Nige65

That looks like it could work, thanks 👍

Not sure what the difference is between a standard float and one from a long range South African tank but I will take up your offer thanks, moving house next week so will wait until I have settled in and will send the new address and funds 👍

I still had the problem after everything that I had tried, the last resort was to take a flyer and buy a air new filter, it had a chrome pancake style fitted as seems to be common on SA Sports so changed it for a K&N, guess what, it worked so I can only assume that the old one was clogged and choking the engine under load, especially up hills. I still need to have the engine set up properly but don't seem to have the spare time at the moment plus a house move next week is going to be a challenge! With regards to the issue that I have with the plastic fuel tank float being knackered, I decided to buy a cork keyring, the type that mariners use to attach important items to in case they drop them overboard and fashion a new float the same shape, it seemed to work for a while but I believe that it has become saturated and not rising with the fuel so have asked the design team at work if they can fashion a 3D copy in a suitable material, we will see (unless someone out there has a useable spare that I could purchase).

When I was a youngster I lived in Hong Kong for a couple of years (dad was in the Navy), we returned to Cornwall in 1973 and on returning dad had to buy a car, against my Grandad's advice of a Mk3 Cortina he bought a Singer Gazelle (HEJ972G), it was okay but not great and beige. Roll on to 1977 and dad decided to change said Gazelle and opted for a burgundy Renault 16TS (TOR668H I think), this was different, front wheel drive, column change, twin choke carb, electric windows, comfy ride and seats, etc, we all loved it. Roll on to 1979 and another move, this time to Hampshire and as we lived 15 miles away from school I was always picked up by mum or dad, this was before 'schools runs' were the norm and I always felt a bit embarrassed, imagine my horror when dad turned up in a white Austin Maxi (MOY298L), I hated it and wouldn't speak to dad on the journey home, it was bad and needed the gearbox changing after about 2 months, I have no good memories so let's roll on to 1982ish and dad bought another Renault 16 albeit the lesser spotted TL model but still a nice car and one that I was old enough to be able to drive whilst we owned it. It was eventually replaced by a Renault 14TL. Now my dad passed away nearly 6 years ago and on having a butchers at model cars on the bay, I came across this little fella, made a couple of bids and won him, the plan is to strip and repaint as per the burgundy 16TS and place next to a photo my late dad, sentimental I know but why not and thanks for reading! PS, Does anyone have an idea on the best way to reattach the chassis to the body once the mushroom heads on the posts have been drilled out?

Another police Escort, this one is buried in snow near Helston in Cornwall around January 1979!

‘G’ could possibly be a Guernsey number plate but not sure about the LHD!

I have a Mk3 Focus and all of the door seals have required re-adhering back into their locations, I frequently see Focuses with door seals hanging out from under the doors. Can't believe a company as big as Ford couldn't have come up with a decent solution at the design stage.

I hope so, that is if the filler cap rubber seal does its job but will find out when I fill the tank up!

Bit the bullet at the weekend and decided to remove the fuel tank for a clean, I have been putting it off due to ill health but the time had come (I have also had both knees replaced which doesn't enable me to kneel down, not easy when working inside the car). The issue that I had with the plastic float being holed and filling with petrol was (I thought) resolved by using a sealant/adhesive, this worked okay but as can be seen by the photos, the petrol caused it to degrade, turn to gel and come away from the float thus blocking the suction pipe and in-tank filter. The tank is now clean and refitted with an external filter was will visibly show any contamination, problem now hopefully resolved!

Thanks for explaining the costs and increases Scott, I generally use the A30 so it doesn’t affect me very much but for locals it must be a real strain on those that are already struggling financially. it reminds me of living in Hampshire and the local hospital charging the staff to park at work! Signed the petition and best of luck with the Action Group 👍

I’m not counting my chickens yet but I may have resolved the issue with a modified in-line filter in the tank. I will be removing the tank to clean at some point in the next couple of months anyway. Will only replace with a UK tank as a last resort.

Very nice motor, back in the good old 70’s, a neighbour had a green 1300XL as a company car, it had the same colour centres of the hub caps, imagine my horror the day that it was parked in his driveway with the front end totally stoved in!

Forgot to add the photos 🙄

Forgot to add the photos 🙄

Does this fuel tank suction filter look like a genuine manufacturer fitted item or another South African DIY job? Either way, it’s knackered and I need to visit the local motor factors to source a replacement, I’m wondering if is somehow contributing to my fuelling issue!

That’s a bit misleading now as the on the last journey it cut out twice on the flat, I was lucky enough to be able to coast to a safe place to park. The second time I blew back down the filler cap (memories of something we used to do as youths but to extract the fuel 😉), that seemed to work as it started up again so believe there is a blockage somewhere!

Would anyone out there be able to explain the hoses/pipes layout of the SA fuel tank before I start taking it all apart to clean, I’m thinking of blowing it through with compressed air to check if there is a blockage which is causing the intermittent fuel starvation, cheers

I haven’t looked at it for over a week now, currently suffering from a horrible chest infection and lacking any energy to even get the car out of the garage, the next move is to empty then remove the tank so that I can clean it and the connecting pipe work, that will be at least a month away as getting close to a house move. Was it your estate that I clocked in this months Classic Ford?

I didn't block any of the pipes, fitted a new carb and plumbed in the return to the tank so the circuit is as it should be. I will give it all a good clean and blast through with compressed air once I can strip the tank out, it's still the SA long range one as originally fitted.

Interesting! the filler cap seal was leaking quite badly with a decent amount of fuel in the tank so I knocked up a replacement from a sheet of neoprene that I had kicking around, it was the same thickness so thought it would suffice, the old one had ridges in it, does anyone on here know where to purchase a correct replacement? I will hoik the tank out at some point in the next couple of months and give it a good clean, moving house soon and will have more space to work on the car.

Today has been a bit of a headache, I have had an issue with the fuelling since I bought the car, to cut a long story short I believe that there is something in the fuel tank that occasionally causes a blockage, I broke down twice today and found that there was no fuel in the supply line to the pump, a blast of air back down the line restored the flow, next step is to remove the tank and find out what the issue is. I will take it to a rolling road session when I’m happy that the supply from the tank is sorted.

Will have a look at the jets at the weekend, it's a new 32/36 DGAV so condition isn't a problem, is there a jetting guideline to follow should I need to change any of them?

Still have issues with losing power under load, in fact it gets to a point where it stalls if accelerating uphill. I have just taken delivery of a new fuel pump and will fit in the next couple of days to see if that rectifies the fault, it's been intermittent, I have checked the float level which is set correct, changed the in-line filter, set the points, plugs timing, etc, all are correct. Once I can trust that it will drive to the nearest diagnostic/rolling road centre, I will have it looked at as it may need rejetting.

Booked my ticket 👍

I changed mine recently due to the seals being a bit knackered, grease was splattered where it wasn’t welcome!