Please Help With Fuel Damper Assembly 97es300

[moondoggie]

For the second time it smelled like someone poured a glass of gas in my car while driving home from work. The first time I found that fuel was leaking from the damper (blue mushroom looking thing on the end of the back fuel rail). I went and got a new damper and metal washers from the dealer and went to change it, but when I started it to verify where the gas was coming from...no leak. In fact it hasn't leaked for almost a month. So right when I thought I had some mutant self healing car, today it goes and proves me wrong and was leaking from the same space, so in goes the new part tomorrow, but I had a few questions I hope the group can help me with before I start.

1. Why would it wait so long between leaking, isn't a hole in something a hole in something all the time?

2. Is this a symptom of a larger issue causing the leak in this location as a reaction to something else, like too much fuel pressure or the like?

3. Lastly, anything I should know before I start the repair? It looks easy as putting a wrench on the nut on the damper and turning till it's out, replace the washers and screw it back in. Is it that easy, or do I need to take other things off to get to it, or remove the fuel rail? Should I worry about putting too much pressure trying to unscrew it from the fuel rail and how tight hsould it be when it goes back on?

Thanks in advance, I really get nervous with anything to do with the fuel system (especially on the daily driver) and help from your experience would be greatly appreciated