Carb'd 308 fuel leak - probably dumb question

Definately trailer it home!

Don't drive it until you find that leak. In fact, I'd try to find that leak before I even started the car.

If the fuel leak is between the pump and the carbs you should be able to find it with just the ignition turned on and the fuel pump working. But be very careful of sparks. And use a good protected flourescent lamp, not an incandecent drop-lamp for your search.

Special tool to fix fuel leaking from a carb? Got me on that one. Maybe someone else has a clue. I'm getting ready to rebuild my carbs and have no clue what tool that could be other than a micrometer. But I doubt that could be used to fix a fuel leak.

 

What kind of special tool, a screwdriver? The carbs are not any harder to work on than a lawnmower, just more complex. Fuel leaks are either leaky hoses and or fittings, a sunk float, a poor needle and seat, or a leaky lead plug. All of those problems are easily corrected with simple hand tools such as a screwdriver, some combination wrenches, a knife, a hammer and a punch. Sounds like someone is stalling or dont know what they are doing. You need to ask more questions. At any rate do not start it or drive it until you have the problem solved, or another 308 will bite the dust when it goes up in flames.

 

Aaron,
here a picture of the Fuel System, maybe it will help you but please dont drive the car.Rob
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....maybe they meant a leak from one of the lead plugs in the carb, which requires a tool to be re-seated???

 

Listen, do not mess around with this. More 308s bite the bust from fire than any other reason. The fuel lines are all old and cracked in these cars. Pull the airbox, replace EVERY single fuel line in the car, with new clamps as well. You can get the fuel line at any Napa. Just use normal black rubber fuel-rated line. (Avoid that cloth-covered OEM stuff like the plague) and then run the fuel pump and make sure there are no leaks. This won't cost you more than about $25 and won't take more than an afternoon. It would NOT be a stuck needle valve. It that is the case, it would be dripping fuel down the intake manifold, not on the ground. (In that case, the issue would possibly be a hydrolock, which is very very bad too). Also replace the big hose on the fuel filler neck. That one is a pain to replace, but it is well-known for leaking and starting fires.

Seriously....do not take this lightly.

Birdman

 

What he said. Get a trailer, and check all the hoses before you fire it up. See the shots below from just one Italian Recycling shop for motivation.

Speaking of checks, any idea when the timing belts and tensioners were last replaced?
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Sadly, those cars are just the tip of the iceberg. I must have seen well over 100 like those the last 10 years between eBay, Hemmings, etc. Listen to everyone who tells you to replace the filler neck hose, if its original, it will be like gause. Several cars have burned just from filling them with fuel. Also look over the vent and crossover hoses, and all of the emission hoses from the right fuel tank and charcoal canister. Fuel moves back and forth from tank to tank as you take corners, and either tank can become very full and push out fuel into the vent pipes. Not only fuel, but vapor! Thats the last thing you want lingering around back there. We need to make up some save the Ferrari's bumper stickers.

 

What is the issue with the braided fuel line?
Why is it even braided? What's the purpose?

Is it acceptable to replace with new braided fuel line to maintain that sweet OEM look?
Is it even manufactured anymore?

I'm working on servicing the fuel lines now as I found the hose under the air box from carb1 to carb4 was leaking. Replaced it with some fuel-injection hose from NAPA. Problem solved (for now) and looking to refresh the entire system.

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The downside with having the braided reinforcement on the outside is that is doesn't let you see the condition of the rubber hose on the inside (like if it has cracks and is leaking ).

All hoses have some form of reinforcement in their construction. The NAPA hose you used has this reinforcement in the inner layers (so you can't see it except at the cut ends). For a low-pressure carb application, a fuel injection spec hose is a bit over-kill, but it's fine to use (I prefer to use the more ethanol-resistant R14 vs R9)

Sure, the stock stuff is fine to use (if updated to at least R9 spec) with the downside mentioned before. It is getting harder to find.

I, personally, wouldn't object to a carb model using modern R14 (or R9) hose, but some are more anal about the "stock" appearance.

 

I feel the same way a Porsche specialist was kind enough to hand me some outer braid style, but there was not a marking on the material for a rating.

I went to the closest "Whatever" and bought some fresh rubber line you could read the ratings on it.

 

Thanks for the knowledge gentlemen. Agree the injection spec is overkill, but it's what they had in the correct diameter.

I prefer the look of the OEM braided hose for period correctness, but at the end of the day, I really just need to prevent this thing from turning into a Ferrbari-B-Q.
If I can find rated braided, I'll do that. If not, R14 all the way around.

 

Try this website: https://www.belmetric.com/braided-metric-hose-oem-c-14_138/rh75-braided-hose-75mm-p-8316.html

Also check ebay, if they have the hose ratings.

The fuel hose clamps I used for the carbs are ABA 21011. You can find them on Amazon and Ebay. Usually 10 to a pack.
They work great, since they were meant for fuel injection hoses.

 

Sweet! Thanks Richard!

 

You are welcome, enjoy!

 

Just from experience, even a hose which looks good may be leaking right through. You don't see it very well since the hose is probably hard with cracks on the inside.

 

Braided helps with stiffness and pressure, but my personal opinion is 308 fuel lines aren't under such extreme pressure to begin with... not like a brake line, for example.

I've still got a few braided oil line hoses on mine, but they'll be replaced with standard when the time comes. Mine is far past Concours already.

 

I found myself sitting over a puddle of fuel a couple of weeks back. The car had braided hose about 6 yrs old. I removed the air box and switched the pumps on - the sources were obvious - multiple leaks where none existed a couple of months ago. The braiding thoroughly hides the fault and will not be used again.