Hi, everyone...
Well, the gas tank problem has been solved. Not bad gas. Not a hole in
the fuel feed line inside the tank. Just lots of rust and water in the
gas, caused by the car sitting idle with only a half tank of gas for
five years. Rust was clogging up the sock at the bottom of the fuel feed
line, starving the carburetor. When fresh gas was added to the tank, the
agitation apparently rinsed enough of the rust off so it would be OK for
a short while.
I searched the AMC web site and asked several people for a 1973 Gremlin
tank. I got offers of $25 and $50 but neither one verified the
measurements, though I asked twice. As I understand it, 1973 Gremlins
were made in 4-, 6-, and 8- cylinder models, and the gas tanks for each
is a different size. Putting a 10 gallon tank on a Bricklin that gets
10-11 mpg is not real practical. So getting the right size (at least a
20 gallon) is important.
The solution was to empty and remove the tank, flush it out with alcohol
or similar, plug all man-made holes except for the filler pipe, dump in
one quart of gas tank sealer (available from old car parts suppliers and
JC Whitney for $25 - $30), plug the filler pipe, swish that around until
the entire inside is coated, unplug the filler pipe and turn the tank
upside down to drain the excess overnight. Allow 24-72 hours to dry
before reinstalling and refilling.
Gas tank sealer will seal all small holes (I didn't have any) and, most
important, traps any rust between itself and metal on the outside. The
sealer prohibits oxygen from getting to the rust, and therefore, even
though the rust is still there, it cannot do anything without oxygen.
That's just the nature of rust. So far, the car's running great and it's
a real joy to be on the road again. I just love this car!!! There's some
hesitation when I hit the gas and a Holly carburetor should fix that.
And the clutch chatters when taking off in first or reverse. So that
needs consideration. Otherwise, everyuthing's just great.
BTW: The tip on sealer was given to me by Zeke, who owns 3 Bricklins and
3 cars/trucks from the 1920s and 1930s. He swears by this stuff and
says, of all the old cars he's worked on, he's never replaced a gas
tank. As long as there are no gaping holes, this stuff works.
Best to all. Hope to be in Lexington if health issues allow.
--
William (Bill) H. Whitney, Bricklin VIN #624
AITP Central/North Jersey Chapter (#377) Liaison and Region 13 List
Manager
AITP Internet Forum Administrator
Owner, Micro Business Applications, dBase/Clipper/FoxPro consultant
|