Tank Oddity

After getting the ID question resolved, it's full steam ahead once again. Tonight I removed the final lights, chrome and tanks from both cars, so they're now down to running gear and engine/gearbox. The right tank is a piece of cake, just undo the strap, take off the cap, release the fuel line and vent line, and pull it out.

The left tank is another story.

In all their brilliance, BMC decided that the left tank should have a drain. Sounds reasonable, right? When it's maintenance time, you can attach tubing to it, then loosen it, drain the tanks, and then proceed. Trouble is, the drain tube is about 4 1/2 inches long, and passes through the boot floor towards the ground. You guessed it, with that tubing in place, you can't get the tank out. So the "easy" solution is to weld two deep sockets together end-to-end, and then use them to release it. But then, of course, you can't have tubing on the drain and it becomes messy in a hurry. All with a battery about 1 1/2 feet away...

I managed to figure out a way to raise the tank in place enough so that I could get vice grips on the drain from inside the boot, which saved the day (and the batteries are already long gone on both cars). I'll end up replacing the drains, but would have done that anyway. You should have seen the rusty sludge that came out of all four tanks. My favorite part was finding the remains of a locking gas cap inside the left tank for the '70. Yep, lock cylinder, and some corroded metal and plastic around it. I am still scratching my head on how someone managed to get it in there. In the photo, you can see the drain with tubing, and the locking cap remains are on the ground.

I also found more money in both cars tonight. Another cent in the '66, and another 10 cents in the '70. My grand total now is AU$4.42! If it keeps up like this, I'll make money on the project!

My dad will be visiting for the next three days, so I'm sure we'll be geeking out over the cars and what direction to take with them. I got my first good look at the underside of the '70 tonight, and it is very solid save a few big dents from running off curbs, over rocks, etc. Both cars have dents right behind the front wheels in the floorpans, and it makes sense that when you drive over anything like an angled curb, that's the point that's going to hit and get bent.

At this point, I'm pretty sure I'll be replacing both cars' wiring harnesses, and the '66 full interior. It is pretty rough, and for $600 I can have all new cards/vinyl/etc., and then would just need to handle the seats. I'll also get the premium carpet for both which runs under $200 and even has the plastic parts that the front seats ride on. A nice touch. Dash and headliner remains to be determined on the '70, but that will also probably get replaced on the '66. It is clear that the '66 did a lot of sitting in the weather at some point in its life, with the resulting damage. Fortunately, with more than 5 million minis made, there are ample parts vendors all over the place. And in Australia there are several really good ones, who carry the parts specific to the Australian models, so I may well be able to do a very authentic restoration for these guys.

Signing off for now.