Advice on if I have the right part or not

[Classy Comanche]

Every since a bought my Manche I have had a decently strong smell of gasoline. Even people around me have pointed it out. I thought it was the ol' 4.0 firing on all cylinders working fine using that gas up. But I come to find out one day after work I had gas leaking. Now I'm not sure if it's my gas tank or fuel line. The only thing I have managed to see is I have gas dripping from somewhere onto my drive shaft then said gas runs down the length of the driveshaft and drips onto the ground puddling up thus giving the strong smell. If it's the tank I know exactly where to get one. Now I suspect my fuel line has dry rotted and it's leaking which I'll have looked at super soon. Which comes to my question. Do I have the right fuel line if I need one? I know this place has parts that no other place has even heard of since the 2000's. I didn't know if someone could maybe confirm or point me in a direction where I possibly could get the right line if this is the wrong one I posted below. Thank you guys so much for helping. And apologies for all the questions. I want to get the right part and do it right the first time and keep this old girl on the road as long as possible!

[jdog]

That is to fix it at the fuel rail,  all the lines underneath are just rubber fuel lines and metal, any parts store should have the rubber lines

[Classy Comanche]

So where would I find a fuel line if I need one? Because Advance Auto does have several sizes. But I'm not sure on which size it'd be

[jdog]

You'll have to pull the lines to see the size and length. While you're there change out the filter

[Classy Comanche]

Can do sir thank you so much! I'll pull the line and check it to see

[Pete M]

take note that the filter has an arrow indicating direction of flow.  

 

and you never need to apologize for asking questions.  its' what we're all here for.  

[OldManComanche]

You need to see where the leak is and stop guessing!

Let the leaking gas evaporate and dry up. Cycle the ignition key to activate the fuel pump, you should be able to hear it buzz. Crawl underneath and look for the wet spot. 

BE CAREFUL NOT TO START A FIRE!!

Good Luck

[gogmorgo]

If it’s running down the driveshaft my guess is it’s spraying out of the lines near the sending unit. If you can see it dripping, follow it until you find where it’s coming from. I don’t remember off the top of my head if the return line is the same size as the pressure line, but what you can do for the pressure line is to go get a fuel filter from the parts store and get hose that fits the filter. Make sure you’re getting fuel injection hose, should be good for at least 100psi. This should be a given, but there are gasoline-rated hoses for emissions stuff or carburetors that aren’t up to the task and are easy to grab by mistake. Also if you’re replacing the hose clamps it’s good to get proper fuel injection hose clamps, instead of the cheap standard worm-style clamps. They’re less likely to cut into your fuel line, and make for more even and more reliable clamping.

 

But yeah, no sense fixing things that you don’t know are broke. Figure out where it’s leaking from first. Remember too that leaks run downhill and get pushed backwards by air while you’re driving, so usually you’re looking up and forwards from where you see evidence of the leak.

[OldManComanche]

YEP!!

Do it RIGHT and you will only need to do it ONCE!

[Pete M]

I wouldn't mind replacing all the 30 year old rubber bits anyways.   but yeah, if it's got a crack in the metal tube, the new hose won't fix that.   

 

things that should be replaced as preventative maintenance on a 30 year old truck:  anything made of rubber. (brake lines, fuel lines, coolant hoses)

[Classy Comanche]

Thank yall! I crawled up underneath and I can't for sure tell. But I did manage to snag two shots. Admittedly I'm a newer Comanche owner and I'm doing all I can to care for it and find what I need. It seems this hose here is soaked. Like earlier I cranked my truck up. Moved it 5ft then shut it off. It started leaking a fee minutes later. I got in my car ran a errand for about 20 minutes then it was dry. Maybe pointers on what I'm looking at here? The bottom brown what looks like a drum at the bottom of the pictures is my drive shaft. Could it be my inflow or outflow hoses? If that's a thing?

