Anyone know a safe enough way to drain the fuel tank from the rear? Back by the tank itself? Maybe removed the fuel filter and something else to get flow going?

 

I asked the question a short time ago on the XK8 forum, with the thought of using a suction pump to remove the fuel at the filter coupling. No one said they tried it and it didn't work, but one member assured me that a check valve would prevent it.

I find that a little hard to believe, as a check valve would prevent the pump from supplying fuel. I was able to suck air from my spare pump, and of course there is a check valve to prevent fuel flowing back into the tank. I don't think you will be able to siphon fuel from the line, but a fuel transfer pump may work. I would give it a try.

I believe Harbor Freight sells a diesel transfer pump.

 

Thanks rj237.

I guess I should add that I have the trunk interior removed and the entire rear suspension assembly has been removed too. Maybe allowing easier access to certain areas?

 

Hi iflytb9,

Because of the fuel pump mounted in the tank, disconnecting the fuel lines from the bottom of the tank only allows a very small amount of fuel to escape, so I used an inexpensive "Fluid Transfer Pump" from O'Reilly or AutoZone. I think it's made by Prestone and cost less than $10.00 and looks like this:

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/wmr-w1145/overview/

I was able to siphon all but about 4 inches of fuel by running the inlet tube of the pump down the fuel filler neck and running the discharge tube into 5-gallon gas cans. If I had needed to remove all of the fuel, I would have then removed the fuel level sender and siphoned the rest of the fuel from its opening, which will be easy for you since you already have the trunk interior trim removed.

Cheers,

Don

 

Thanks Don B. I think I'll give your idea a try. Seems simple enough.

 

It really is simple! You just need enough gas cans to hold all the fuel you need to remove. Once you've pumped the fluid transfer pump several times, it creates an ongoing siphon effect, so if you need to stop the siphoning to change gas cans, just pull the tube out of the fuel filler neck until it sucks air. To transfer the fuel as quickly as possible, just keep pumping the pump, which moves fluid faster than just relying on the siphon effect.

Cheers,

Don

 

Disconnect the fuel line underneath & put it in the collection device. Then get two wires & put them on the + and - connections on your fuel pump & use the battery to power it. It'll pump the fuel out for you easily. That's how I did it.

 

Unfortunately, that doesn't work when the reason for removing the fuel is to replace a failed pump, which is the usual case.

I thought all tanks were anti-siphon now and never considered putting a hose down the filler neck. I'll try that on both of my cars today.

 

You never mentioned that your pump was not operational in your original post.

 

I thought of that too, Stu, but assumed the fuel pump was inoperative, which turned out to be correct, but I really shouldn't have made that assumption!

Cheers,

Don

 

I couldn't get a hose down the filler tube. It's block with something. Probably to avoid siphoning. I ended up removing the tank with the gas in it. Then popped the top and siphoned it from that entry point. All out now. Now my lawn mower has 5 gallons of gas and I have a fuel tank to get rid of.

Thanks for all the ideas.

 

Sorry the siphoning didn't work - Jaguar must have added an obstruction in the filler tube to the X308. I wonder if X300s also have an obstruction? On our '93 XJ40 I was able to wiggle the hose around and find a path into the tank.

Glad you managed to get the job done anyway!

Cheers,

Don

 

No worries Don B. The transfer pump was still used. On sale at harbor freight for $7.99.

I looked in the tank. You can see a black piece which was the cause of the obstruction. Must have been added in these models.

 

It is difficult to get the hose past the (rollover ball?).
I used a length of 5/8 inch clear vinyl hose (cost at Home Depot plumbing dept 10 ft/$8.81). Wouldn't work until I cut the end of the hose at a shallow angle and sharpened the end with a razor blade (think veterinarian's syringe needle). Once I did that it slipped in immediately.
I left a couple of coils more than necessary on the tubing so I would have more notice of the gas approaching my mouth out of the corner of my eye.
Worked great!
Make sure to have enough empty receptacles/cans on hand because it will fill up a five gallon can in about as many minutes.
I kick myself now because I probably could have tried the sharpening trick on the odd pieces of 1/2 inch garden hose or washing machine hose I just had laying around and saved myself a few dollars but the clear tubing avoided the "mouthful o'gas"!) It has to be relatively stiff hose or tubing though.
Oh another tip: I fed the tubing through an oil funnel I inserted in the fuel inlet to hold the trap door open without inhibiting the hose.