1934 Rover 12 Petrol tank

[digcot65]

Morning,as a matter of interest is there a filter on the petrol pickup pipe at the end of the pipe going into the fuel tank I noticed the other day that the car was having a fuel problem,the SU pump was continually running.I thought there was enough fuel in the tank,however the car was going up quite a steep hill and that may have been the reason. Len

[digcot65]

Sorry I forgot to add there are two pipes coming off the outlet connector on the top of the tank Whether this was a return flow for the original mechanical fuel pump and will it make any difference now it has an SU pumpLen

[TonyG]

Len,

If your car is like my P1 Tourer then you should have a gauze covered pick up in the tank to filter the fuel. There are two pipes within the pick up; one for normal use and one that is longer for the reserve. The change over from normal to reserve is achieved by pulling a knob located outside the car, which operates the change over mechanism at the top of the pick up pipe.

In practice, the cork seals in the change over valve leak. I modified mine and did away with the reserve, using just the longer of the pick up pipes.

You shouldn't have two fuel lines to the tank and there was no return pipe with the mechanical pump.

Tony

[digcot65]

The knob for the reserve has been removed possible it was seized,that`s why there are the two pipes I think Ill take the connection off the tank and remove it to see if the gauze is clean Len

[digcot65]

Morning I take it, that when the two pipes are disconnected from the tank,the outlet unscrews Len

[TonyG]

Len,

Yes, the unit will unscrew from the tank. However, I think you will find that only one of them is a fuel pipe. The other is the mechanism for switching the reserve. I could be wrong as it's six years since I looked at mine! Have you traced the pipes to the engine bay? I'd be surprised if you have two arriving. All will become clear when you remove the unit.

If your fuel pump is drawing air it's possible that the change mechanism is leaking or that you are only getting fuel from the normal pick up and not the reserve. As such it would appear to be out of petrol when, in fact, you have some in there.

With the seals leaking and the change over mechanism very worn I modified mine so that only the reserve pick up worked, giving access to all fuel and removing the chance of leaks. However, you need to be confident there is no muck or debris in the bottom of the tank or you will be drawing that up.

Tony.

[TonyG]

Len,

Looking at the picture again, the LHS ‘pipe’ is actually the operating rod for the reserve. The RHS pipe goes to the engine bay.

Tony.

[digcot65]

Think about me getting the SU pump rattling as I was driving up the hill where I live ,the reserve knob was solid and I suspect the reserve tap is seizedand possible not switched onto reserve.This would account for there being a small amount of fuel in the tank ,but not reaching the tube,any way we`ll see today when I check the pipes Len

[digcot65]

Found the problem,the slider in the reserve tap has seized ans was locked in the position ,not on reserve.So it was unable to draw petrol up the longer tube I`ll remove the pipe with the cork on it and replace the end,to seal the hole .No reserve tank,but I know where I am Len

[TonyG]

Len,

It must be modified such that fuel can only glow up the longest pick up pipe. The short one must be sealed or you will be sucking air once you get to the reserve fuel.

Tony