Brown o-ring found on driveway after working on engine????

[geosnooker2000]

Can anyone tell me where this goes?
I was finishing up a head gasket job, so if you've ever done one, you know how much stuff you have to disassemble to do it, and found this on the ground right under where the engine compartment was during the repair work. Plus, as I was finishing up, I punctured my evaporator coil, so I've totally taken apart and reassembled my A/C system too. It is thicker than the green ones that go to the A/C and brown instead of green.

I don't know if this has anything to do with it, but I'm only hitting on 5 cylinders since putting it all back together.
Any help would be appreciated.
George

 

[gmanpaint]

Power steering line to the pump seal?

 

[Turdle]

looks like a fuel injector o ring. Did you separate the fuel rail from the lower intake?

 

[Turdle]

There is an o ring where the injector goes into the rail, and, one where the injector goes into the intake. Since it is missing and not spraying fuel, I bet it goes into the intake. You should be able to remove the fuel rail, and feel a loose injector

 

[geosnooker2000]

I didn't take any injectors out of the lower intake manifold, nor did I take the fuel rail off of the lower intake manifold. I DID unscrew the fuel supply line to the back of the fuel rail as well as the fuel supply line to the float bowl looking thingy up front on the passenger side of the fuel rail.

 

[geosnooker2000]

Power steering line to the pump seal?

I never detached the power steering pump lines.

 

[geosnooker2000]

I would really like for someone who knows, tell me where this o-ring could have possibly come from if I didn't detach the fuel rail from the lower intake, and I didn't detach any of the fuel injectors from the lower intake either? The only thing "fuel line related" I took apart was the fuel line connection to the pressure regulator and the other fuel line that screws into the back port of the fuel rail.

 

[Turdle]

Well, like I said, it looks like an injector o ring to me. I have done a few explorer engine swaps and that is the only place I remember those being used. like you said the AC o rings are green.

It is quite possible that it was left by someone who was in there before you years ago. Ya reckon?

If the truck was missing one now--it would either be spraying fuel out, or have a very distinct miss.

There is an o ring also on the fuel pressure regulator-fuel rail connection. But you did not remove the regulator from the rail, and , once again if this was missing it would be spraying quite a bit of fuel. I mean, a lot of fuel. You would have a massive vacuum , or, fuel leak if any o ring was missing. Drive it. See if anything malfunctions.

 

[geosnooker2000]

Well, like I said, it looks like an injector o ring to me. I have done a few explorer engine swaps and that is the only place I remember those being used. like you said the AC o rings are green.

It is quite possible that it was left by someone who was in there before you years ago. Ya reckon?

If the truck was missing one now--it would either be spraying fuel out, or have a very distinct miss.

There is an o ring also on the fuel pressure regulator-fuel rail connection. But you did not remove the regulator from the rail, and , once again if this was missing it would be spraying quite a bit of fuel. I mean, a lot of fuel. You would have a massive vacuum , or, fuel leak if any o ring was missing. Drive it. See if anything malfunctions.

Oh, yes, I DID remove the fuel pressure regulator from the fuel rail. And the fuel line from the regulator and the return line at the back of the rail. Both fuel lines into both of those connections are THREADED, not pressure fittings or anything exotic like the Haynes manual says it has.

 

[FIND]

Oh, yes, I DID remove the fuel pressure regulator from the fuel rail. And the fuel line from the regulator and the return line at the back of the rail. Both fuel lines into both of those connections are THREADED, not pressure fittings or anything exotic like the Haynes manual says it has.

There are two types of connectors for the fuel lines for Explorers, this is why you are confused by your Haynes manual. Some are threaded, some are clip on.

Like turdle said, it is possible someone replaced o-rings previously and left one sitting on the engine that was not disturbed until you worked on it. The o-ring you pictured is an injector o-ring, nothing else up there uses that size of o-ring in brown. If you were missing an o-ring from anywhere in the fuel system, it would be spraying gasoline.