Jamie
Oct 6 2017, 06:44 PM
...but not any kind of mechanic, and his solution for several vapor lock events was to wrap the fuel lines with aluminum foil. I don't know how he came to this conclusion, but when I bought the 1973 (Dad's Mistress!) from him in 2002 I found this fix he had made. I don't remember the exact details, but he drove Mistress to Wyoming one summer, and had to replace the fuel pump at a VW dealership along the way. He wrapped the fuel lines with foil from chewing gum wrappers some time after that, and I don't know how he was able to get under the car, maybe with the jack to lift as high as it would go? I moved the fuel pump to the front several years ago, and am now replacing the original plastic tunnel lines with stainless steel. At least I now have the advantage of a lift and won't have to crawl around under the car for access.
76-914
Oct 6 2017, 06:55 PM
Wooden clothes pins work also. Get ready for the barrage of opinions on plastic fuel lines.
danschy
Oct 6 2017, 06:55 PM
Wow - that brings back some memories. I bought a brand new 914 in 1974, and a week later took it from Chicago down to Florida with a friend. On the way back we hit heavy traffic in Atlanta and after we stopped for gas could not get it started. I had no idea what was going on, but my buddy who was driving figured he had done something wrong and was panicking. It started about half an hour later and we drove the rest of the way home without event. Later I learned it was vapor lock and wrapped fiberglass and aluminum foil around all the gas lines. It seemed fairly effective until the the foil wore away. Never did get the fuel pump moved. Sold the car in 1989 - it is sorely missed.