Expansion Tank Placement and fixing

[seajayare]

All,
looking at where to position the expansion tank that came with the kit from westfield. I reckon I have found the mounting bracket and the way the bottle sits on the bracket. Is there a way to fix the bottle to the bracket, it doesn't seem right for it to just hang but there are no holes in the bracket. At the moment the best I can come up with is to drill and screw/bolt through the wedge shape on the back if the bottle into the bracket and then drill a couple of holes in the back of the bracket and bolt onto the removable scuttle as I guess the tank needs to be above the radiator.

cheers

Chris

[Splat]

Sorry, not exactly a helpful reply, but.....

Yes, the expansion tank lives on the scuttle, as the high point of the system. You'll probably find that the tank (and bracket) is just whatever they're throwing into their more "mainstream" kits at the time. Aside from looking equally cheap and nasty, it's nothing like the one that I junked from my '05 car. I replaced it with a custom unit from Radtec:

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[seajayare]

cheers Splat. The clue was that it was probably the same as Westfield supply with their other cars. I had a look in their parts list and there is a photo of the tank installed at more than £50 it makes an alloy/ali one seem good value!

[Westfield 129]

One thing that I don't do is to attach the header tank to the scuttle.

The scuttle should be attached to the car with some quick release fasteners so it can be removed easily and quickly for service and inspection. Having to remove the header tank as well only complicates something that should be very easy.

It is not difficult to fabricate a bracket for the header tank that can be attached to the firewall or the frame. Just make sure that the tank is the high point in the system so you can reliably fill the cooling system, and that the system self purges.

The US Press Demo car had the header tank on a bracket attached to the firewall rathe than than the scuttle in the usual location. The scuttle could be removed without having to disconnect anything more than the upper fuel hose clamp to the fuel filler cap.

I went farther, adding some Dzus slide type quick release fasteners internally, and installing a larger Monza type filler cap that the body fit over, so there would be no need to remove the filler hose clamp. This made removal and replacement of the scuttle a less than 1 minute job, even for a single person.

Another change that I added was to install remote brake and clutch reservoirs at the end of the footbox to facilitate inspection of the level, and filling. Having the reservoirs down around your ankles in a dark space makes service nearly impossible without splashing corrosive brake fluid around. Adding remote reservoirs is a pretty easy task and makes owning the car far easier.

[Westfield 129]

Here is an image of the placement and mounting of my Modified Moroso header tank in a RHD chassis.

The photo is from my Westfield RHD build.

I added an additional bung to take the cylinder head bleed line that was formerly the heater tap.

The vacuum gauge and lines at the filler are for my "Airlift" cooling system tester and filling system. This is a vacuum test that finds leaks, then uses the captured vacuum to fill the system and eliminate all air bubbles. It fills the system on a cold engine in about a minute, without fear of having a captured air bubble in the cylinder head or block. I originally acquired this system to fill the complex cooling system in my mid engine R5 Turbo, Noble M400 and Rossion Q1 mid engine sports cars. Not too expensive, and worth the cost. Like a pneumatic riveter or a vacuum/pressure brake bleeder, one of those things you can't live without.

The header tank bracket is attached to the fire wall and to the back of the tank This was an easy fab job done in 30 minutes on a break that I have in the garage.

Lines to the threaded bungs are all push on hose, without clamps (as recommended by Aeroquip and Goodridge). This is a 150 PSI installation, using a 14 PSI cap. You can use a lower pressure cap if you wish.

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Wes ... /226177266

[alleggerita]

Access to that group is only possible if you are a member. For some reason I am access denied so I can't look.

[Simon Marks]

I did not fancy the look of the plastic (Vauxhall) header tank that came with my kit. I looked around on the internet and finished up at Allard Aluminium Products (conveniently close to me in Gloucester) where Lloyd made up the tank shown below with the pipes put to my requirements. He also fixed the support bracket at the bottom of the tank so that the filler neck sits just below the bonnet. I made up an alloy bracket to the chassis / passenger footwell front / top in the "standard" location and housed the scuttle round my bracket. The well secured pipework also lends a little support to the tank.

Lloyd Allard is the grandson of Sidney Allard - famous for the V8 sportscars of the 1940s to the 1960s. A period manufacturer supplying a quality part to my 1950s style sportscar. Allard Aluminium Products - (01452) 725666

[Westfield 129]

Join the westyxiownersbuildersdrivers group at Yahoo. All members are either owners or are building Westfield kits world wide.

You will have full access.

I will clear you in as soon as you apply. Just make sure that you state that you are a Westfield 11 builder.

Lots of pictures and solutions for build problems.

As far as the Allard tank, it looks fine, but needs one more opening to attach a bleed tube from the top of the cylinder head (hearter valve port) to the header tank. Easy enough to weld on another bung.

Moroso and others also have header tanks that will work, fitted with threaded ports so that you can thread in correct size nipple to fit the selected hose.

[Daggers-xi]

Just placed an order for my alloy tank as I fitted the Westfield plastic tank and have spent a couple of weeks looking at the result. When looking at the alloy tank fitments above I put in an order within 10 mins, looks much better in alloy.
Daggers

[seajayare]

Daggers , that puts it 2 weeks until my alloy tank is ordered! I just put the westfield/GM expansion tank on just so I can complain later ! At least the cap colour is good for me. I decided that as the tank comes off of the bracket with a single screw it is easy to move the tank leaving it still plumbed in when it comes times to lift the scuttle. Time will tell.