On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 16:18:03 +0100, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

In article 20180414160459.7f88fe98@Mars,
Rob Morley wrote:
On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 15:45:45 +0100 Graeme
wrote:

One day, I'll look at the fuel gauge, which reads permanently empty.

Does it have a "reserve" setting on the tank? My Triumph Vitesse
(Herald) did, together with a manual priming lever on the fuel pump.

No reserve and an electric SU pump on a moggy.

Moggy pump starter == Birmingham screwdriver.

Done that a few times.

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In message 20180414160459.7f88fe98@Mars, Rob Morley
writes
On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 15:45:45 +0100
Graeme wrote:

One day, I'll look at the fuel gauge, which reads permanently empty.

Does it have a "reserve" setting on the tank? My Triumph Vitesse
(Herald) did, together with a manual priming lever on the fuel pump.

Sadly not, and the pump is electric in a Minor.

--
Graeme

On 14/04/18 17:32, Bob Eager wrote:
On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 14:53:02 +0000, Huge wrote:

On 2018-04-14, Rob Morley wrote:
On 13 Apr 2018 10:48:44 GMT Huge wrote:

On 2018-04-13, Graeme wrote:

Why did I ever start this ... :-)

A question I frequently ask myself when DIY is involved.


A question I've occasionally asked myself while lying under a car on
Sunday evening, when I'll need it to drive to work on Monday morning.

BTDT, too. Replacing the thermostat on a 3 litre Capri, in the road, in
the dark and ****ing rain, when I'll need it to drive to work on Monday
morning.

I got really good at Mini fan belts. Must have done dozens. Mini vans
were a sod, though.

Triumph 1300 engine rebuilds, Done several


--
"The great thing about Glasgow is that if there's a nuclear attack it'll
look exactly the same afterwards."

Billy Connolly

On Saturday, 14 April 2018 15:52:51 UTC+1, Graeme wrote:
In message 20180414145503.793d5e5b@Mars, Rob Morley
writes
On 13 Apr 2018 10:48:44 GMT
Huge wrote:
On 2018-04-13, Graeme wrote:

Why did I ever start this ... :-)
A question I frequently ask myself when DIY is involved.

A question I've occasionally asked myself while lying under a car on
Sunday evening, when I'll need it to drive to work on Monday morning.

I think we've all been there, in days of yore :-)

Luckily, this Traveller is fun only, so no deadlines. The parts having
arrived, and the sun shining this morning I changed the heater control
and fitted the new bottom hose, and went for a run. So far, so good ...

One day, I'll look at the fuel gauge, which reads permanently empty.

--
Graeme

From memory the fuel gauge sender is under floor mat in the boot/behind rear seats. Just a float and a rheostat.
The floats were very prone to leaking and filling with petrol and sinking to the tank bottom..
Just two halves soldered together. This gives a permanent"empty" signal.




The fuel tank is like a bath that sits on the "floor" secured with about six screws through the rim into the floor.

On Saturday, 14 April 2018 16:05:02 UTC+1, Rob Morley wrote:
On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 15:45:45 +0100
Graeme wrote:

One day, I'll look at the fuel gauge, which reads permanently empty.

Does it have a "reserve" setting on the tank? My Triumph Vitesse
(Herald) did, together with a manual priming lever on the fuel pump.

Moggie has electric fuel pump. Prone to sticking.
Can be heard ticking away,

In message ,
harry writes

Moggie has electric fuel pump. Prone to sticking.
Can be heard ticking away,

Indeed, although silent when I unwrapped the car, post winter, a couple
of weeks ago. Removed the cover from the contacts, sprayed with contact
cleaner and wiggled back and forth a few times, and now ticking reliably
again. Until the next time :-)
--
Graeme

In message ,
harry writes

From memory the fuel gauge sender is under floor mat in the boot/behind
rear seats. Just a float and a rheostat.

A job planned for later this morning. This vehicle is a Traveller
rather than saloon, so has a 'false floor' with a gap below for the
spare wheel. The temptation is to stuff other things under there too,
so there is a fair chance the wire has been knocked off the sender. Will
investigate and report back.
--
Graeme

In message ,
harry writes

From memory the fuel gauge sender is under floor mat in the boot/behind
rear seats. Just a float and a rheostat.

Thinking aloud here. Were I to disconnect the wire from the tank
sender, and short it to earth, assuming wiring and gauge OK, the gauge
will then read 'full', confirming the fault is with the sender?

I'll check the fuse first!

--
Graeme

In article ,
Bob Eager wrote:
On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 16:04:59 +0100, Rob Morley wrote:

On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 15:45:45 +0100 Graeme
wrote:

One day, I'll look at the fuel gauge, which reads permanently empty.

Does it have a "reserve" setting on the tank? My Triumph Vitesse
(Herald) did, together with a manual priming lever on the fuel pump.

