Bobtaylor Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Sorry if this has already been covered. When I open my boot there is a feint smell of petrol. I have checked my workshop manual and can’t find anything about the fuel tank. Am i right in thinking the pipe that goes in to the top of the tank is the feed to the carb, ie it is sucked out of the top of the tank? Can this pipe degrade thus causing the smell in the boot? If so what is involved in replacing the pipe in light of recent changes in petrol? I have also noticed the the pipe going on to the top of the pipe is just a push fit on to the male metal pipe on top of the tank, should this have a jubilee clip or some other type of fitting? Lastly is there anything else that might be the cause of a slight petrol smell in the boot? Thanks in anticipation, all suggestions gratefully received. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Possibly the rubber connecting hoses in te boot, especially if they are not up to current standards. (or fake new hoses) Otherwise a small leak is a possibility. A single drop of petrol will be very obvious in a boot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobtaylor Posted March 25, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Clive, where are the connecting houses you mention. I can see the hose going from the top of the tank, it runs down behind the tank and goes through the floor. I can’t find any diagrams of the layout. can anyone suggest where best to buy the hose/pipe, is this an actual part or is it a case of buying a length and cutting to fit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johny Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Page 5.248V covers the Vitesse fuel tank in the manual but is pretty useless. Theres a seal where the metal pipe goes into the top of the tank which allows the pipe be rotated to change its position from normal to reserve and obviously if loose will allow fumes out. It has a nut that can be tightened to improve things... Otherwise you could have a leak from the tank itself with a crack somewhere or split seam and these can be difficult to find as the petrol evaporates so quickly. Is it worse after a drive or change with the fuel level? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johny Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Canleys diagram here is pretty good: Exhaust and Petrol Systems : Canley Classics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 8 minutes ago, Bobtaylor said: Clive, where are the connecting houses you mention. I can see the hose going from the top of the tank, it runs down behind the tank and goes through the floor. I can’t find any diagrams of the layout. can anyone suggest where best to buy the hose/pipe, is this an actual part or is it a case of buying a length and cutting to fit? It joins the fuel pipe (steel originally, many now copper) and that join could be under the car or tucked behind the tank in the boot. The TSSC shop sells Gate Barricade hose, which is excellent. There are others, Cohline and I expect other brands. Do not be tempted to buy unbranded stuff (AFS on ebay is among those selling fake hose) Buy a length, replace all hoses on the car. I think a vitesse will use just 1/4" if a 1600/mk1, or 1/4 and 5/16 if a mk2. Not to mention 50 years of various owners... (metric 6 and 8mm are fine) The other possibility is incorrect hose clamps. a jubilee tyre can oval the hose slightly. You need specific fuel pipe clamps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Lindsay Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 25 minutes ago, Bobtaylor said: Clive, where are the connecting houses you mention. I can see the hose going from the top of the tank, it runs down behind the tank and goes through the floor. I can’t find any diagrams of the layout. This is the way my 13/60 is connected; a short flexible rubber hose from the metal tank pipe to the long metal pipe that runs in one piece from the boot to the pump. The diagram from Canleys website below shows the initial length of the hose in my photo (8 inches of 5/16, part 49) which goes down in steps from 5/16 at the tank to two 3" lengths of 1/4 (part 53 x 2) then finally part 55 which is 3" of 3/16. However expect all kinds of replacements and variations over the years, including some who just run flexible hose from tank to pump with no metal at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobtaylor Posted March 25, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Does your short flexible hose have any clamps or clips where joins the metal pipe or is it just a push fit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Lindsay Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Interestingly enough, no - but this is something I've found on other cars including Spitfires that I worked on recently - the pipes are just pushed on with no clamps or clips. I'll be adding clips soon as that pipe and tank have been replaced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 years ago it may well have been a push fit but you must use as said proper fuel hose clips these surrourn the whole hose and stya round a worm drive hose clip has pinch points etc under the pipe nut on top of the tank will be a olive to seal some are rubber some will be a normal brass