fuel tank with extra capacity
Discussion
I remember that there was a thread earlier but I can't find it.
Has anyone fabricated a fuel tank with extra capacity?
I'm thinking of doing so, 50% should be achieved without losing too much boot space just by extra depth/thickness. Which will give decent touring distances between fill ups.
Has anyone fabricated a fuel tank with extra capacity?
I'm thinking of doing so, 50% should be achieved without losing too much boot space just by extra depth/thickness. Which will give decent touring distances between fill ups.
sapper said:
I remember that there was a thread earlier but I can't find it.
Has anyone fabricated a fuel tank with extra capacity?
I'm thinking of doing so, 50% should be achieved without losing too much boot space just by extra depth/thickness. Which will give decent touring distances between fill ups.
I can get 240 miles between fills if needed when touring, how far do you want to go?Has anyone fabricated a fuel tank with extra capacity?
I'm thinking of doing so, 50% should be achieved without losing too much boot space just by extra depth/thickness. Which will give decent touring distances between fill ups.
That's 3 - 4 hours driving, by which time I find a stop for coffee, etc is very welcome.
The standard fuel tank is 12.5 gallons, obviously you don't want to run it dry so lets say a practical 12 gallons is available.
When touring at 80mph and if set up correctly you should easily see 27mpg from any of the engine capacities.
So that's 12 x 27 = 324 miles.
I've certainly completed a safe 312 - 318 miles between fills many times when I had the standard petrol tank, but this was always when touring under optimum economy conditions.
I'd say the standard tank is plenty big enough for most people, if you're not getting a 300+ mile range when touring then it's your fuel economy you need to look at not your tank size.
Saying all that I enjoy a theoretical dual fuel range of 450 miles if I use up all the on board petrol & LPG.
The truth is even touring mainland Europe I never use all that range as I find stopping to stretch my legs after a four hour run is preferable, this normally equates to around 280 miles.
If you're only getting 240 miles between fills & its a bit more range you're after ask not how you can increase your fuel capacity, but how you can improve your touring fuel economy.
It's also worth doing the brim to brim tank fill test to see truly what you've consumed so therefore whats truly left in your 12.5 gallon tank when you fill at a carefully measured 240 mile point.
You may surprise yourself and find you've still got 2.5 gallons in there even though your TVR petrol gauge says your tank is almost empty.
What I'm saying is dont trust the TVR gauge, there are better and way more accurate ways to establish your true fuel economy and range, the one thing that doesn't change and can be relied upon on all Chimaeras is the 12.5 gallon tank capacity.
When touring at 80mph and if set up correctly you should easily see 27mpg from any of the engine capacities.
So that's 12 x 27 = 324 miles.
I've certainly completed a safe 312 - 318 miles between fills many times when I had the standard petrol tank, but this was always when touring under optimum economy conditions.
I'd say the standard tank is plenty big enough for most people, if you're not getting a 300+ mile range when touring then it's your fuel economy you need to look at not your tank size.
Saying all that I enjoy a theoretical dual fuel range of 450 miles if I use up all the on board petrol & LPG.
The truth is even touring mainland Europe I never use all that range as I find stopping to stretch my legs after a four hour run is preferable, this normally equates to around 280 miles.
If you're only getting 240 miles between fills & its a bit more range you're after ask not how you can increase your fuel capacity, but how you can improve your touring fuel economy.
It's also worth doing the brim to brim tank fill test to see truly what you've consumed so therefore whats truly left in your 12.5 gallon tank when you fill at a carefully measured 240 mile point.
You may surprise yourself and find you've still got 2.5 gallons in there even though your TVR petrol gauge says your tank is almost empty.
What I'm saying is dont trust the TVR gauge, there are better and way more accurate ways to establish your true fuel economy and range, the one thing that doesn't change and can be relied upon on all Chimaeras is the 12.5 gallon tank capacity.
sapper said:
I think half the problem is I don't trust the gauge, my previous Chimaera ran dry showing 1/4 of a tank. So now I never go below 1/4 full and I get about 240/tank using 75% capacity. I'll take your advice Dave and do a full tank run before I change anything.
Take the sender out and gently bend the float arm to get a proper true empty reading on the gauge.Its an easy 10 minute job and totally free
OleVix said:
Still no good answers here though... I too want a bigger tank. I dont want to talk about why, I just want it bigger
Have a bigger one made then, there's at least 3.5 gallons of free space above the standard tank that won't affect roof stowage at all.Cut the top off the original tank and have someone fabricate & weld on a new top that extends just below the boot lip.
That's where most of my petrol lives, in my case its 5 gallons of the expensive stuff sitting above 13.6 gallons of LPG.
I then put two swirl pots on the boot floor to keep the fuel pump pickups as low as possible solving any fuel starvation on hard cornering.
The swirl pots also have the added benefit of increasing my total petrol capacity to just over 6 gallons for a 160 mile petrol range, which compliments my 280+ miles of gas nicely to give an easy total of 440 miles before I need to stop for fuel.
And yes my roof panel still fits nicely in the boot with plenty of space left over for luggage.
You won't need the swirl pots for the fuel starvation reasons but their location turned out to be a great place to put another gallon, perhaps you could extend your original tank in same areas too?
All in all with a few clever additions you could potentially increase your fuel capacity just by adapting your original tank, I'd say almost 5 gallons more fuel without affecting roof stowage.
The Chimaera really does have the most capacious boot of any sports car past or present, if more fuel is your thing you'll not have a problem holding it.
I'd say 17 gallons would be a practical target giving you an easy 430+ mile range, just watch the weight, a gallon of petrol weighs 3.35kg so adding 4.5 gallons adds approximately 15kg.
Or a bit like chucking a small bag of sand in the boot, saying all that in my experience a bit more weight in the boot is just what the Chimaera handling needs....
Is 430 miles between fills enough OleVix?
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