Removed gas tank, what are these for?, Not a nube, but nube-like questions... Options

[rjames]

Finally got around to removing my gas tank so I could put in a front sway bar, and I'm happy to report that I didn't find any rust. Just pine needles,
and old wrench and some crappy work by whomever removed the tank before regarding not using the grommets for the brake lines and gas lines.

After doing so I now have a couple of questions I'm hoping someone can answer:

1st: Here are the wires that go to my fuel pump, and a third (arrowed) that I'm hoping someone can tell me what it goes to? (It wasn't plugged in when I pulled the pump.)

[rjames]

2nd: I thought I understood the fuel system (to some extent anyway).

1 line from the tank to the fuel filter, then the fuel pump, then through the center tunnel and then back to the engine.

1 line that returns from the feul injection back through the center tunnel to the gas tank.

What's this 3rd line that's going into the tunnel? I think I disconnected the top from the plastic 'breather box' (or whatever it's called) that sits on top of the gas tank. Is that why the inside of my car sometimes smells like gas when the tank is full or near full?

[rjames]

And lastly, how does the location for the sway bar outer and inner plates look?
I test fitted the bar and made sure that the gas tank isn't resting on it, and also
made sure that I didn't put it too low as to interfere with the fuel pump (my car is a '75). These pictures are taken before I removed all the undercoating and paint around the plates so I could weld the innerplate in.

[davep]

The third line should be the vent line that goes to the charcoal canister in the engine compartment.

[EdwardBlume]

The sway bar mount looks fine. It looks like an after market sway bar.

With the fuel line, the big rubber piece would usually fit in the hole with two lines running through it (fuel send, fuel return). It appears this piece has been bypassed with another set up applied. Check the back where they come out. One line is likely just sitting in there.

The breather line usually ran to the airbox via along the side of the car. People get fancy with these lines and they may be responsible for your fuel smell. Another fuel culprit is the seal around the filler cap where when you have a full tank - it leaks. If this is the case, you should see evidence of a leak down the side of the tank.

[rjames]

The third line should be the vent line that goes to the charcoal canister in the engine compartment.

The breather line usually ran to the airbox via along the side of the car. People get fancy with these lines and they may be responsible for your fuel smell. Another fuel culprit is the seal around the filler cap where when you have a full tank - it leaks. If this is the case, you should see evidence of a leak down the side of the tank.

Thank you for the responses. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beer.gif) This makes sense- my emmissions stuff was removed before I got the car. I don't remember seeing a 3rd line exiting the firewall near the engine, but I will have to look. If it's just sitting there in the engine compartment not connected to anything, I guess I could just remove it all together.



Still looking for an answer regarding the unattached wire...

The sway bar mount looks fine. It looks like an after market sway bar

I'l post pictures of it later. It was advertised as 15mm bar- I haven't measured it yet. It has adjustable drop links. It was never installed so the bushings are nice and new.

[McMark]

AFAIK, black/red is supposed to run the fuel pump. And IIRC, the front mounted pumps only had a short brown wire for a ground. My guess is that someone ran a new power and ground (new looking sheath) for your pump for some reason. Check the power on the black/red wire. If it powers up when you turn the key and then shuts itself off after a few seconds, it's the fuel pump wire.

[rjames]

Here's the adjustable drop links for my bar (I verified that the bar is 15mm).

Will these droplinks work with a bigger bar should I go that route in the future?
What's the rule of thumb on setting these up for the first time?

[McMark]

That's a stock bar with modified stock drop links. AFAIK, no compatible upgrade. Any of the Weltmeister/Tarrett/Smart bars are great upgrades. The Welt and Tarrett bolt into the stock setup, so installation is EASY!