Fuel Tank Leak

Hi, i noticed today that the fuel tank below the drivers side of the landy (1991 90 200tdi) was leaking a small amount of diesel.

It looked like it was coming from between the plate, which i think protects it and the actual tank, and the tank itself.

It hasn't been leaking much but enough for me to be concerned. I've dried it off and am going to check it again tomorro. Has anyone else ever experienced this problem? Is it anything to be concerned about?

Thanks Terra Dog.

Terra Dog said:

Hi, i noticed today that the fuel tank below the drivers side of the landy (1991 90 200tdi) was leaking a small amount of diesel.

It looked like it was coming from between the plate, which i think protects it and the actual tank, and the tank itself.

It hasn't been leaking much but enough for me to be concerned. I've dried it off and am going to check it again tomorro. Has anyone else ever experienced this problem? Is it anything to be concerned about?

Thanks Terra Dog.

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Yep my old fuel tank sprung a leak between the tank and the steel skin and it got progressively worse (as you might expect). Check to make sure that the seals on top of your fuel tank around the fuel pickup pipe, the return pipe and the sender unit aren't leaking, because when you drive around corners or fill your tank to the brim, fuel will just work its way out and down the side of your tank. If all is dry on top, swap the tank. The cavity between the tank and the skin is a bit of a salt, water and mud trap unfortunately. The only way to fix it is to take the old tank out and put a new one in. Its not a hard job and you could do it in an afternoon. Don't buy a BritPart tank mind (around £90), they're made from the thinnest steel you can find and the paint washes straight off Also, make sure that before you fit it you give it a bit of prep. Apply a few more layers of paint be it black hammerite or BBQ paint etc and then waxoyl the gap between the tank and the skin.

There's a bracket supporting the tank at the front:- one bolt through the lip of the tank and then two bolts securing the bracket to the chassis (a bit fiddly) and then there are maybe a couple of bolts at the back too (can't remember). Take out the drivers seat and remove the seat box cover, remove the sender unit, pick up pipe and return pipe, disconnect the fuel filler and breather pipe from the filler neck and then keep whacking the bastard thing really hard with a mallet until it drops out. It's held up with a lip that is tucked over the top of your chassis rail, so take care not to trap the fuel lines or sender unit wires between the tank lip and the chassis. It'll eventually come down and out. Then, when fitting the new tank, position it correctly, stick a block of wood underneath it and then jack it up until it pops into place. I started lifting my 90 off the ground before it popped up. The other alternative is to remove the seat box and the sill and do it that way but thats a total arse of a job.

Don't leave it to long before you swap it because you'll suddenly end up with a trickle of diesel as I found out.

-Pos

OK cool, i'll probly send it to liveridge for that to be done. Sounds like a mission. Flippin never ending repair machine by the looks of it. It is 19 years old so spose its expected. The bloody alternator has given up on it aswell.

I hope it's not a never ending money gobbler. Are all landys like this?

Terra Dog said:

OK cool, i'll probly send it to liveridge for that to be done. Sounds like a mission. Flippin never ending repair machine by the looks of it. It is 19 years old so spose its expected. The bloody alternator has given up on it aswell.

I hope it's not a never ending money gobbler. Are all landys like this?

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FFS a blind man wirth one hand could change a fuel tank on a 90. Liveridge will rip yu off big style if yu take it there.

Why don't ya ask Si or Oil dripper to give yu a hand with it. few beer tokens and ya sorted

Yeh get yourself a tank and I'll no nails it on for you

Terra Dog said:

OK cool, i'll probly send it to liveridge for that to be done. Sounds like a mission. Flippin never ending repair machine by the looks of it. It is 19 years old so spose its expected. The bloody alternator has given up on it aswell.

I hope it's not a never ending money gobbler. Are all landys like this?