Don't think Travellers ever had them. Different shape tank to a Vitesse,
too. I only remember seeing them on Heralds and Vitesses.

Don't think the tank shape matters. Just two pipes drawing from different
levels, and a changeover valve.

--
*If we weren't meant to eat animals, why are they made of meat?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article ,
Graeme wrote:
In message ,
harry writes

From memory the fuel gauge sender is under floor mat in the boot/behind
rear seats. Just a float and a rheostat.

Thinking aloud here. Were I to disconnect the wire from the tank
sender, and short it to earth, assuming wiring and gauge OK, the gauge
will then read 'full', confirming the fault is with the sender?

I'll check the fuse first!

On the Minors I knew, only two fuses. So lots of other things not working
if one blew.

You could also measure the resistance of the tank unit between full and
empty. If that doesn't change, you have the answer. IHMO it's more likely
to fail than the gauge itself.

Checking the gauge as you said is a good idea.

--
*Failure is not an option. It's bundled with your software.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Sun, 15 Apr 2018 10:43:42 +0100, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

In article ,
Bob Eager wrote:
On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 16:04:59 +0100, Rob Morley wrote:

On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 15:45:45 +0100 Graeme
wrote:

One day, I'll look at the fuel gauge, which reads permanently empty.

Does it have a "reserve" setting on the tank? My Triumph Vitesse
(Herald) did, together with a manual priming lever on the fuel pump.

Don't think Travellers ever had them. Different shape tank to a
Vitesse,
too. I only remember seeing them on Heralds and Vitesses.

Don't think the tank shape matters. Just two pipes drawing from
different levels, and a changeover valve.

I thought the Triumph one was divided vertically, which was why I
mentioned it.



--
My posts are my copyright and if @diy_forums or Home Owners' Hub
wish to copy them they can pay me £1 a message.
Use the BIG mirror service in the UK: http://www.mirrorservice.org
*lightning surge protection* - a w_tom conductor

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)"
writes
In article ,
Graeme wrote:

I'll check the fuse first!

On the Minors I knew, only two fuses. So lots of other things not working
if one blew.

Quite right - I thought about that after sending :-)

You could also measure the resistance of the tank unit between full and
empty. If that doesn't change, you have the answer. IHMO it's more likely
to fail than the gauge itself.

The answer turned out to be very simple - having hoiked the spare wheel
out, I found the wire off the sender terminal! Reconnected, and all is
well.
--
Graeme

On Friday, 13 April 2018 10:44:13 UTC+1, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Huge wrote:
On 2018-04-13, Graeme wrote:

[11 lines snipped]

Just been talking to my brother, and telling him how my son is amazed
that, when doing stuff on the Morris, I can find almost any tool I need
in the shed. Will my lifetime's collection of tools ever be used after
my demise, or will they become landfill? We just don't see kids today
fixing old bangers in the way most of us did 40-50 years ago. Then
again, I open the bonnet of a modern car and quickly close it again.

I picked up my "new" (5 y/o) car, yesterday. I can't even see where the
spark plugs are, never mind get at them. (*) I do wish the manufacturers
would stop deleting dip-sticks, though. Not only is there no dipstick,
but I have to go through a stupid dance to check the oil level (warm
engine, stop engine, wait 10 minutes, access "oil level" function in
electronic dashboard.

(* And why should I pay £95/hr for someone to remove and replace all
those plastic covers over the engine? What are they even for?)

Thing is you may never need to access those plugs. Many have a 100,000
mile life. Covers to stop dirt, damage, etc may be no bad thing.
An electronic 'dipstick' can also give a warning if the oil level is low.
Many people simply ain't capable of using a dipstick and wouldn't know
where to find it anyway. Or add oil themselves.

-



Electric cars don't have any of that stuff.

In article ,
harry wrote:
Thing is you may never need to access those plugs. Many have a 100,000
mile life. Covers to stop dirt, damage, etc may be no bad thing.
An electronic 'dipstick' can also give a warning if the oil level is low.
Many people simply ain't capable of using a dipstick and wouldn't know
where to find it anyway. Or add oil themselves.

-
Electric cars don't have any of that stuff.

Just ultra expensive batteries to fail. When they're not flat anyway, of
course.

--
*My wife and I had words. But I didn't get to use mine.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Fri, 13 Apr 2018 00:30:57 -0700 (PDT), harry
wrote:

The later bypass hoses were corrugated.

Aftermarket ones were, but not iirc from the factory

Much later (on the A+ introduced on the Metro and Mini) they eliminated the
short bypass hose altogether by using a sandwich plate with a hose spigot
between the head casting and under the themostat elbow connecting to a T on a
radiator hose.

The cylinder head under the thermostat housing was initially blanked with a
screw in plug and later modified so it no longer had any provison for the
screwed in bypass spigot, the water pump also being redesigned to have no bypass
provision
--

On 15 Apr 2018 10:12:52 GMT
Bob Eager wrote:

I thought the Triumph one was divided vertically, which was why I
mentioned it.

