Classic Roadster Gas Tank

[Rick]

Hey fellow Duchess owners…..can you send me a photo or two of your gas tank?

I know this kits comes with a customer gas tank but when I got my car they had replaced it with a plastic marine tank.

My son will be building me a new one but I’m trying to get a clear understanding of the dimensions and how it sits the space allotted.

ALSO, for those willing, I’m wondering how far your steering wheel extends out from your dash.  Mine seems to be pretty long but I have no reference point.

Thanks

[Royal]

Not a Duchess, but a MiGi.  Mine is 5 1/4″ to the wheel spokes. 

[Paul Mossberg]

Rocky,

 

VW, right?

 

I’m unable to get you photos at the moment. It’s a long story, but my Duchess is still ocked up at my former residence, now occupied by my futuer ex-wife.

 

But you can see pictures in the Class Roadsters assembly manual, available in the Download Manuals section of this web site.

 

Downlaod Part 2 – Body Assembly. The tank installation is on pages 44 and 45 of the manual, which are pages 23 and 24 of the PDF.

 

The tank is about 12 inches deep and is shaped to fit the VW floor panels in front of the passenger. It fills almost the entire space. The left side is square to the front and back, and the right side of the tank follows the angle of the floor pan.

 

The tank is held down by a single metal strap, from the outer floor pan, across the top of the tank to the center tunnel.

 

The steering column installation is in Part 4 – Body and Interior. You can get some idea of the spacing from the picture. I think I have about four inches between my wheel and the dash. There isn’t much room for the builder to modify this, unless he/she fabricated their own parts. Classic Roadsters provided a column extension, which fits between the VW column and the steering box. If the builderof yoru car used that part, the column is sitting as CR designed it.

 

Hope this helps.

 

And I hope even MORE to be able to actually access my car within a month or so.

PMOSSBERG2012-02-23 09:17:19

Paul Mossberg
Former Owner of a 1981 Classic Roadsters Ltd. Duchess (VW)
2005 Intermeccanica Roadster

If you own a TDr and are not in the Registry, please go to https://tdreplica.com/forums/topic/mg-td-replica-registry/ and register (you need to copy and paste the link)

[Paul Mossberg]

Rocky,

 

My car is pretty close to Royal’s. But I think my wheel sits a bit closer.

 

Something else to point out….you need a flat steering wheel with zero dish! Just like the one on Roy’s picture.

PMOSSBERG2012-02-23 09:16:21

Paul Mossberg
Former Owner of a 1981 Classic Roadsters Ltd. Duchess (VW)
2005 Intermeccanica Roadster

If you own a TDr and are not in the Registry, please go to https://tdreplica.com/forums/topic/mg-td-replica-registry/ and register (you need to copy and paste the link)

[ray10]

Rocky  if you want a new steering wheel check out raptor Steering wheels ,

http://www.raptorsteeringwheels.com/index.htm

(info. provided by Mike N Scarlett )

TDREPLICA Map

http://www.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?webmap=7f9174ad614e43b680deba085b0abf48

[Rick]

Cool options Ray10 but I like my steering wheel (however those are pretty tempting).  I’m thinking my steering column may need to be shortened.  I’ll just have to wait and see once I get the seats in.

[Olimon Ricardo]

Hi Rocky,

Although my car is a Lafer it seems that my tank is similar to the one described by Paul. It is aprox. 11″ tall and the filler sits inside the front trunk.  I made a strap for it but ended up running the single strap from front to back instead of side to side as described by Paul.

I spray painted the tank and then added several layers of clear enamel. I also coated the bottom of the tank with a rubberized paint in case the bottom floorpan got damp at some point..

This second photo is of the tank installed inside the front trunk area…

Let me know if you want more info regarding the tank..

Ricardo

[edward ericson]

Four inches to the wheel spokes. Looks right, I think.

here’s a comparison shot:

Worth noting that TD’s had adjustable steering columns. The wheel could be set in or out about 2 inches. No tilt, unfortunately.

edsnova2012-02-24 08:02:03

[Paul Mossberg]

Rocky,

 

Ricardo’s tank is very similar.

 

If your Duchess was built per the factory specs, the filler tube enters the tank at the top, left, front corner. It runs under the weight box at the front of the trunk, then up behind the grill to the “radiator cap”.

 

This is VERY entertaining at gas stations! Dropping the gas nozzle into the radiator creates some interesting reactions!

Paul Mossberg
Former Owner of a 1981 Classic Roadsters Ltd. Duchess (VW)
2005 Intermeccanica Roadster

If you own a TDr and are not in the Registry, please go to https://tdreplica.com/forums/topic/mg-td-replica-registry/ and register (you need to copy and paste the link)

[Chris]

PMOSSBERG wrote:

Rocky,

 

 

This is VERY entertaining at gas stations! Dropping the gas nozzle into the radiator creates some interesting reactions!

 

 

Agreed my fuel cell is mounted just behind the grill and the looks are great. 

 

[Rick]

Thanks for the great info and pics.  Sorry for the slow response but I got distracted by my wiring research and forgot to come back to this string.

VERY HELPFUL!!!

[Author]

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