Hi,

I finally got around to changing the fuel filter. I'm definitely glad I did it, considering what came out of the old one:



Now my question is, how worried should I be? This quite clearly says that the tanks are in a bad shape, how would I go about cleaning them?

I'm chasing down a rough idle issue so I'm wondering if the rusty tanks could be the cause (at least partially). The rough idling persisted after changing the fuel filter.

 

replace the filler cap seals, water may be getting in when you wash the car

drain the tanks, allow them to drip until dry on a dry hot day. Reseal them with new seals.

tthen fill the tanks with fresh gasoline and add a bottle of STP gas conditioner to each tank.

go for a long drive until you burn all the fuel, refill again and go back.

that ahould be all you need to do.

 

Hi, I just cleaned the tanks ( in car ) on a 1985 XJ6 that had been parked for 20 years. In addition to Jose's advice above, I would remove the big drain bungs in the bottom of the tanks ( the smaller drain bolts thread into these ) AFTER draining the gas using the drain bolts. You can then remove & replace the in tank pre-filter / screens which might be self destructing from old age ( mine were ). I would also remove the fuel senders ( EMPTY tanks only ! remove taillight assembly to access ) so you can look at the tank interiors and blown out any loose rust and grit. Mine looked like a coffee filter got dumped inside ! Make sure to have new seals for everything before starting, since the old ones will be toast, trust me ! Parts needed = two metal washers for tank drain bolts, two rubber seals for tank drain bungs, two rubber seals for sender units and two seals for tank fillers / caps if you change those like Jose recommended. I got my parts from SNG Barratt & Rockauto but other vendors have the parts as well. One last bit of advice, be careful not to over-tighten the drain bungs, it will make the new seals deform and leak. I'm going to do a thread soon showing what I did if you want to see pictures.

WARNING ******* Make sure to drain the tanks in a well ventilated area with no spark / flame sources nearby and have a fire extinguisher nearby just in case !!!

Cheers,
Brian

 

Thank you both! The car definitely needs enough parts now for me to justify an order from SNG Barratt, so I better get to it!

The job seems pretty straightforward but pictures will for sure be useful Brian.

 

Now would be a good time to install pre-filters upstream of the fuel pump just on GP.

There various ways of approaching this problem.

Years ago a pal of mine with rusty tanks took a minimalist approach and it worked well for him. He used pre-filters to do all the work for him, so to speak. He drained the tanks, and installed pre-filters, added fresh gas, drove the car. The filters clogged solid in a day or so. He replaced the filters 3 or 4 additional times in the course of a month or so, each time with longer intervals between, but had clear sailing for years afterward.

Just tossing the story out there under the idea of "there's more than one way to skin a cat"

Cheers
DD

 

Thanks for the suggestion Doug!

I think I'll drain the tanks as the car was sitting for a long time and install filters before the pump as well just as a preemptive measure. These filters can be smaller than the main fuel filter, correct?

Also, I think I found all of the parts I'll need, just want to confirm some things.
1) For the filler cap seals, I just need the rubber seal - part number AEU1470, not the whole seal and retainer assembly right? This the one?
2) Sender unit seal is ARA1502J?
3) When available, are the cheaper "original equipment parts" generally sufficient when it comes to seals and gaskets? I know there's a significant difference in quality with some actual parts, like the oil pressure sender, but I suppose for a piece of rubber I don't need to pay twice as much for the Jaguar part?

Thank you again!

 

Hi, did the dirty gas in the picture come out of the filter "in" side or the "out" side ? You will most likely need to flush the fuel lines then remove and clean the injectors after cleaning the tanks. That's what I had to do on my XJ6. I also replaced all the fuel hoses while I was doing it since they were all 36 years old, can you say fossilized rubber ! I'm not sure what's involved doing this on a XJ12 but I'm sure someone here or on the XJS forum can give advice.

Here are the part numbers you would need, I think the tank cap seals are just flat rubber, not the flat rings in your post. I used a number of URO brand parts from Rockauto as well a some things from SNG etc. Everything I got seems to be good quality, so I think you will be fine with aftermarket makers. They may even be better than original Jaguar "New Old Stock" that has been on the shelf for years dry rotting !

Fuel sender gaskets ARA1502 or ARA1502J
In tank screens / pre-filters CAC3762 or CBC5649
Tank sump / bung seal C26310
Tank drain bolt washer C26311

Fuel sender floats JLM772 or I used ones for a Jeep CJ6 1955-1986 part # 17729.01
My senders worked fine after cleaning ( 18 to 250 ohms ), but the floats leaked so I replaced them separately.

I'll start a thread tomorrow about bringing my Euro cat back to life with pictures of everything I mentioned above.

Cheers,
Brian

 

Brian,

the gas coming from the 'out' side was clean, so the filter was thankfully still doing its job. Replacing all of the hoses and injector seals is definitely on the list (along with many other things), first I need to find the proper fuel rail as my car is fitted with the older type for some reason.

My thoughts exactly.

Looking forward to your thread and thank you again!

Daniel

 

One more thing - looking to order the pre-filters, does anyone have a lead on fuel filters with 1/2" fittings similar to the recommended WIX 33299 available in Europe? Would a 10mm (3/8") filter work or will I have to order the right ones from the States?

 

A 3/8" would be risky to try without re-plumbing with new hoses. Or perhaps use reducing adapters? I wouldn't even try, personally. Just get the 1/2" filters. Somebody in Europe must have 'em !

Cheers
DD

 

That's what I thought too! At first. Now I'm not so sure. The only option I've found so far is a filter meant for LPG fuel. Looks similar on the outside but I haven't found any info on the difference between filters for LPG and petrol, so I'm unsure if it's OK to use.

 

Here's a picture of what I did. Added shut-off valves to each tank and added a pre-filter before the pump. Two pre-filters would be better, but the shut-off valves took up too much room and I gave them more importance. The metal pre-filter is a standard NAPA item and can be had with 1/2" in/out.

Dave