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Heading says it all really, need to buy a pump or some such to empty the TR tank

prior to removal.

Machine Mart show an inexpensive vacuum pump affair - hand operated?

 

Any one any experience of same, or any suggestions?

 

John.

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Do TR3-4s have any rubber hose between the tank and the long pipe to the front?

Clamp that with mole grips, have a bowl ready, disconnect down stream of the grips and release themn.

Gravity does the rest.

 

But keep your hand on the grips and eye on the bowl, lest it fill up before the tank empties.

Of course this is a situation when you bless your foresight in fitting an electric pump!

 

John

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Do TR3-4s have any rubber hose between the tank and the long pipe to the front?

Clamp that with mole grips, have a bowl ready, disconnect down stream of the grips and release themn.

Gravity does the rest.

 

But keep your hand on the grips and eye on the bowl, lest it fill up before the tank empties.

Of course this is a situation when you bless your foresight in fitting an electric pump!

 

John

They should have.

Stuart.

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It's a long time since I did this but I'm sure my tank had a drain plug.

 

 

Yes the OE tanks do have a drain plug - BUT unless you know it will come out - Do Not Touch!

 

The hose into a washing up bowl works. You may need to jack up the rear of the car to empty completely.

 

Peter W

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You could try my method: support car on jacks and stands.

 

Undo all bolts holding diff.

 

Remove diff, and in doing so catch the flexible pipe that joins the steel pipe from the tank to the long pipe that runs to the fuel pump.

Lie under car swearing, as 4 1/2 gallons runs out onto your shirt. (The good news is that if you're still wearing the diff as a chest ornament, the petrol will clean the outside of it).

 

Come to think of it, I suppose you could just leave the diff where it is supposed to be and pull that piece of flexible pipe off with a can or bowl underneath!

 

 

Pete

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Thanks Guys.

 

Many years ago I tried to drain the tank on a Scimitar,

and likewise ended up lying in something like 4 gallons plus,

 

Clothes soaked, garage floor soaked, running outside uinder the garage door, god knows where,

Hence I'm not doing that again.

 

looking to suck the juice out the top in a nice controlled way - thus the question

something like a hand operated vacuum pump obviously with some valve inside.

 

John.

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Drain plug! Be warned. In true McMuttley style I drained my tank via the drain plug a while ago.

 

1. Before the plug comes out, the petrol starts to get out - be ready (with wide funnel)

2. When the plug does come out, the petrol hits the handbrake mechanism and sprays horizontally like a sprinkler

3. The tank holds a lot more than your plastic recepticle and it comes out quickly.

4. Your washing machine rubber components never lose the smell of petrol

 

 

You are right to drain the tank from above - at least as much as you can

 

Many of of the bulb style pumps leak badly - in your hand and over the bodywork! I am on my third, this time a Machine Mart - not ideal for any volume.

 

This year the winter fuel will be removed by:

- taking the coil lead off

- taking the fuel line to a carb (aka instrument of evil) off

- cranking into bottles, pouring old fuel into daily driver which likes old fuel more than TR

- draining bottom of tank via drain plug when little left and pressure is low with a wide funnel with a flexible spout

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John, I have a suction pump that came from a pound shop. Seems to have silicone hoses, and says it's OK for petrol. Sorry, can't remember which pound shop. Looks like the Marksman one, 5th down on this page: https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=syphon%20pump%20for%20petrol

 

 

 

Pete

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On my car the tank fittings are - very much to my surprise - soldered rather than brazed/welded. If this is how all tanks are made and so far as I can tell my tank is an original not an after market and doesn't look repaired, then take care not to use too much force. The plumbing type solder will shear relatively easily. Perhaps others can verify.

 

Mike

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J***s ...........gallons of fuel in open trays, spraying around...

How big are your fire extinguishers guys?

And this stuff explodes when mixed with air...flame speed 30m.sec

......will you be in a fit state to use it ?

