Fill it up !!

Ok, let's talk center filled fuel tank.

Sometimes it's fun to answer a question that does not have a answer, or have an answer but no question.  let me explain, in life we do things that are wrong and do things that are not;  when it comes to cars, sometimes it does not matter.

Somebody asked the question of how to make the opening for a center filled tank that Porsche Race Department was commissioned to do when they created the light weight version of the 911.  That meant a lot of items being deleted and made upgrades being integrated, we will focus on the center fill gas tank used on so many 911 now, only because it looks cool.

We have done this many times using a drill bit and a air reciprocate saw, it works for us and for other shops I've talked to, but there is a catch, a few reasons why this work for us and it may not work for you.  First, we don't use the big hole saw you see on one of this pictures, that thing create a lot of heat and as you punch thru, it can damages the structure of the hood, leaving that are very flimsy. second, you think you have to cut a perfect circle, not really, just cut enough to give the filler neck clearance, cut small and make your way around it.

Make sure your tank is sitting properly and use a new seal, find a fiberglass or metal venturi looking section and weld or bond it to the opening and make sure it looks centered on the hood; There you have it, we have gone north, east, west and south and arrived in downtown at the same time.  By the way, this made the short wheel base 911 R legendary !

Expert conversation

Expert: (not sounding too impressed) That's a nice 72

Me: (trying to sound humble) Sorry, it is not a 72
Expert: Yes it is:
Me: Trust me, it isn't
Expert: (sounding a little overconfident)  Only the 1972 had the oil door on the quarter panel
Me: I know...I put it there  :)

I crack myself up sometimes......

But seriously,  this started as 1970 car and we were asked to do  a replica of the  1972 911 ST Strawberry color, rumor has it, that only a handful of these were made.  Of course we modified the living daylights out if it, from the placement of the seatbelts anchors to the powertrain, reinforce the body so it can handle the Gs that the engine will provide, top of the line suspension and power brakes, custom made seats and a foot rest,  traffic has changed since 1972

Its features and details are pretty cool, all together, 3 shops were involved in the trasformation of this New Mexico native.  Posting all the documentation would take me forever, but if you want to, you can see some more on here: http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/400571-journey-begins-911st-recreation.html