Tuesday, 3 May 2022

Tank'd

The fuel tank arrived fresh from being welded & tested by my nephew's girlfriend Grace (who is VERY good at it). I didn't get chance to fit it that day because a bunch of old school friends were coming to my house for the first meet-up in a number of years. That is to say they are old school friends because I knew them at school - not because they're retro.

The tank is a thing of beauty, but would it fit? After the last of the friends had left the following morning I set too & yes, not only did it fit, it fitted beautifully, the only fly in the ointment being that as I jacked the centre of the rear axle to put the axle stands under it, the car slipped off the jack & the jack pad severed the cross-axle brake pipe - ARSE!

I've replaced the pipe, but as I type the bleeding isn't going well.

But progress has continued & the tank is now fully plumbed in except for one jubilee clip on the tank. I asked Grace to weld a high pressure pump mount on the tank in preparation for removing the low pressure pump & swirl pot, this meant a 12mm outlet & a temporary 12 - 8mm adaptor, but I have no pipe clips the right size.

But the fit is pretty perfect, the bottom of the tank is well above the axle line & more or less continues the sweep of the rear valance, so is invisible from behind the car
And it's slightly bigger
And there's no brass union on top, so the boot floor is now flat
And the filler cap on the rear wing is connected
And the new tank is 11kg (YES - ELEVEN kilos) lighter
And it has baffles
And the sender float is properly adjusted so the gauge will work properly
And it doesn't rub on the rear valance

Yes - I am quite pleased - how did you guess?


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