General Fuel Tank - I found a clip...

[DCPU]

Seems the LR legacy strikes again. Off the production line there would always be a spare rivet or two and plenty of swarf. If you were really lucky then a single nut, which you'd wonder whether it was a spare or something hadn't been fastened up...

I was checking out the fuel tank guard and inside the rear right hand side:

I found this:

So the questions are:

What is it off?
Is it a spare?

 

[bakepl]

Same as clips used to hold hydraulic brake lines in place close to brake calipers.... normally at the junction where the rubber hose joins the solid metal brake line to caliper.

 

[DCPU]

Same as clips used to hold hydraulic brake lines in place close to brake calipers.... normally at the junction where the rubber hose joins the solid metal brake line to caliper.

Had a look around at the rear this afternoon and found these clips used, as per your post, in 4 locations. All my locations had a clip in situ - so hopefully this was a dropped extra one.

 

[DCPU]

Whilst there I was impressed with the amount of room and access to the top connections to the fuel tank through the rear offside wheel arch (RHD):

However, the end of the fuel filler pipe (circled in green) appeared to have been cut with a jagged piece of glass and so not seated fully to the fuel tank neck.

 

[bakepl]

Whilst there I was impressed with the amount of room and access to the top connections to the fuel tank through the rear offside wheel arch (RHD):

View attachment 7814956View attachment 7814957

However, the end of the fuel filler pipe (circled in green) appeared to have been cut with a jagged piece of glass and so not seated fully to the fuel tank neck.

Does the tank still have a drain plug (and easy to access)? I recall this being mentioned as being on a PTO?

 

[globalgregors]

Whilst there I was impressed with the amount of room and access to the top connections to the fuel tank through the rear offside wheel arch (RHD):

View attachment 7814956View attachment 7814957

However, the end of the fuel filler pipe (circled in green) appeared to have been cut with a jagged piece of glass and so not seated fully to the fuel tank neck.

I wonder @DCPU did you note any possible mounting location down there for a twin compressor?

 

[lightning]

l wouldn't worry about the odd spare fastener, the person fitting them most likely dropped one.
Either that or they put a few down while they fitted them and left one behind.

On top of the chassis rail of my 2005 Defender l found a small pile of rusty clips.

The most surprising thing was, that they'd stayed there for 14 years and 130,000 miles.

 

[DCPU]

Does the tank still have a drain plug (and easy to access)? I recall this being mentioned as being on a PTO?

I'll check later today. Not noticed anything so far.

 

[DCPU]

I wonder @DCPU did you note any possible mounting location down there for a twin compressor?

View attachment 7815006

Not sure on the exact envelope matching that, or indeed if it would be the ideal position, but I was struck by the volume/void within the rear bumper end quarters. Even though we have plastic elements across most of the middle section, these sections are metal.

There's also a decent space, although access may be limited from below, adjacent to the AdBlue tank (more so, I guess, if you have a petrol engine).

 

[DCPU]

l wouldn't worry about the odd spare fastener, the person fitting them most likely dropped one.
Either that or they put a few down while they fitted them and left one behind.

On top of the chassis rail of my 2005 Defender l found a small pile of rusty clips.

The most surprising thing was, that they'd stayed there for 14 years and 130,000 miles.

Yes, I don't mind them being there, that's not the problem. It's finding them that's the issue, especially on a brand new vehicle. It’s not always easy to say they are "spare".

I once found a large hammer left in the rear undertray of a Caterham and my Lotus came back from a service once with a small ratchet spanner engraved with "Daz" inside the front clam/splitter.

 

[globalgregors]

Not sure on the exact envelope matching that, or indeed if it would be the ideal position, but I was struck by the volume/void within the rear bumper end quarters. Even though we have plastic elements across most of the middle section, these sections are metal.

There's also a decent space, although access may be limited from below, adjacent to the AdBlue tank (more so, I guess, if you have a petrol engine).

Thank you, they sound like suitable candidates.

 

[emax]

These empty spaces are used by the owners of the original Defenders to add additional tanks or storage boxes accessible from the outside.

It seems that there are a lot of possibilities and solutions to discover. Also for the accessories manufacturers.

 

[joejet]

With all these hidden spaces, the south American drug smugglers could find the car very interesting, an upgrade form their Mitsubishi Pajero's