to this old posting