gas tank compartment

[gadd zooks]

this last weekend i pulled the back seat, all the screws on the bottom of the fiberglass back cover had to be drilled out. i found a hole in the bottom of the fiber glass below the tank. the week before i open the trunk and found 2 pounds of bird seed to which i couldnt figure out how the mouse or chimpmunk got it in their, i think the hole maybe where he or she is getting in and thier is holes in the fender top from the trunk to the gas tank area. is that hole in the bottom of the tank area needed ? i though it might be for a tank rupture drain or something. on a side note the back seat looked ok except the springs have a lot of rust on then any ideas on what to do with out removing covers and the matting. sand blast or wire wheel and hand painting?

[ernier]

The hole is a mystery but I covered mine up years ago with no ill effects. As far as the seat springs, I would make believe you never saw it and put the seat back the way it is:).

Ernie R2 R5388

this last weekend i pulled the back seat, all the screws on the bottom of the fiberglass back cover had to be drilled out. i found a hole in the bottom of the fiber glass below the tank. the week before i open the trunk and found 2 pounds of bird seed to which i couldnt figure out how the mouse or chimpmunk got it in their, i think the hole maybe where he or she is getting in and thier is holes in the fender top from the trunk to the gas tank area. is that hole in the bottom of the tank area needed ? i though it might be for a tank rupture drain or something. on a side note the back seat looked ok except the springs have a lot of rust on then any ideas on what to do with out removing covers and the matting. sand blast or wire wheel and hand painting?

[WayneC]

i found a hole in the bottom of the fiber glass below the tank. the week before i open the trunk and found 2 pounds of bird seed to which i couldnt figure out how the mouse or chimpmunk got it in their, i think the hole maybe where he or she is getting in and thier is holes in the fender top from the trunk to the gas tank area. is that hole in the bottom of the tank area needed ?

Where is the hole? having recently R&R'd my tank, I know there is a slightly depressed circle in the center of the bottom, with about a 1-inch hole in it, but that's where the fuel line exits the tank. I think it's also a place for gas to drain out if the tank should leak, but it would only drain if the car was sitting level when it leaks (don't ask me how I know that). You could probably caulk around the hole (between the edge of the hole and the tank) from beneath the car if you want to discourage mice, or force a rubber hose donut in that space, but that would eliminate the "drain". Did you check the spare tire well in the trunk?

As for the rusty springs, I guess you could use a rust converter or Rustoleum primer to try to retard the rust

process and keep particles from falling on the rugs; or as Ernie says, just ignore it.

[gadd zooks]

thank guys, it is a hole about 2" and looks like it would be if their was a ruppture in the tank it could drain their. . i found that their is 1' hole at the top on both rear fender sides from the tank area for vent lines and it seems to be the freeway for the mice to the trunk. i checked it last night and found the trap was sprung and the bait gone. i will try a glue boards next. the hunt is on. i still have not pulled the tank yet the outside looks good but i wanted to do is check the inside.

'

[wdaly]

thank guys, it is a hole about 2" and looks like it would be if their was a ruppture in the tank it could drain their. . i found that their is 1' hole at the top on both rear fender sides from the tank area for vent lines and it seems to be the freeway for the mice to the trunk. i checked it last night and found the trap was sprung and the bait gone. i will try a glue boards next. the hunt is on. i still have not pulled the tank yet the outside looks good but i wanted to do is check the inside.

'

As far as the rusted springs are concerned, or any rust anywhere, try POR-15. Interesting stuff. They have a web-site, interestingly enough - POR-15.com.

Bill D

[SBCA96]

Please do NOT use chemical baits or glue trap, its just plain inhumane.

I would suggest putting some steel mesh into the holes where they are

getting into the gas tank area. Just keep them from getting inside. If

you can instantly kill the pest thats much better than causing the little guy

to slowly starve to death, and in the process attempt to chew its own legs

off to free itself. Also keep in mind that if they die back there, you have

to take it all apart to get the now rotting animal out. I think the best way

to SOLVE the problem is to keep them OUT to begin with.

Tom

[WayneC]

I would suggest putting some steel mesh into the holes where they are

getting into the gas tank area. Just keep them from getting inside.

Tom

Great suggestion.

I still don't understand what hole he's talking about, though, he didn't answer my question.

I was thinking the tank sits flat on top of the gas line hole depression, but maybe my memory fails me,

and it doesn't sit flat, or maybe he has the tank removed from the car.

[SBCA96]

I dont know Wayne.

Here are the pictures of YOUR tank though.

Tom

[gadd zooks]

your photos dont shown the hole i have. i will post photos this weekend, the hole is at the bottom shelf below the tank to the left of the wiring harness juction. their is a flat indention spot in the fiberglass. i will kill him the most humanly as i can. glue boards? i came up with a idea about closing the hole and will post photos of the idea. ps i check the trap, nothing i took it out tom and put down glue boards.

[wdaly]

your photos dont shown the hole i have. i will post photos this weekend, the hole is at the bottom shelf below the tank to the left of the wiring harness juction. their is a flat indention spot in the fiberglass. i will kill him the most humanly as i can. glue boards? i came up with a idea about closing the hole and will post photos of the idea. ps i check the trap, nothing i took it out tom and put down glue boards.

