Ahh crap!

Ok so colleague comes into my workroom and asks "Have you got an oil leak?", no i replies, "well your landy stinks of diesel and there is oil on the carpark!", bollocks i think to myself.

Has a look and yes, the rear n/s bumper is oily and the side of the tank is wet, its been raining but this was oily wet.

Now, two things go through my mind - i caught it with the drill when doing my rear floor OR i just overfilled it last night as i topped it right off.

Luckily its not 'dripping' so either it has stopped leaking now or the damn thing is empty

I have checked around the sender unit and all is dry so no pipes split etc its definately on the n/s area of the tank and only started when i filled last night.

So, question is, whats the procedure for dropping the tank, obviously i'll run it way down first but are there any notable things i need to do???

Landrovers eh!

Dave

didnt these have an issue with split pipes on the tank top?
would have a peek under the access plate in back before dropping the tank!

hope you havent drilled it! i came close to this when i drilled the spot welds out along the rear floor under back door.....

I flipped the lid and checked and it all seems ok on the tank top.

It may have been an existing issue as i've never topped her off before. But knowing my luck i drilled it, cant see how though 'cos i was being overly careful, even used a spacer tube on the drill bit to limit the depth.

If it dries up, i'll just not fill it until i can drop the tank when it warms up a bit.

Dave

it was the not dripping bit that prompted me to say pipes. with engine not running no pressure on pipework.
perhaps a holed tank and sloshing causing it to come out while moving?
park it on a side slope and try and make it drip?
worth looking at underside and engine bay for signs of wetness - if diesels been blown back from a leak further forward, during travelling?
will keep watchin'!

It definately seems to be the n/s rear quarter, the chassis is wet, silencer is wet, tow-bar, rear bumper too but only in that corner.

Forward seems ok.

I'll check tonight to see if the drive is soaked but the wife's not yelling at me so it cant be too bad

Bloody buggery.

The ABS light is still ok though

The ABS light is still ok though

lol ace!

hope the floor aint rivited to the tank......!

nrgserv said:

The ABS light is still ok though

lol ace!

hope the floor aint rivited to the tank......!

Click to expand...

Now theres a thought!

Nah, if i did drill it, i cant see how. More likely that i split something by kneeling on it.

Dave

If it's a feed pipe I wouldve thought the engine would run noticably rougher

When i was a young lad I had a Capri and the spare wheel was floating on about 4" of water, so clever ole me being lazy drills a 6mm hole in the floor to let the water out, but it never appeared

Yep I drilled the tank and thats where it all went :doh: into half a tank of petrol.

Did i get some stick over that one!

Capri = excellent motor, if you sort the suspension out

Anyways, i got home tonight, had a look and the rear door, bumper and spare wheel are covered in oil spray Underneath is soaked now and dripping off, still in the rear corner. It stops after a few minutes which points to it being caused by it being full and sloshing around.

Looking at this picture...


I reckon it could be that breather/vent pipe on the n/s of the tank, what do you reckon????

Either way it'll have to come out, but now its got £90 worth of go-go juice in it, i couldnt lift it so i'll maybe have to syphon some out then drive the rest off until its almost empty???

Any better ideas, and NO i'm not taking the bloody floor out!!!!!

Dave

Worked for me with the disco 2 but i dunno if the 300tdi will not stop or what will happen cos the fuelling system is quite different(worth a try): When i needed to "extract" fuel from the tank i've collected it in a can from the fuel filter's sediment plug with running engine.....came out about 2 liters/min. with revved engine

is it me or does the n/s look a bit darker / damper than the rest?

guess its syphon, or a cheapy fuel transfer pump then. least theres a big hole in the top to get the pipes in. (i use a vacuum diaphragm pump now, but not everyone has one kicking about. what bout one o them you stick in a drill?)_

i once used a wet an dry vac to get the last bits o fuel out of a tank once...
made the vac stink everytime i used it after that! (dont do it with petrol!)

you could allus drill a hole in the bottom and put a bucket under it........

edit- done before but not with diesel tank-
pull pipes from pickup and return.
attach pipe from pickup long enough to reach container
attach compressed airline ro return
slowly increase pressure at regulator to push fuel.
dont rush!
(did it on a 45 gallon drum to empty it more controlled than tipping it up)

I think the drill pump is the best option. Is dropping the tank a difficult task??

I'm guessing the big nut thingy on top has to come off and the fill pipe?

Then is it just a matter of releasing the clamps and dropping her out?

Dave

Careful, most drill pumps are not suitable for fuel.
I bailed 40quids worth of diesel into a couple of 20L drums using a cup from top of tank, doesn't take that long just make sure you're wearing gloves!

never dropped a disco tank so wouldnt really know.
remove feed and spil pipes, level sender wiring, big screw thing as you say, pull sender unit from tank. remove tank contents. think its held in with a cradle or straps, bolted unerneath, but not done this bit afore.

Yep there's a metal brace holding it (underneath the large plate)

I'm sure you will find all the nuts and bolts rusted solid and you will have to remove the tow bar as well. Good luck

tow bar brackets.... yeah forgot those....

one of those moments when a thought pops into your head-
drain some derv out,
shine a torch between tank and boot floor (maybe from under wheel arch)
stick a mirror into tank and look for light holes.

was avin a crap when this one came to me.....

Richard Martin said:

I'm sure you will find all the nuts and bolts rusted solid and you will have to remove the tow bar as well. Good luck

Click to expand...

Oh bollox:doh:

sounds like another fun job, not!

I might just drain it down a bit and wait untill next year when it warms up. I'm a bit ****ed off with it at the moment because i thought it was nicely sorted after the floor doings. She's driving like a dream too just to make it more annoying.

Buggery.

nrgserv said:

was avin a crap when this one came to me.....

Click to expand...

Sometimes thats the best place for thinking