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Hi Folks, Although my car is a VW based replica, I am posting this under the general discussion, as it might be of interest to all owners/builders. I have the std. 10.6 gal VW tank in my car. It has a crudely welded pipe and elbow with cap for filling. The elbow will kick off a fuel nozzle, and requires a very slow fill. Some nozzles won’t fill slow enough to fill hardly at all. I would like to replace the tank, with something more pratical, and smaller, 6-7 gal. would be good. I would have enough range along with fueling more often for fresher fuel. Now the question : what to use. A mild research eliminated fuel cells as too expensive. The marine tanks have potential, along with some off road aluminum ones, but….I wonder if they would be safe ( or legal ) ? Although I am not sure the existing one wouldn’t come apart. Any advice or ideas ? Thanks, Rollie
Hot rod tanks here
http://www.thehotrodcompany.com/shopnow/show_dept.asp?dept_i d=78&filter=&filterkey=&first=10for like $150. Not cheap, but not fuel cell expensive. I’m looking for info on using a 6-gallon plastic outboard tank in these. I haven’t found any info, but I think it should work and shouldn’t be illegal. The boat tanks aren’t pressurized, but to my knowledge, neither are the VW tanks. Boat tank should fit pretty good too.
I have the Ford engine, and I also have to fill slower than normal. Not bad, just slower. The location of the tank and the ensuing bends in the fill tank are the cause for the slow fill. Also, there is no vent line from the tank to the fill cap, so the tank is always “chugging” as it fills. We had to add one to the Shelby to eliminate this same dilemma.
Maybe a small (3/8) vent line would help?
Greg
Thanks for your comments. Well, it looks like my kit was designed for the stock VW tank. Not too much else fits with enough capacity. The marine topside 6.5 gal tank ( $27.99, West Marine ) would fit, but the dash fuel gauge wouldn’t work. The Below deck marine tanks ( expensive, most over $200+ ) have fuel gauge fittings, but require a hose and fill cap, which there isn’t enough room for. The hot rod tanks are too long, and have no fuel gauge. Hummmmm…….Looks like I live with the existing setup, or go to 6.5 gal. marine and get an oil pressure gauge for the fuel gauge hole. Guess this is a work in process. Thanks for your input. Rollie
Rollie, you may be able to mod your existing VW tank to eliminate your fill problem. Mine’s a bug tank too. The build instructions required flipping it upside-down and patching over the old (original) fill hole, then welding the neck to the opposite corner. It’s short and sweet. I am very glad it got done circa 1982 ’cause I wouldn’t want to have to do it now. But if you want, I’ll post the pages from the BCW build book and you can see if might work for you.
Thanks for the offer,I actually happen to have that info, and the tank doesn’t appear to have been modified but for the fill pipe. The tank is a 1969 tank and I thought it good to just replace it, as it could be marginal. I also thought it would be simple, laugh. If I come up with a solution, I will post it. Thanks for your offer. Rollie
Rollie, If you want to replace the tank, why not get a new VW tank . With the tank never having had gas in it ,it would be easy to weld any type spout you needed.I found new tanks for about $125 on line.At least you would not have the hassle of finding and calibrating a guage. Is your spout welded to the tank ? If it is ,could you cut it off and use some type of coolant hose to connect it to the tank in a more direct and straight manner ?
Larry
Don’t use coolant hose.
Fuel can soften some brands. Make sure the hose is rated for fuel.
Green stripe is more expensive but worth it.
My duchess had radiator hose for the fuel filler and one day the lower clamp came loose (just after topping off for a rally) and half the gas was dumped on the ground and exhaust pipe!
The clamp came loose because the gas had turned the hose to mush.John
No trees were injured in the making of this message, but some electrons were inconvenienced.
Excellent ideas ! I will research new tanks more, as the cheapest was $175 and I could get a round hot rod tank ( without fuel gauge pad ) from Coyote-Gear for $159. Also a short flexable fuel filler hose and cap would allow the gas nozzle to go in almost into the tank and pop off when nearly full, without the splash back. Then the filler and cap could lay back down so the hood would close. I will inspect the tank to see if it should be replaced and go with the flexable filler. I think the VW tank makes the most capacity for the room available, and with a fuel gauge too. Also I am not sure a gauge for a round tube type tank wouldn’t be a waste, as that last 1/4 on the gauge wouldn’t be much gas in the tank. Thanks for all the ideas. Rollie
John, Thanks for catching me in a MAJOR goof up. I was thinking that if the hose was ok for coolant ,that it would be ok for gas too.Actually I was referring to using the hose to connect two metal pieces of pipe together to make up a short straight filler tube with the two pipes making up the entire length of the tube but I did not make that clear in my post. Thanks again for pointing us in a safer direction.
Larry
Rollie, Look in Edsnova picture gallery. There is a picture of his fuel tank which shows a short , apparently welded on filler spout with a vent hose . Would this setup work for you?
Mine is similar, but comes back more before it turns up. This keeps the flow from getting a straight shot into the tank. The pipe parts are welded to the stock filler. I think if I take the tank off and cut off the filler next to the weld, I can put on a hose and change the angle to alow a good flow. The tank seems in good shape so I’ll try that 1st. Thanks, Rollie
Rollie, Be very careful when cutting the spout! NO FLAME OR SPARKS.. It would be safer if you filled it with water before you start .
Yes, it is tempting to just hacksaw it off…..but…I think I will fill it with water 1st. I remember an old powerboat safety film where they threw a cup of gas into the engine compartment of an old boat and sparked it. It blew the boat to pieces. Good reminder, thanks
Up date: The wiring was bad and needed replacement. I drew up a custom al. 8 gal tank, and had it welded up by a local fab. shop, and then replaced ALL wires. Took 3 weeks. The tank was $220, but is exactly what I needed, and gave me room for a relay/fuse panel under the hood. It is a total sucess. I will try to post pictures. Now about that sweeky throwout bearing….laugh. Rollie
Rollie, You did a real neat job with the fuel tank and rewiring too. It is almost like the one in my London Roadster except mine is mounted lower and the filler spout runs out the left hood side panel with a boat filler cap on the outside near the top of the louvers. It makes it hard to fill without getting gas down the side and on to the fender.I wish it ended under the hood like yours but instead I have look at my messed up louvers.
Did you drill your windshield frame to mount the mirrors? I had thought about doing that but was afraid of cracking the glass when tightening the mirrors . Also what is that chrome cover over the steering box? Your car has a lot of neat personal touches. I think I see acorn nuts on the headlight brackets. Just a great looking car all over.
Thanks for the compliments,the mirrors were on the fenders, but were showing star burst cracks in the fenders at the mtg. holes, so I plugged them and put the mirrors on the windshield. The windshield frame had a bunch of holes already in it, so I just used 2 all ready there. An up close look at both the windshild frame and mirrors would suggest replacement of all of them, laugh. The chrome stearing box cover was on it when I bought it.
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