Fuel line damage almost a big boom!

[bradshawtech]

A big warning to all fuel injected truck guys.

I was checking the transfer case on my 91 K5 that my son drives and was smelling gasoline while under the truck. At first I couldn't see any obvious leaks, then as I was checking the lines along the frame I found that the flexible braided steel "protected" hoses that run from the frame rail up to the TBI unit have been rubbing on the transfer case support rod and had rubbed a hole in both of the fuel lines. the leak was dripping down onto the exhaust pipe.

I had the lines from my 87 K5 that I figured I could use so I took them off only to find that they also had rubbed holes through the braided steel protection.

Plan B, I took the flexible lines off my 93 K10 chassis to try them out. They are different but worked out perfectly as they are longer so I ran them a different way to avoid being rubbed through again.

I recommend everyone running fuel injection to check their lines to make sure there insn't any issues with the factory routing of the lines.

I think if both of my trucks had the same exact problem with a factory design that has a potentially devastating result then I thought it worthy of warning the brotherhood of a risk.

 

[Fordum]

My Ford has plastic lines. When it was new, I had the body removed, the frame cut and rewelded and a short wheelbase body put on.
When I picked it up, I was running on the front tank.
On the way to my farm, I switched to the rear tank to make sure it worked OK.
Got to my front gate, electric, and was waiting for it to open. Suddenly I noticed billowing clouds of white smoke.
Brand new truck, so I got ticked. Pulled into the yard, got out with it running thinking it was oil smoke.

It was gas vapor!!
Shut the truck off and it stopped. Let it all clear out, and hit the starter and quickly looked under.

When they welded the frame, a tiny piece of slag popped and melted a tiny hole in the back tank fuel line.
Bad enough, but it was shooting straight onto the catalytic converter.

I could understand the exhaust pipe, but the cat? That sucker is hot.
I still don't know why it didn't catch fire. I would have figured that it was above the ignition temperature of gas.

Sounds like we both caught it just in time.
But at least with me it was a one time thing caused by something that was done to the truck.

Yours sounds like a factory problem, and one that might affect lots of guys here.

 

[Big Ray]

thanks for the heads up

 

[Stomis]

My Ford has plastic lines. When it was new, I had the body removed, the frame cut and rewelded and a short wheelbase body put on.
When I picked it up, I was running on the front tank.
On the way to my farm, I switched to the rear tank to make sure it worked OK.
Got to my front gate, electric, and was waiting for it to open. Suddenly I noticed billowing clouds of white smoke.
Brand new truck, so I got ticked. Pulled into the yard, got out with it running thinking it was oil smoke.

It was gas vapor!!
Shut the truck off and it stopped. Let it all clear out, and hit the starter and quickly looked under.

When they welded the frame, a tiny piece of slag popped and melted a tiny hole in the back tank fuel line.
Bad enough, but it was shooting straight onto the catalytic converter.

I could understand the exhaust pipe, but the cat? That sucker is hot.
I still don't know why it didn't catch fire. I would have figured that it was above the ignition temperature of gas.

Sounds like we both caught it just in time.
But at least with me it was a one time thing caused by something that was done to the truck.

Yours sounds like a factory problem, and one that might affect lots of guys here.

This isnt the first time youve told that story and ever since the first time I bite my nails and take extra extra precautions welding near fuel lines.

Gasoline is an odd substance. The liquid is hard to light yet it turns to vapor super quick and the vapor is super flammable. Yet apparently the flash point of the liquid is quite high...

 

[bradshawtech]

My Ford has plastic lines. When it was new, I had the body removed, the frame cut and rewelded and a short wheelbase body put on.
When I picked it up, I was running on the front tank.
On the way to my farm, I switched to the rear tank to make sure it worked OK.
Got to my front gate, electric, and was waiting for it to open. Suddenly I noticed billowing clouds of white smoke.
Brand new truck, so I got ticked. Pulled into the yard, got out with it running thinking it was oil smoke.

