PI fuel hose

[AlanChatterton]

Do you need a set of PI high and low pressure hoses?

I have a full set hanging on the garage wall. Front to back, including the metal bit for a PI Saloon.

Any use to you?

[Jason]

I get my stuff from Pirtek, usually over engineered for what we're using it for. The idea of the stainless braided hoses being "bad" is I think that they retain heat which is not good. However, I can't really see that this is going to be a massive issue, the fuel is pressurised and flowing through so it's going to be harder to boil. The injectors trigger at about 60PSI, the only issue you're likely to get is if you manage to get the lines so hot as to vapourise the fuel and cause a vapour lock in the injector if tha's actually possible but I can't see it happening. At the end of the day you have to try hard to breach a new plastic fuel line and it would be really difficult to breach an armoured one - whereas some 30+ year old plastic ones can be brittle. When I come to replace mine I will look at the braided ones but unless I can do them myself really easily I'll be going for the standard plastic - you can do those yourself no trouble.

[JohnD]

Isn't it just a bling thing?
The standard ones are 'braided' or armoure with metal spirals, on the inside, not the outside.
A braided line has a relatively soft plastic liner, that cananot burst thanks to the metal on the outside.    Same difference, surely?

The colour could possibly have an effect - the braided is silvery and so should absorb heat less than the usual black lines.  But this is probably theoretical.

John 

[Jason]

The lines on one of my sets of PI aren't metal reinforced and have fractured. The ones on the car now look more "substantial" but still don't look like they have internal metal reinforcing. It could be a bling thing but then you can get the plastic hose in black, red, transparent, I think I've seen blue too although that could be a colour coding for suitability?
I admit I like the idea of stainless steel braided lines - nearly did the pump to metering unit in it (as I had some) but the fittings were stupid prices - I went with black Aeroquipe 1000 psi burst pressure reinforced hose - excellent stuff - I didn't want hard lines, the hose is so much easier to fit with all the twists and turns