Evening all!

My fuel lines were badly corroded and as such i was leaking fuel at the back next to the rear left wheel.
I ordered some replacement lines from honda... £140! and went to get cracking on it this evening, only to be stopped by the little plastic connectors that connect the flexible hose to the rigid hose. Can i get these off and use them again or do i need to order some replacement ones? Only fools rush in and all that

I'll be selling it soon by the way if anyone is interested

Ok, so I managed to do it all in the end. I've put together a guide:


Guide for Replacing Fuel Lines



Tools/Equipment

Ratchet Suitable for Sockets as Required
10mm Socket
10mm Deep Socket
12mm Socket
14mm Open Ended Spanner
19mm Open Ended Spanner
17mm Spanner
2 x Small Flat-Headed Screwdrivers
1 x Medium Flat-Headed Screwdriver

Safety

Ensure that the car is on a level surface, not in a confined area and away from sources of ignition.

Difficulty

This job isn't particularly hard, fortunately the 5th Gens seem to have a simple fuel path and do not pass through any bulk heads etc. The process for the 4th Gen may be similar but that needs to be confirmed.
If you have the confidence to do something like changing discs and pads then this won't faze you.

Time

This Job took me about 3 Hours, but then I didn't have a guide and I have some fittings that didn't want to come off!
I would say that it should take about 2 to 2.5 hours if you have all the tools to hand.

Parts

Below is a printout of the price list from Honda (Excluding VAT), all three of my lines needed changing (circled in red).



Step by Step Instructions:


1. Chock the driver's side wheels

2. Loosen the wheel nuts on the rear passenger wheel

3. Jack the car up on the passenger side using axle stand to keep it raised safely.

4. Remove the rear passenger wheel nuts and then the wheel.

5. Remove the plastic cover that protects the fuel pipes from the elements (cha... and that works well! ). It is held on by two 12mm (?) bolts and there is also a plastic clip holding the cover on to the fuel tank.

Plastic Cover



6. Spray WD-40/Penetrating Oil on to the handbrake bracket bolts and the nuts securing the fuel pipe guides (all the way to the front of the car).

Handbrake Bracket 1



Handbrake Bracket 2



Fuel Pipe Guide



Whilst the Penetrating oil is getting to business, move on to the compression fittings.

Compression Fitting



7. Using a combination of the flat headed screwdrivers, carefully tease the white plastic insert out of the outer black sleeve by about 3mm (not all the way as it will stretch and damage it).

8. Get a metal/inert plastic container to hand to catch any petrol that may still in the pipes, then wearing eye and hand protection, pull the flexible side of the fuel line towards the back of the car. This may require some force to pull it off since rust may have ingressed into the fitting.
Once separated, the white insert should be removed and put to one side for re-use later on.
It is possible to buy a replacement white insert (Contact Honda), but I managed to get mine out without damaging them so didn't need to.

Important notes:
- WEAR EYE AND HAND PROTECTION! Petrol may splash out when you remove the pipe!
- Ensure that the white plastic insert isn't locked in place when you are pulling the pipe off!
- Do not damage the black plastic sleeve as it is connected to the flexible fuel line which will be expensive to replace.

9. Once both compression fittings are removed from the fuel feed and return lines, use a pair of long-nosed pliers/Circlip pliers to remove the circilp from the vent line. Once removed simply pull off the flexible hose.

Vent Line Circlip



10. Brew time
- Rinse the teapot with boiling water from the kettle
- Insert relevant number of teabags (Minimum of 2)
- Overboil the kettle (Keep your finger on the switch for 10 secs)
- Pour water in to teapot, stir clockwise 4 times, then twice anti clockwise then replace lid.
- Leave for 5 minutes to stew whilst you have a Fox's Classic/Tunnocks Teacake.
- Stir anticlockwise twice, clockwise 4 times, anticlockwise twice and then clockwise 6 times.
- Leave 30 Seconds, then pour.
- Add a 1 second pour of milk, then two sugars (regardless of what was asked for)

Brew



- Lean against a wall and enjoy the perfect brew whilst looking at the mess you've made already.

11. Back to work...
Remove the Handbrake bracket bolts (12mm Socket) and all of the bolts fixing the fuel pipe guide/Stays to the car (10mm Socket).

Note:
There are five pipes in total, the three pipes furthest from you (working from the passenger side) are the fuel lines, you will notice that they are thicker than the other two lines that are secured in the stays.

