"Larry Alofs" <lalofs@gmail.com> writes:

> The problem with a permanent line going straight across between the
> two high points is that the line needs to go above the shift linkage
> rod.  Hence VW's "clever" approach where you are supposed to get the
> tank up there nearly in position and then put the line across and
> pop the fittings into the grommets.  This calls for a rather strong
> but also rather skinny arm and hand.

Or install the shift linkage rod after the tank is already in?  Or use
flare fittings so a metal line could be attached to metal fittings?

Sorry I think they could have come up with something better.  This
just seems like a half-hearted attempt to solve a pretty simple
problem, using cheap materials, with potentially catastrophic results
10 years later.

>   The last time I had my tank down, I switched to a crossover tube
> that is FI grade rubber hose long enough to go down and around the
> shift linkage etc. so that I could connect it all before raising the
> tank.  The only complication was positioning it so that the parking
> brake cable would not rub against it.  Seems to work fine; the tank
> fills normally.

If the tube has a low point in the middle where it passes under the
shift linkage, won't that act like a trap for liquid fuel, negating
the cross-venting function that the tube is supposed to provide?

Allan