It was gas vapor!!
Shut the truck off and it stopped. Let it all clear out, and hit the starter and quickly looked under.

When they welded the frame, a tiny piece of slag popped and melted a tiny hole in the back tank fuel line.
Bad enough, but it was shooting straight onto the catalytic converter.

I could understand the exhaust pipe, but the cat? That sucker is hot.
I still don't know why it didn't catch fire. I would have figured that it was above the ignition temperature of gas.

Sounds like we both caught it just in time.
But at least with me it was a one time thing caused by something that was done to the truck.

Yours sounds like a factory problem, and one that might affect lots of guys here.

Yours sounds like a factory problem, and one that might affect lots of guys here.
__________________



My point in starting the thread. Thanks for the replies.

Tom

 

[Fordum]

I knew I had told it before, and I try not to repeat, but his story brought the whole thing screaming back.

I was not all that worried until after it was over and I had fixed the line. Then I got to thinking about the fact that the whole truck was pretty much engulfed in the vapor, and I got the cold chills.

I think anybody who has his type setup, needs to not only check their trucks, but post back if they find trouble.
If its wide spread, then you all need to start addressing it before everybody has "blazing" in their screen name.

 

[Stomis]

I knew I had told it before, and I try not to repeat, but his story brought the whole thing screaming back.

No I think its a good lesson to repeat. I only pointed out that youve said it before because I frequently think about it.

 

[MNorby]

9 years ago a friend bought a truck and the next day after buying it we took it out wheeling. That braided fuel line started leaking and caught truck on fire. Since this was a crew cab I jumped in with him and left my truck behind which had a fire extinguisher. Patrick was literally shaking Mt. Dew cans then ripping them in half above the fire. That and with a shovel head with a broken handle we got the fir out in roughly 3 minutes (seemed like longer). We tried antifreeze but that didn't help really. The only thing really hurt was melted carpet on inside and burnt wire to t-case that told dash light it was in 4x4. Didn't take pics will it was pretty well under control.

 

[bradshawtech]

I am a 40 something year old dad and my son is driving this K5 that had the problem so I am glad to find it before he was on the road somewhere and trying to put out a fire.
Thanks for the pics to add reality to this problem.

 

[MNorby]

BTW, last time I rode in that crew cab (for sale now) he had 3 fire extinguishers. I carry 3 on my rig too, a small 1 pounder between the front seats, a 2.5 pounder mounted on rear tubing, and a 5 pounder in my storage box in ext cab section.

 

[Fordum]

Man, that picture of that engine looks so familiar. I was driving my Jeep in the swamps back about '74, and the air cleaner fell off.

It was a big remote mounted oil bath type, that bolted to the firewall.
The mounting bolts worked their way out, and it fell.
I heard it, opened the hood and put it in the back until I could get some bolts.

Headed back to the camp because I did not want to drive far with no air cleaner.
Went through some deep water, got a plug wire wet I guess, and it backfired.
Saw smoke coming out from under the hood.

Jumped out, threw the hood open, and the top of the engine was on fire.

When I got the fire out, the engine looked about like that one except it was mud, not dirt.

Somehow, I managed to not throw mud in the carb, but it was everywhere else.

And the spark plug wires were burnt up.
Since they were copper, the conductors were OK, but the insulation was toast.

I cut some dry sticks, and made stand-offs to keep the wires from arcing to the engine and managed to drive back to the camp.

After the second time I had to stop and adjust the sticks, I took the hood off and put it in the back so I could watch what was going on. Cut a long limb so I could "adjust" the plug wires as I drove.

Guess what, green wood conducts enough electricity to make that impractical........
I had used dry for the standoffs, but got lazy and just cut a green one to hold on to and move the wires from the seat.

Only used it once.......