Hey Tom:

Pictures really are worth "a thousand words". You're gas tank set-up is pretty-much a 'clone' of my 1988 coupe - but what's with the Heavy-Duty wiring coming from the sender? My wiring is not much bigger than strong fish-line!! Is this why my gas gauge is a guessing game at best? Did you change anything (metal gas lines on top of tank for example). What are the 2 white wires from the sender on the right side?

Bill D

[SBCA96]

Bill, I have to let Wayne answer this question, those are not pictures of my

63 Avanti, but of Wayne's Avanti II.

Tom

You're gas tank set-up is pretty-much a 'clone' of my 1988 coupe - but what's..

[WayneC]

Hey Tom:

Pictures really are worth "a thousand words". You're gas tank set-up is pretty-much a 'clone' of my 1988 coupe - but what's with the Heavy-Duty wiring coming from the sender? My wiring is not much bigger than strong fish-line!! Is this why my gas gauge is a guessing game at best? Did you change anything (metal gas lines on top of tank for example). What are the 2 white wires from the sender on the right side?

Bill D

Frankly I'm not sure about the white wires, but I think they are most likely ground wires and they may have continued on to the electric antenna.

I have not made any changes to the wiring, or to the tank; I bought the car used in the late 70's (it's a 71)

and it seemed to be unmolested. The metal lines on top of the tank appeared to me to be stock, too... SFAIK they are anti-siphon vent lines, attached at both ends of the top of the tank and zig-zagged across the top of the tanks so they won't drain a full tank if the car sits on a side-slope or takes a hard turn; they culminate in the piece of 3/8" rubber tubing you can see running down the front of the tank near the passenger side end in one of the photos below.

http://jagsnvettes.com/MiscPhotos/AvantiGasTank1.jpg

http://jagsnvettes.com/MiscPhotos/P7030421.jpg

http://jagsnvettes.com/MiscPhotos/P7030419.jpg

Dang, I STILL cannot figure out how to post photos inline on this forum....

Tom, your method of simply using bracketed "img" and '/img" around the url doesn't work for me,

here's what I get, whether I use Internet Explorer or Firefox:

Even using the little picture icon supplied by this website (and plugging in the url) gives me the same result:

Edited May 5, 2007 by WayneC

[SBCA96]

No, you DO have to use the brackets. There should be a bracketed [ ]

img at the start of the link, and a bracketed [ ] /img at the end. There

can be NO spaces between the brackets and the link at the start or at

the end - or it wont work. Do a "reply" with quote and see the format

that I used. Turns out the link you were using doesnt allow direct post

of the pictures! When I first tried I got the same as you. I went into

my temporary internet files and found the picture, the location isnt the

same as the one you were using, its a redirect :

http://personal.linkline.com/car-nuts/MiscPhotos/

Tom

Dang, I STILL cannot figure out how to post photos inline on this forum....

Tom, your method of simply using bracketed "img" and '/img" around the url doesn't work for me

[WayneC]

Turns out the link you were using doesnt allow direct post

of the pictures! When I first tried I got the same as you.

Tom

OK, not sure I understand why the redirect is an issue, but apparently it is;

I was coding it properly, but the url link wasn't working when used with that coding.

Thanks!

Here's the third photo with the tank installed:

Edited May 6, 2007 by WayneC

[SBCA96]

Here are some pictures that John sent to me to post up :

Tom

[ernier]

I haven't seen where anyone has come up with a reason not to plug that hole. If your tank starts to leak it's going everywhere. If there were channel or gutters directed to that hole I might suspect it's a drain. It could be a there to aid the manucacturing process or the spot they originally thought the outlet would be, who knows? There are rubber plugs you can buy, JB weld a piece of metal etc. Cover it and feel good about it. Mine's been plugged for 7 years now and I have no regrets:)

BTW, plugging or filling all those openings around the tank and trunk, insulating that compartment and the floors will make for a nice quiet Avanti.

Ernie R2 R5388

[gadd zooks]

THANKS TOM FOR POSTING MY PHOTOS AND THANKS ERNIE FOR THE ADVICE. I AM GOING TO PLUG THE HOLES. I HAVE CAUGHT THREE MICE SO FAR AND MY WIFE WONT GO INTO THE GARAGE. I SHOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF IT YEARS AGO I WOULD HAVE GOT A LOT MORE DONE TO MY CAR.

[SBCA96]

You are welcome. I also uploaded the other pictures you sent.

Did you mean you should have thought of bringing up the mice in the

garage to keep the wife from bothering you out of there??

You might want to consider sealing up your garage better to keep the

mice out of there too. They are obviously coming in from the cold or

the heat (not much to eat there). You can get weatherstripping for the

edges of the door, and a scraper skirt for the lip of the door, and check

your vents to make sure there are no holes through the wire mesh.

Tom

THANKS TOM FOR POSTING MY PHOTOS ..... I HAVE CAUGHT THREE MICE SO FAR AND MY WIFE WONT GO INTO THE GARAGE. I SHOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF IT YEARS AGO I WOULD HAVE GOT A LOT MORE DONE TO MY CAR.

Edited May 11, 2007 by SBCA96