type of olive the nut needs to be tighten to grip the olive to the pipe and loosen it to allow some rotation f the reserve lever the reserve is a simple arrangement its a curved suction tub so when you operate the lever it drops the pipe a little lower into the tank there is no additional reserve tank hidden anywhere just the currved suction tube simple and quite clever . so both loose nut loose brass olive or dergraded rubber olive along with old hose and no clips is a major petrol pong in the boot and failing hose joints can suck air and reduce the pumps ability to perform fully tip i.....f the pipe has a old rubber olive you can make one from a slice of fuel hose but to remove the suction pipe you have to remove the fuel tank to get enough room to lift / remove the pipe Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Truman Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 Probably no clamps originally on the tank delivery to engine mounted mech pump as they were on the suction line and hence only negative pressure but clips on the pressure or delivery to carbs. As Pete says if suction hoses not tight then there’s a potential to suck air so nowadays worth clamping all rubber hoses. just a thought maybe not necessary if pipes are swaged at joints so hoses pushed over the enlarged pipe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain T Posted March 25, 2022 Report Share Posted March 25, 2022 I installed a 6mm and 8mm inlet/outlet filter in the boot. I can't remember which but the diameters of my pipe coming out the tank and the pipe going forward to the pump are different. Installing the in line filter solved that problem as I just used 8 or 6mm hose to connect everything up plus it stopped any crud from going up the line. I bought it from Carbuilder Solutions. Iain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteH Posted March 29, 2022 Report Share Posted March 29, 2022 I refitted the whole length in "copper", whilst the Tub`s where off. The one and only joint, so far, under the car is a metal compression fitting, necessary to get the pipe into the Boot. I do not trust rubber, out of my sight!. Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Lindsay Posted March 29, 2022 Report Share Posted March 29, 2022 1 hour ago, PeteH said: I refitted the whole length in "copper", whilst the Tub`s where off. The one and only joint, so far, under the car is a metal compression fitting, necessary to get the pipe into the Boot. I do not trust rubber, out of my sight!. Pete Mine was replaced in kunifer, a nightmare to bend without kinking but like yours one continuous length from tank to a filter at the pump. That means three rubber connections, one at the tank and one each side of the filter. And the one at the carb too. I've to nip out later on and buy proper fuel line clamps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badwolf Posted March 29, 2022 Report Share Posted March 29, 2022 Mentioned this elsewhere. I did mine in 8mm copper microbore. Pushed into rubber pipe with jubilee clips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffds1360 Posted March 30, 2022 Report Share Posted March 30, 2022 You don't really want to use jubilee clips bw, they do not compress uniformly ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badwolf Posted March 30, 2022 Report Share Posted March 30, 2022 Sorry, should be jubilee style clips. I got some of those wire thingies that are supposed to compress evenly all around. Dad called everything like that, down to a piece of wire twisted around a pipe, a "jub" clip. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted March 30, 2022 Report Share Posted March 30, 2022 fuel hose clips generally keep their shape when compressed so grip is uniform around the hose sold by size to suit your hose diameter 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VixenPPP Posted May 9, 2022 Report Share Posted May 9, 2022 I took My 1970 Vitesse for a pre-mot inspection last Autumn. I've put the faults right, the most serious being some minor welding in the boot area. I took it for a test drive and all was fine for a few miles then it coughed and spluttered and conked out. It was and is, almost certainly fuel related. I've replaced the fuel tank and all the hoses will be replaced with barricade hoses. I've squirted petrol into the carbs and she has fired up a couple of times. On disconnecting the hose to the carbs the fuel seems to be pumping out at a good pressure. I've dismantled the carbs and cleaned them and replaced gaskets. The fault seems to be connected to the carbs. Have I blocked a passageway or something ? Neil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted May 9, 2022 Report Share Posted May 9, 2022 any disturbance of the rubber hoses stands a chance of generating the dreaded rubber slivers as small bits of hose get shaved off by inserting the metal pipework these can float about and end up jammed in the back of the float needle valve they are quite crafty little sods a clean the float needles and pump some from the last joint into a jam jar see if you catch any do check you have the air filter gaskets are fitted ok and no holes in the carb face are being obstructed pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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