[Classy Comanche]

Okay so update. I turned the key and crawled up underneath it. It was spraying gas like a mad man onto another hose. But it did stop. I'm not sure which hose that'd be if it's spraying. Pressure maybe? And I did call advance auto and orileys auto. And oriley has 3/8th and 5/16ths hoses. And also. Is this a fix that I should be worried about in terms of difficulty or price? I'm not driving it until I have it fixed from here on out. Also. The spraying quit and turned to dribbles after about 5 minutes. I did turn it off then turn it back on to see if it would spray. And it didn't. Would the issue be the pressure hose?

[Pete M]

I would replace all of the rubber hoses.    including the one inside the tank.  you must use hose rated for fuels.

[Classy Comanche]

Can do thank you sir. I'll have to figure out what the size of the hoses are. If anyone happens to know. I'll get them. Yall are a huge help with me being a newer Comanche owner

[Pete M]

just measure the diameter of the metal tube.   the hoses are very standardized (1/4, 3/8, etc) so it's likely obvious which it is.  don't assume that the pressure is the same as the return though. measure each hose's tube.  and take note of all the other lengths of rubber hose along the entire path so you can do them all at once.  I'd probably plan on repalcing all the clamps too.  oh, and Lowes is the best place to find stainless steel hose clamps.  waaaaay cheaper than the auto store.   

[OldManComanche]

Have you tried to tighten the clamp on the leaking hose? Just to see if it is loose and will it stop leaking if tightened. Measure the diameter of the metal pipe the hose is clamped to ( 5/16 or 3/8??). That will get you hose size. Do what Pete M says, change em all.

[Classy Comanche]

Oh awsome! Okay yes I'll do some checking around and measuring. I'll have all the hoses changed out at once. After all their 33 years old. Thanks guys you all helped a ton!

[gogmorgo]

Looks like very likely just a loose clamp, or the clamp cut into the hose. Those look an awful lot like the worm clamps you don’t really want to use, but it’s hard to tell. 
Pressure hose is the one coming out of the tank, going through the filter. The other one is the return. If you’re pulling all the hoses to compare to stuff at the parts store, make sure you’ve got a good system to remind you where they go. Usually I measure out how much hose I’ll need, then go out and buy a few feet more than that because I always measure wrong and it’s better to have extra than not enough, and then replace each length one at a time. Also worth noting, hoses are measured by the i.d., or inner diameter.

Changing hoses and that fuel filter are very basic level things, shouldn’t be too difficult even for a beginner. Just don’t stress out the metal lines too much, they’re pretty thin. If the hoses don’t easily come off, you can try poking a pick under the rubber to try loosening them, although if I was replacing the hose anyhow, I’d just cut it off. 

My personal opinion on the short piece of hose in the tank is it’s better to leave it alone rather than going to the trouble of pulling the sending unit out to change a piece of hose that’s still doing it’s job. It’s not that pulling the sending unit out is particularly difficult, it’s just it can be annoying to line up the seal properly, especially if you don’t have a ton of experience, and if you get it wrong you run the risk of creating a worse leak than the one you already have and you won’t find out about it until the next time you fill your tank past the level of the sending unit. Yeah it’s nice to know it’s replaced and not going to strand you somewhere, but cracking apart a good seal “just because” is something I try to avoid doing. Most of the failures of that hose usually happen not long after the fuel pump was changed, anyhow. But if you do end up changing the hose in the tank, remember to get submersible fuel line for that section. Because of cost, regular fuel line is only fuel-safe on the inside, and the outer layers won’t survive very long in regular contact with gas. If you do go to replace it, you’ll learn that submersible fuel line is significantly more expensive than the regular variety. 

[Classy Comanche]

Can do. I'll have the clamp checked firstly. I didn't think about it being lose. It could be lose or cut into bu the clamp. I certainly don't have the tools at the moment. But I have a mechanic that works on old school cars/trucks like this and he's happy to do it if I bring the parts after further thorough inspection. I'll have the clamp checked firstly. Thank you so much!