AFAIR just two (concentric?) pipes in the tank, one reaching the bottom
and the other not quite, you twisted something on top of the tank to go
from regular to reserve. I'm guessing that also had the advantage of
the higher pipe not picking up crud and water from the bottom of the
tank in normal use, while you could squeeze out the last gallon when
needed.

On Wednesday, 18 April 2018 18:19:29 UTC+1, Rob Morley wrote:
On 15 Apr 2018 10:12:52 GMT
Bob Eager wrote:

I thought the Triumph one was divided vertically, which was why I
mentioned it.

AFAIR just two (concentric?) pipes in the tank, one reaching the bottom
and the other not quite, you twisted something on top of the tank to go
from regular to reserve. I'm guessing that also had the advantage of
the higher pipe not picking up crud and water from the bottom of the
tank in normal use, while you could squeeze out the last gallon when
needed.

It's a complex/expensive way to let you know the tank is near empty. I guess it dates from the days before dashboard fuel gauges were widespread.


NT

In article ,
wrote:
On Wednesday, 18 April 2018 18:19:29 UTC+1, Rob Morley wrote:
On 15 Apr 2018 10:12:52 GMT
Bob Eager wrote:

I thought the Triumph one was divided vertically, which was why I
mentioned it.

AFAIR just two (concentric?) pipes in the tank, one reaching the bottom
and the other not quite, you twisted something on top of the tank to go
from regular to reserve. I'm guessing that also had the advantage of
the higher pipe not picking up crud and water from the bottom of the
tank in normal use, while you could squeeze out the last gallon when
needed.

It's a complex/expensive way to let you know the tank is near empty. I
guess it dates from the days before dashboard fuel gauges were
widespread.


Yes. And still quite common on motorbikes long after most car makers had
abandoned it.

--
*Never miss a good chance to shut up *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 18/04/2018 23:38, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
wrote:
On Wednesday, 18 April 2018 18:19:29 UTC+1, Rob Morley wrote:
On 15 Apr 2018 10:12:52 GMT
Bob Eager wrote:

I thought the Triumph one was divided vertically, which was why I
mentioned it.

AFAIR just two (concentric?) pipes in the tank, one reaching the bottom
and the other not quite, you twisted something on top of the tank to go
from regular to reserve. I'm guessing that also had the advantage of
the higher pipe not picking up crud and water from the bottom of the
tank in normal use, while you could squeeze out the last gallon when
needed.

It's a complex/expensive way to let you know the tank is near empty. I
guess it dates from the days before dashboard fuel gauges were
widespread.

Yes. And still quite common on motorbikes long after most car makers had
abandoned it.

I thought the usual way with motorbikes was to have separate pipes to
either lobe of the tank (which straddled the crossbar), with a three
position lever designated 'off', 'main' and 'reserve'. (Though the
distinction between 'main' and 'reserve' was arbitrary as the tank is
symmetrical; the reason that the main tank contains more fuel is that it
effectively includes the common area above the crossbar.)

--
Max Demian

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Bob Eager wrote:
On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 16:04:59 +0100, Rob Morley wrote:

On Sat, 14 Apr 2018 15:45:45 +0100 Graeme
wrote:

One day, I'll look at the fuel gauge, which reads permanently empty.

Does it have a "reserve" setting on the tank? My Triumph Vitesse
(Herald) did, together with a manual priming lever on the fuel pump.

Don't think Travellers ever had them. Different shape tank to a Vitesse,
too. I only remember seeing them on Heralds and Vitesses.

Don't think the tank shape matters. Just two pipes drawing from different
levels, and a changeover valve.


Was the Triumph one that sophisticated? I thought it was just a higher
section in the tank that when you operated the lever it just drained that
into the main tank, normally when filling this compartment was already full
and just overflowed into the main section..


GH

harry

Thing is you may never need to access those plugs. Many have a 100,000
mile life. Covers to stop dirt, damage, etc may be no bad thing.
An electronic 'dipstick' can also give a warning if the oil level is low.
Many people simply ain't capable of using a dipstick and wouldn't know
where to find it anyway. Or add oil themselves.

-



Electric cars don't have any of that stuff.

Theres at least one in or near the West Midlands that has a dipstick in
it.

GH

On 19/04/18 22:39, Marland wrote:
harry

Thing is you may never need to access those plugs. Many have a 100,000
mile life. Covers to stop dirt, damage, etc may be no bad thing.
An electronic 'dipstick' can also give a warning if the oil level is low.
Many people simply ain't capable of using a dipstick and wouldn't know
where to find it anyway. Or add oil themselves.

-



Electric cars don't have any of that stuff.

Theres at least one in or near the West Midlands that has a dipstick in
it.

And a weird nut behind the steering wheel.
GH





--
"Women actually are capable of being far more than the feminists will
let them."