Discussion Forum - Northstar Chevelle Club

I had to replace all the fuel lines on my 96 Olds and used hot water heat gun and muscle to get them on. Check if some shop rents a tool for this and if they do GET IT!!!!!!!!! ARGH that is one job you always wind up in the most cramped space trying to do.

Reason I'm doing this is the factory lines I pulled from Buford (to re-use on Blackie) were dangerously brittle. This was downright scary - from the fuel rail connector down to about the "A" Pillar area, the slightest flexing of the line and it would shatter!!  From that point rearward the lines were still flexible. I decided to make new lines, and eliminate the possibility of a 50psi gasoline power-washer under the hood!


Here's the trick:

- Find a set of good fitting leather gloves.
- Buy your wife a new electric skillet (needed a new one anyway, the coating was flaking off).
- Fill the skillet with water to a depth equivalent to the length of the tube area on the fitting.
- Crank the skillet up to 400 deg.
- Wait... and wait (watched pot never boils)

You'll never get the water to a rolling boil, but it will get to a good bubbling.

(metal fitting only) - Stand the tube end of the fitting in the water.
- Hold the tubing vertically in the water, heating only the length that will push on the fitting - you want to keep the rest of the tube rigid.
- After two minutes of boiling, pull them out, get the end started, and PUSH!!
- **DO NOT TWIST THE FITTING!!** (I guarantee you it will cause the tubing to collapse, right at the tip of the fitting or where the tubing wasn't heated).
- If you don't get it all the way on in one go, you'll have to re-heat the whole rig for another two minutes. PUSH AGAIN.

You are going to be amazed at how HARD you have push, and how TIGHTLY you need to grip the tubing!!

I wasted about a foot of tubing through trial and error to get to the above method - it works.