 

[79bonanza]

speaking of trucks catching fire,

i have a buddy that drove a 96 f-250 with dual tanks and we were out mudding on night and we were both hittin some untested waters and he went threw and hit a big log that went up and smashed his gas tank and put a big kink slash crack in it and it was leaking. we didnt realize it was leaking until some how it caught fire under his truck but it wasent a real hot fire just like a flame under the truck but we couldnt get it to go out because we were on the side of the road driving back to town when we seen it on fire.

once we drove like 100 mph down all kinds of back roads gettin to our buddies shop we broke out the sawzall and cut the gas thank straps hooked a chain around the fuel lines goin to that tank and ripped the tank and about 6 feet of fuel line off the truck. ones the fire was out and we were all calmin down we looked in the bed of his truck and the bed linner was melted the hard top tonneau cover was sagging way down from the heat and the metal bed floor was all blue from the heat.

almost lost a nice truck lol just about 200 bucks in fuel lines and tank and pump lol

 

[Col_Sanders]

I had the same problem on my K5 with the fuel lines. The REALLY scary part is the same day I discovered that problem was when the + wire from my starter to my battery got pinched between my AIR pump and the frame and caused my battery to explode just a few feet away.

 

[496truck]

Man, that picture of that engine looks so familiar. I was driving my Jeep in the swamps back about '74, and the air cleaner fell off.

It was a big remote mounted oil bath type, that bolted to the firewall.
The mounting bolts worked their way out, and it fell.
I heard it, opened the hood and put it in the back until I could get some bolts.

Headed back to the camp because I did not want to drive far with no air cleaner.
Went through some deep water, got a plug wire wet I guess, and it backfired.
Saw smoke coming out from under the hood.

Jumped out, threw the hood open, and the top of the engine was on fire.

When I got the fire out, the engine looked about like that one except it was mud, not dirt.

Somehow, I managed to not throw mud in the carb, but it was everywhere else.

And the spark plug wires were burnt up.
Since they were copper, the conductors were OK, but the insulation was toast.

I cut some dry sticks, and made stand-offs to keep the wires from arcing to the engine and managed to drive back to the camp.

After the second time I had to stop and adjust the sticks, I took the hood off and put it in the back so I could watch what was going on. Cut a long limb so I could "adjust" the plug wires as I drove.

Guess what, green wood conducts enough electricity to make that impractical........
I had used dry for the standoffs, but got lazy and just cut a green one to hold on to and move the wires from the seat.

Only used it once.......

And to think, that stick and your arm was less resistance than the little spark plug and it's gap.

speaking of trucks catching fire,

i have a buddy that drove a 96 f-250 with dual tanks and we were out mudding on night and we were both hittin some untested waters and he went threw and hit a big log that went up and smashed his gas tank and put a big kink slash crack in it and it was leaking. we didnt realize it was leaking until some how it caught fire under his truck but it wasent a real hot fire just like a flame under the truck but we couldnt get it to go out because we were on the side of the road driving back to town when we seen it on fire.

once we drove like 100 mph down all kinds of back roads gettin to our buddies shop we broke out the sawzall and cut the gas thank straps hooked a chain around the fuel lines goin to that tank and ripped the tank and about 6 feet of fuel line off the truck. ones the fire was out and we were all calmin down we looked in the bed of his truck and the bed linner was melted the hard top tonneau cover was sagging way down from the heat and the metal bed floor was all blue from the heat.

almost lost a nice truck lol just about 200 bucks in fuel lines and tank and pump lol

No fire extinguisher at the shop?

 

[79bonanza]

yea when i say shop im mean more like a old barn with a few tarps to keep rain from getting in lol, and we were all still in high school so not a whole lot of fire precautions around lol

 

[cdoggwsu]

Yup, same thing here except it was just the feed line and it was rubbing on the corner of the cab by the tranny hump where the passenger's left foot would be. It had actually rubbed through the sheet metal and was slowly leaking into the padding under the vinyl mat.

I must have disturbed it when I pulled the pad and vinyl out cause the next time I went to start it up I noticed the strong gas smell...while the fuel pump was priming gas started bubbling and pouring into the cab.