Capri - Fuel Tank Cleaning

Last week I went to take advantage of cheap petrol prices and fill up my white XL. Unfortunately, it seems it has caught the virus!!! It was running so badly I didn't even get to the servo. It seems that not been driven for a few weeks has revived a chronic problem I seem to have with this car & that is that it seems not to like contaminated fuel. It may have got water in the tank or the carbie, whichever, it seems to be a fuel problem and is running badly.
After several hours of procrastinating as to why I shouldn't drain the fuel and/or clean the tank, I decided to drain the tank & then see what the fuel was like.
Step 1: Drain the tank. I siphoned the fuel out, about 10 -12 litres, into a bucket. I was rather shocked at the colour of the fuel. It looked black, not the usual colour I expected. That made the decision for me. The tank has to come out & be cleaned - maybe the first time in 48 years.



Step 2: Disconnect the rubber hose between the tank & the fuel filler. This would rate as one of the worst jobs to do on a Capri. The manual says to undo the screws (4) holding the filler pipe. If you do this first, you cannot really twist the rubber hose on that end to the extent you need to. After undoing the clips & copious amounts of RP7, I final had the hose moving a little but not enough to move it along back up the filler to disconnect. I walked away about 3 times. Come back & more spray. When I did get it moving a little, I undid the fuel filler screws & then I was able to turn the hose around a little more. More spray & then some detergent, more twisting & finally using various tools, screw drivers, I was able to move the hose off at the tank outlet. Don't be in a hurry to do this job as it will drive you crazy, not too mention where the hose is and the body contortions necessary to reach it.



Step 3: Disconnect the vent hose that runs along the top of the tank. It comes off the vent pipe with a bit of pulling.



Step 4: Get your longest socket + extension bar with a half inch socket and undo the top two nuts holding the tank. With the long bar it wasn't too difficult. The 2 bottom bolts are very easy.
Step 5: Just move the RHS of the tank out enough to be able to disconnect the fuel line + the wire for the fuel gauge. They both come off without too much trouble. Then remove the tank.



Step 6: Mark the sender unit & the tank to ensure they match up when putting it back together. With a large set of shifters or a Stillson wrench, remove the unit, ensuring that the float does not get damaged on the way out. There is an arrow on the sender unit indicating which way to turn the unit. The filter which may be an original looked pretty dirty and I am not sure how I will clean this or even replace it.



Step 7: The cleaning of the tank - I was surprised that the inside of the tank was as clean as it was. I was expecting a lot of sludge, but none. I poured in a bucket of warm water plus some detergent & then used a pressure spray to rinse out the inside. After several rinses, it seemed OK & I left it to dry.
Step 8: A quick paint touch up of the tank plus the area behind the tank in the trunk area.
Step 9: I located a Mustang fuel sender filter ($8) which I thought I could modify to fit the tank. With some super strength Araldite, I attached the new filter to the old top so it would fit tightly onto the fuel pipe.
Step 10: A complete cleanout of all the fuel lines & the carbie jets using compressed air & carbie cleaner.
Step 11: Fitted a new fuel filter between the fuel pump & the carbie.



Step 12: Refitted the tank, fuel hose & fuel gauge wire. The top two nuts for the tank are not easy! I used a magnetic tool to attach the washers & then the long handled socket with the nut in the socket to screw up the tank. A bit of mucking about but they eventually went on.
Step 13: THE WORST JOB OF ALL THINGS ON A CAPRI - FITTING THE HOSE BETWEEN THE TANK & THE FILLER PIPE. Nothing could be worse than this. I have had people say just put a bit of detergent on the connection areas & it slides on. Not in my experience! I tried everything & could not get it on the filler pipe. I eventually put the filler end in some very hot water for a few minutes & eventually got it on & then was able to slide it back over the tank pipe. Very difficult for me & I was stuffed. Tightened up one clamp but did not have the energy to finish the second one. I hope this is all worth it & the car runs OK. Finished the job today. Much easier after a night's sleep. Checked all the hoses.
Step 14: With some fresh Shell V-Power in the tank, will it start? Yes, and without too much trouble and the fuel gauge still works. No apparent leaks. The engine is running OK & I will not say too much more until after a road test which we are allowed to do this weekend. One think is for sure is that the fuel system is clean.
PS. Finally able to take the car out again and it went really well, thank goodness!
[Click on photos to enlarge]