Hello and Help! My new* '78 320 has sprung a leak!

olly · Post by **olly** » Fri Jul 02, 2010 6:24 pm

Hi all,

Firstly just wanted to introduce myself! I've just bought a 1978 320 from my Godfather who bought it new in '78. It's in great nick but had been stored for c. 10 years and so needed quite a few mechanical fettlings. It passed it's second MOT this week and I drove it back from Shropshire to London this morning. Although there are still quite a few jobs that need doing (a damn good clean inside and out being one) it's actually doing really well.

Unfortunately though there are two leaks that concern me...

1) When I parked it up after a 150 mile cruise down the motorway then around 30 mins in London traffic it dumped a load of coolant (about 3/4 pint I'd say). That hasn't happened again so I wonder is it a) a perished coolant pipe or could it be b) an overflow to prevent an explosion? It is very hot today!

2) There is a fuel leak... it seems to be dribbling down the fuel filler hose onto the fuel tank at a rate of a drop every 1.5 seconds or so. I've parked it up and am going to take it to a garage just around the corner first thing Monday, I've also scattered lots of soil underneath to catch the drips. Being something of a novice to 320's (and to be honest old cars), is this a huge worry? My sense is at best it's a new fuel line = c. £400 or possibly a new fuel tank? I know it's impossible to know without investigation but any hunches would be greatly appreciated!

Here's a pic of her...

Thanks guys!
Olly

tommi_e21 · Post by **tommi_e21** » Fri Jul 02, 2010 6:36 pm

how full did you fill the tank? often the seams get a bit crusty and leak and if you fill it quite high you get leakage.

breather hoses often can be a bit fooked, only real way to tell is to find exactly where leak is coming from and thats best on a ramp

olly · Post by **olly** » Fri Jul 02, 2010 6:48 pm

austin25uk wrote:how full did you fill the tank? often the seams get a bit crusty and leak and if you fill it quite high you get leakage.

breather hoses often can be a bit fooked, only real way to tell is to find exactly where leak is coming from and thats best on a ramp

I brimmed it before I set off, after about 85 miles the drips had stopped but as the fuel gauge has gone I decided to brim it once again to assess the fuel consumption (surprisingly good!).

Having done another 80 miles or so since last fill up I'm hoping the leak will slow.

As you say, probably best investigated on a ramp.

tommi_e21 · Post by **tommi_e21** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 10:56 am

prob best not to brim it IMO

murran · Post by **murran** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 4:26 pm

could be the tank breather, the filler neck could have rotted thru, tank sender seal.

if its dripping ou when you drim it, then stop brimming it! are petrol stations 200 miles apart round your area?

pistonheader · Post by **pistonheader** » Sun Jul 04, 2010 1:24 pm

as people have said, it's most likely the breather hose, in which case, instead of brimming it, from empty you could put in 45-50 litres instead of the full 58 that it would take and hopefully that will solve your problem. to change the breather hose it's a pain (fuel tank(s?) out job). mine has been like it for the last 1.5-2 years but i only put £50 or so in from when the light comes on and it doesn't leak at all now.

olly · Post by **olly** » Sun Jul 04, 2010 1:53 pm

Thanks guys!

As it's been dripping on the public road I had a breakdown service come take a look. Seems it's the right side tank that has corroded so I'm taking it into the garage Monday morning - hopefully it can be re-sealed somehow rather than needing a whole new tank section (I found one quote of €452 !).

It was the first time it had done a decent run in about 10 years so I wonder if the vibration knocked the gunk that was blocking the corroded area.

Thanks for the tips - still looking forward to getting my 320 running properly!

m3gaz · Post by **m3gaz** » Sun Jul 04, 2010 11:06 pm

Post an ad on the Wanted section for the tank.Where in London are you?

e21-Mark · Post by **e21-Mark** » Sun Jul 04, 2010 11:25 pm

Didn't Jason have some fuel tanks for sale?

olly · Post by **olly** » Mon Jul 05, 2010 1:59 pm

Cheers guys, will post now. I've put a request out to a breakers network so we'll see what comes of that.

I put it in a local garage this morning as I can't justify leaving it to leak onto a public road. I'm based in Highbury (N5) so pretty central. Doing some more research it seems that sealing it might be possible - I fear here it would be the labour that would cost the most. I'm not adverse to trying to do it myself, it's just having access to a ramp to get the tank off.

Here's a closer look -

Thanks again for the help.