Leaking Gasoline from Fuel Filter Hose?

Tiny
TABONIFACIO
  • MEMBER
  • 1995 JEEP CHEROKEE
  • 24,100 MILES
Hi,

I have a 1995 Jeep Cherokee, SE, 2WD, 5-SPD Manual, 2D. I just had it shipped from my hometown so I would have a vehicle, but when I received it the battery was dead. I jumpstarted it, and when I did it is leaking fuel from one of the hoses that connects to the fuel filter. It looks like a very minor fix, but it looks like something huge, the puddle on the ground is outrageous. But I know for a fact it's the hose. On the other hand, I also am buying a battery. What kind of battery should I buy for it? Optima? Energizer? Super Start? What kind? Please give me the details because I haven't been back with this vehicle in over two years. Any advice on how to replace the hose, and what battery to buy would be greatly appreciated.
Monday, April 2nd, 2012 AT 8:20 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,871 POSTS
First of all, if you have rubber hoses that are clamped to the filter, any Chrysler mechanic is going to have extra ones in their tool box and they'll likely give them to you just to use them up. If you have to buy them from an auto parts store, you must use "fuel injection" hose to withstand the pressure. I just bought four feet for my Grand Caravan at O'Reilly's for 99 cents per foot.

Also look at the hose clamps. Between my two Grand Caravans I've had massive fuel leaks five times over the years from those hose clamps rusting away. Be sure to use fuel injection hose clamps. They're a metal band with a bolt and nut. The common aircraft-style clamps will cut into the rubber hose and split it over time.

If you have quick-connect fittings on the filter, the dealer has a repair kit for them. It includes two curved fittings and two straight fittings. You use the two you need. It also has all the pieces of hose and the clamps.

As for the battery, it isn't necessarily bad just because it was sitting a few years, but it will be totally discharged. Put it on a charger at the lowest rate possible for a few hours. It will take a good 15 - 20 minutes just for the acid to become conductive before it will start to take a charge. If you do have to get a new one, I always head to a local battery shop and ask for a "reconditioned" battery. They are brand new but typically have been on the shelf for more than a year. They charge me 25 bucks. I've gotten five or six already for my vans and construction equipment and have never had a problem. I also have gotten a few from Carquest and have had very good luck with them. You might also consider a used battery from a salvage yard. Go to a larger yard that buys insurance wrecks. They will have fairly new batteries. Around here they get $19.95 for them.
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Monday, April 2nd, 2012 AT 8:46 PM

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