In the late '70s I was following a Ford Prefect along a busy highway when
the back of the Prefect exploded in flame and the car veered off the road
and into the harbour. The driver and sole occupant of the car did not
survive.
A report in the newspaper some days later indicated that the owner/driver
had been working on the fuel gauge of the car immediately prior to the
accident. I have always borne that event in mind when working on fuel gauge
systems!!
Michael Salter
www.precisionsportscar.com
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-healeys@autox.team.net [mailto:owner-healeys@autox.team.net] On
Behalf Of John Miller
Sent: Tuesday, March 28, 2006 10:11 AM
To: Healey List
Subject: Re: BJ8 gas gauge
John Harper wrote:
> I am going to repeat a warning that I done a few times before over the
> years.
>
> It is not that I can prove a risk it is just that I wish to warn
> readers that there might be one.
>
> The tank units on our cars and many others fitted to cars of the same
> age as ours are not sealed against petrol entering the chamber in
> which the resistor and slider are located. Indeed the sealing is in
> the lid and around the terminal screw. Hence it is possible that an
> explosive mixture could build up in this chamber.
Your warning is a good one and should not be dismissed, however,
[potentially] sparking components are pretty common in gasoline tanks
(gauge sender, fuel pump, etc.). As long as the gaseous contents are
gasoline vapor, there is no danger of fire or explosion. That risk
occurs with the introduction of oxygen. (So keep your gas caps on!)
Anyone know of a documented case of a spontaneously exploding gasoline
tank on an automobile?
--
John Miller
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