Matt's Old Cars.com

Fiddling with Rambler's since 1995

Rambler American Restoration

Back to American Restoration Index

New Fuel And Vacuum Lines

When I first got my car, the under hood fuel and vacuum lines were either non-existent or messed up due to the wrong fuel pump and carburetor being installed. Since I didn't have a point of reference, I ended up winging it and the results pretty much showed it.

As you can tell from the above picture, the result wasn't exactly factory looking. The vacuum line to the distributor (which you can't see very well) was bent all over the place (it was that way when I got it). The fuel line that was on the car didn't come close to fitting once I installed the right fuel pump so I made up a line that basically fit and was later modified when I picked up the correct carburetor a few years ago. The line from the manifold to the vacuum booster side of the fuel pump was completely gone so I ended up routing one around the front of the motor to try and hide it.

Basically, I was never really happy with the way the lines looked but until the end of September, I was never really motivated to redo them. What changed my mind was a combination of seeing Jerry and Sue Ann Seiber's 822 mile American wagon at a show at the end of September and a very rough idle that I wanted to fix. Here's what I ended up with:

I'm missing a few clips that are needed to hold the lines in place and they're not bent exactly right in a few spots (like the vacuum line for the wipers -- there should be more of a 45 degree angle in front of the carburetor and I ended up with a curve). but these look (at least to me) much better.

Last Updated 11/20/04 11:15:25 PM