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Mine's nearing 24 years old now and it's proving to be a reliable vehicle even though it does have its moments, and always at the most uninvited of times. Don't worry too much though, once you work your way through the problems it'll usually behave its self for a good few years before it needs anything doing again (besides servicing etc.). Also make sure that you buy good parts, don't opt for Britpart because they're a cheap option, because the part will last about 1/4 of the life of a better part that might only be a tenner or so more. Also don't be fooled into paying silly prices for official Land Rover parts, some of which are made no better than Britpart components. Winter is always the time of year that I've run into problems, most of them minor and some of them have been things that haven't really needed doing but which I do anyway for the sake of preventing a problem from cropping up. It's just sods law that you have to change your oil laying down in the snow or fit a fuel tank in the rain because the amount of salt on the roads has seen it off! What jobs have you had to do to it? There's never anything too trivial really, maybe time consuming at most. You'll love it through Summer, I can promise you that.

-Pos

So far i've just changed the oil in the tranferbox, gearbox and engine, which took me two hours on a sunday. The other prob is the alternator, and obviously now the fuel tank. Where did you get your fuel tank from pos, or where would you recomend?

Redhand, when you say ask si or oil dripper to help me would they be up for it. Do you know them personally? Are they ocal to south birmingham?

Terra Dog said:

So far i've just changed the oil in the tranferbox, gearbox and engine, which took me two hours on a sunday. The other prob is the alternator, and obviously now the fuel tank. Where did you get your fuel tank from pos, or where would you recomend?

Redhand, when you say ask si or oil dripper to help me would they be up for it. Do you know them personally? Are they ocal to south birmingham?

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yes Yes (don't let Si near ya pies though) Stourbridge

yeah try it yourself! when i got my 1990 90 a year ago it was the very first job i did, either power wash the chassis or get yourself a pair of googles (cause of the muck) and a few spanners and your sorted..

drain the tank

leave to dry out for a bit

remove necessary bolts as mentioned by pos

get yourself a few new bolts to replace old ones and a few jubilee clips for fuel lines

then replace tank (i managed to get my new one in without the aid of any jack) although probably easier that way!

you will prob save yourself a few fills of diesel both by changing it and not paying someone else to do it!

oh and i ordered mine from mm-4x4 if its any help!

as said above. i ignored mine dripping a bit until one day it emptied it guts and i then had to work out how to get the thing home with no fuel or fuel tank! not fun.

i paid like £70 for my new one off ebay new. does the job. bit of a pig to get in and out but very doable. i bent a crowbar doing mine just make sure you get the right number of holes on the top!

oh, and another thing. use the fuel up first rather than deciding to drain it when its full as thats a horrible job!!

Does anyone know what tank to get, i just looked on paddocks and there asking for a chassi number starting from AA blahblahblah to WA Blahblahblah???

Mines a 1991 90 Defender 200tdi

Any one live near Brum and fancy earnin a few drinks givin me a hand that know what there doin?

I have a galvanised 90 fuel tank sitting around doing nowt. Just need to try and remember who collected it for me :doh:

Terra Dog said:

Does anyone know what tank to get, i just looked on paddocks and there asking for a chassi number starting from AA blahblahblah to WA Blahblahblah???

Mines a 1991 90 Defender 200tdi

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Yours will probably be an HA.

The fuel tanks that you're looking at on Paddocks WILL be Britpart fuel tanks, they stock nothing else tank wise from what I can remember. The best thing you can do is give them a ring and ask them if they do have an alternative to a Britpart tank just on the off chance. If you do have to go for a Britpart tank, prepare it well before you put it into place. Allmakes4x4 and Bearmach might also make fuel tanks I'm not too sure. Some of Allmakes4x4's stuff is absolute ****e too, they're slowly becoming the new Britpart.

As for what redhand said about getting some help, just send a private message to 'Sirus' (who posted a reply on the first page of this thread) or 'oil dripper' and ask them very nicely The worst they can say is no! (well they could tell you to feck orf!)

-Pos

Does anyone know what tank i need to get, it's a 1991 defender 90 200tdi?

Buster i just looked at the chassis number on in the log book and our right it say numerous letters and numbbers then HA followed by more numbers. But i still havn't a clue what tank to get.

do you think that HA comes between AA and WA?

ESR2242 Fuel tank - 90 from chassis no AA243343 to WA159806

Terra Dog said:

Buster i just looked at the chassis number on in the log book and our right it say numerous letters and numbbers then HA followed by more numbers. But i still havn't a clue what tank to get.

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Aye that's the one As fur yer tank, ah'd take a guess at part number ESR2242. Ye might want tae google it to be sure tho'