Oh why did I say 'no garage'?!! I'm back with a smell of petrol in the boot, so lucky me I think I'm tracing another fault. The last few days has just been one long headache, both figuratively (trying to find the fault) and literally (because petrol is not a nice thing to breathe in).
So good news first, the tank is sealed. There is no sign of any issue from the seams, I've done umpteen pressure tests with soapy water and all manner of checks, but I can't find any leak. There was signs of spillage outside the tank that was showing up with the UV light, but after wiping them off there was nothing.
My attention then came to the filler pipe as that's the main thing that I'm worried about. It turns out I was right to worry, because a pressure test with soapy water round the end of the pipe showed bubbles.
This leads me to two outcomes. First is that the weld to the tank isn't good enough and it's leaking there. Second is the pipe isn't sealing on the metal tube. I do need to do a better pressure test to differentiate between the two. I have been having trouble maintaining pressure as the fuel cap I have is only pressure fitted. It gets a bit difficult to use the pump, maintain the pressure and check what's going on. What I've done is 3D print a 'cap';
This will take the place of the upper filler neck and use a jubilee clip to seal inside the pipe. Then I can use the bike pump adaptor to apply pressure and more importantly maintain it while I check things.
I've also got some better clips on it's way. I wasn't convinced the jubilee clip was the right one, particularly for spiral pipe as it can't apply even pressure. I really should have paid attention to Car Builder Solutions when they had the proper clips alongside the pipe. Since CBS aren't particularly cheap or quick I've had to switch to Amazon Prime to get some proper clips;
The idea behind these is that it can work with the spiral binding of the pipe and apply an even pressure to clamp in place. They should be arriving today and maybe if I'm really lucky they will solve the issue.
On the other hand, if it is the weld on the filler neck I have bought some fuel tank repair putty that will be applied to sort any hole in the weld. Ideally I'd reweld it but I haven't got time to drain and wash out the tank, weld up, repaint and refit it, etc.
So I am nearly there, it's been a panic week to get it sorted but there is light at the end of the tunnel.
In other news, I had three holes through the bodywork at the back for the reverse light, fog light and number plate light. All needed grommets so they didn't chafe. The number plate light was the easiest to sort, I just used silicon to keep the wire fixed in place and not able to rub;
The other two needed grommets, and they weren't going to be easy to find off the shelf parts. So I decided to venture into TPU printing! For those not in the 3D printing world, TPU is a polyurethane filament that stays flexible after printing. It's not as soft as rubber, the shore rating is around 95 so it's pretty stuff compared to rubber. However it does provide a soft surface to act as a grommet.
Admittedly it took me four attempts to get a working grommet, it would appear that shrinkage after printing is a huge issue. Given the hole is 14mm across, I had to print 16mm wide to get a tight fit. But they're both done now so that's the last of the wiring. I've been over every section multiple times and cannot find any potential failure.
One more job done, sort of. When the car is on the trailer overnight next week, there is a possibility it's going to be very wet so I need a cover. I don't think I'll use it when driving down to the test centre, but I do need it to stay put overnight. I bought a few metres of ripstop fabric, and printed some roll bar sized clamps to hold it to the car;
I suspect a bit of wind might fold over the edge and let water in but it's a decent start. At least the whole thing won't come off and land on the neighbours lawn! I just need to design and print a couple more clamps for the front, but I'm hoping this will be sturdy enough to survive the night.
I am watching the met office website, since they only do 7 days ahead I don't quite know what the weather will be. I am still hoping for dry, I'd say warm would be nice but it's February so dry is about the best I can hope for. I'll first find out Friday what the weather could potentially be, but then it's still another seven days of changes that are possible.
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