All it takes is one spark.

Drain or siphon it into a can to restrict access to air

Peter

Edited by Peter Cobbold
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On my car the tank fittings are - very much to my surprise - soldered rather than brazed/welded. If this is how all tanks are made and so far as I can tell my tank is an original not an after market and doesn't look repaired, then take care not to use too much force. The plumbing type solder will shear relatively easily. Perhaps others can verify.

 

Mike

Solder doesn't like ethanol so it could be weaker still.

Peter

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J***s ...........gallons of fuel in open trays, spraying around...

How big are your fire extinguishers guys?

And this stuff explodes when mixed with air...flame speed 30m.sec

......will you be in a fit state to use it ?

All it takes is one spark.

Drain or siphon it into a can to restrict access to air

Peter

I used to give a demonstration on the danger of flammable liquids in my presentation on safe handling of chemicals:

Drip a couple of drops of 100% alcohol into a 5 litre container, replace top and shake. Remove top and show audience nothing liquid left in container. Place empty container on its side in centre of aisle. Hold lighted taper near to open container. Which then gives a nice roar and whacks in a very satisfying way against the back of the hall a fraction of a second later. Thus demonstrating the amount of energy left in an empty container. Then remind people that a full container has energy enough to move a ton about 30 miles in controlled conditions and therefore be careful about letting it loose uncontrolled.

 

Of course this was before the elves of safety ruled. These days safety lectures are as dull as you would expect.

 

Mike

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Am I being thick or 12v electric fuel pump eBay circa £8, 2-3 meters 6mm ID plastic pipe from hardware store £3 and if your being really anal 2 x jubilee clips £1

 

Job done and "safely" and you can throw it in the cupboard for next time.

 

Although I have to admid that last month after fracturing the fuel pipe loading the TR7 on the trailer after Prescott, and doing an emergency clamp off job on the rubber down pipe with a pair of molegrips (one of those times you swear you will always remember to put them in the toolbox) that I just jacked the car up slid a larger pipe over the rubber pipe and put in in a Jerry Can and undid the mole grips. Almost worked, found out that 22 ltrs wont quite fit in a 20 ltr jerry can :-)

 

But anyway do as I say not as I do!

 

Alan

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On my car the tank fittings are - very much to my surprise - soldered rather than brazed/welded. If this is how all tanks are made and so far as I can tell my tank is an original not an after market and doesn't look repaired, then take care not to use too much force. The plumbing type solder will shear relatively easily. Perhaps others can verify.

 

Mike

No Mike thats not original, they would be brazed in originally.

Stuart.

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Our breakers used to use a large supermarket trolley containing a couple of jerry cans, a small 12v battery and an old PI fuel pump attached to a couple of lengths of hose. All strapped neatly to the trolley.

They wheeled it up to the car, sniffed for petrol, plunged in the hose switched on the pump and some seconds later had a full jerry can.

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When I had to drain 4VC's tank completely in 1997, I just siphoned the petrol into a number of empty petrol and oil cans.

Simple and safe (as long as you don't ingest the petrol!) - just takes patience!

The larger the diameter of the hose, the quicker the process, of course.

Ian Cornish

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No, do not remove the tank plug even if it will undo, you will have an uncontrollable torrent of fuel, a stream of petrol down your arm and soaking you is not nice, get a pump, hoses and carefully attach to a battery with lengthy wires ( away from the tank) and pump into jerrycans, calculate how much fuel is in there and have enough cans ready, holding your finger over the hose when the can is full.

We have a pump kit ready, working with rally cars stale fuel always needs to be pumped out and used up in other vehicles!!

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A length of hose into the tank with an air hose off your compressor (if you have one) Stem the rest of the filler with a cloth and turn on the air and the petrol will start to flow,If no compressor get yer gob around it and suck! PS use a clear hose so you can see what's going on So as not to get said gob full of petrol.

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