From the passenger side:
Pipe 1 - ?
Pipe 2 - ?
Pipe 3 - Fuel Feed
Pipe 4 - Fuel Return
Pipe 5 - Fuel Vent

12. Spray the guides/stays with some WD-40 or Silicone Lube to make it easier to get them out.

13. Using the medium sized flat headed screwdriver, insert the blade carefully between furthest and the second furthest pipe approx 15mm from the guide/stay. Push the handle away from you whilst holding the guide/stay and the pipe pops out. Repeat for the next three pipes then on the final pipe, simply twist it off.
There are 6 guides/stays holding all of the pipes and a single stay holding just the vent pipe (simple clip) that need to be removed.

14. If you don't have cruise control, skip to 16.
On the passenger side next to the fire wall, undo the nut and the bolt holding the cruise control unit in place (10mm Deep Socket/Socket with Extension Bar).

Cruise Control Unit



15. Once the nut and bolt are removed, unplug the electrical connector and gently lift the unit out of the way, it is still connected to a cable so be careful!

Cruise Control Unit Removed



16. Undo and remove the banjo connection nut (17mm Socket/Spanner) from the top of the fuel filter, taking care not to lose the two brass washers either side of the connection.

Fuel Filter (From Above)



17. Loosen and remove the bolt on the clamp holding the fuel filter in place (10mm Socket).

18. To remove the fuel filter from the fuel feel pipe, use a 14mm spanner on the fuel pipe nut with a 19mm spanner on the fuel filter boss to oppose the force applied.

Fuel Filter (From Below)



19. With the filter removed, use a pair of pliers to open the hose clamp on the fuel return pipe, the flexible hose can then be removed.
To open the white plastic fitting, use a lot of swear words and a screw driver to separate the clip on the side furthest away from you. Once the fitting is open, pop the two pipes out.

Hose Clamp and Pain in the Arse Plastic Fitting



20. This just leaves the fuel vent pipe!
This is just held on by a small circlip as it is at the rear, From the drivers side, use some long-nosed pliers/Circlip pliers to remove.

Fuel Vent Pipe (Front)



21. With all the connections disconnected, the pipes can be removed. Go back to the rear of the car and manoeuvre the pipes around the handbrake cable so that they are able to rest on the floor.

Pipes on Floor



22. The Pipes should then be easily removed from the engine bay.

23. Feed the new pipes in to position and connect all the pipes to the engine and fuel filter, attaching all of the appropriate fittings.

24. Starting from the front, press all of the pipes in to the fuel guide/stays, reattaching them to the car one by one as you move backwards.

25. Manoeuvre the pipes around the handbrake cable so they are in position and then reattach the compression fittings to the fuel feed/return pipes and flexible hose to the fuel vent pipe.

26. With everything secured, Put the keys in the ignition and turn it to the second position, but don't start the car, this will prime the fuel pump.
Take a look at all of the compression fittings you have replaced for any leaks and then check the fuel filter.

27. If you don't have cruise control skip to 28.
Replace the cruise control unit, securing with the bolt and nut, and remembering to reattach the electrical connector.

28. Start the car and do some intermittent revving and then hold it at about 3000 rpm for 10 seconds. Check again for any leaks.

29. If no leaks are found, Re-fit the plastic cover over the pipes.

30. Mount the tyre back on to the rear hub and tighten the wheel nuts.

31. Remove the axle stands

32. Take some Swarfega in to the shower with you even though you wore latex gloves to stop you getting too dirty...

Swarfega



Hope this is of some help to anyone who needs to do the same!
Cheers,
Ian.

Wow Very good write up!

One note though, you might want to add a bag of Early Grey or Rooibos in with the other tea bags, makes the tea that much better

Mods: Put in the Tech section?

Haha

Sure, I'll check when I can, will be a while though as I've got exams Thursday, Tuesday, Friday and then Monday and then I'm home on the 21st, so won't be able to get under that car till then. If no-one does it before me I'll get it done then

Very nice write up indeed, this has to go in the tech section

Mods!!!!

Good job. I hope I don't need the 'how to' any time soon, but it's nice to know it's there

Ahh, taught him everything he knows!

awesome write-up

Gavz

add this to tech section? nice write up

Oh yer! I've got the same problem with mine! so now i know how to it and how much it will cost.