Wheels have Arrived!

My new Image Wheels arrived, so I obviously tried one on the car to see how it will look.  I went for CHB Image Wheels with satin black centres with nut covers and spinners.  I think they look better on than off!  Can't wait to get tyres fitted.

For tyres, GD recommend Michelin Pilot Super Sports for road use.  I initially was thinking to fit track day tyres, however after speaking with a few people, these tyres need to run at a high temperature to operate and to to this you need to drive the car hard.  For normal driving on public roads, you won't be able to get the tyres up to temperature.  The Michelin tyres get very good reviews online, and I have spoken to a few people who have them and recommend them.  I just need to buy some now.....  245/40/18 on the front, and 275/40/18 on the rear.

Fuel Supply - Complete

I fitted a couple of stainless P-Clips to the supply and return hoses that fit to the bulkhead fittings in the boot to satisfy the requirements of the IVA.

I was concerned about the smell of fuel in the boot of the car, along with the garage so I did some research online and came up with the following: 

• Standard rubber fuel hoses won't leak fuel, however the fumes will pass through them.  For this reason, PTFE lined hoses need to be used to prevent this.  I used Goodridge 811 Series PTFE hose. 
• The fuel tank requires to be vented for the filling and emptying of the tank in normal operation.  This basically means that the fuel tank is open to the atmosphere and therefore vents into your garage when the vehicle is at rest.  Normal production cars have systems that feed the fuel tank vents back into the engine through an emissions control system.  Since this is far too complicated to do, I chose a different method.
• I found a two way valve from Newton Equipment Ltd (TPV8) that states that the valve remains closed when the engine is switched off, therefore preventing fuel smells in the garage.  The valve allows the fuel tank to breath when both filling and emptying and can be mounted in any orientation.  Please find a link to the spec sheet here.

I mounted the Newton valve inside the N/S rear footwell as high up as it could be mounted.  Hopefully this will clear the tyre!  This involved drilling a hole through from the boot and using some P-Clips to mount the valve.  On the outlet of the valve I fitted a standard fuel filter just more as a dirt filter to prevent dirt being sucked into the tank.  I used stainless jubilee clips with hose end covers.  I sealed the hose exit using some sealant to prevent water ingress.

Before fitting the tank and making up the last of the fuel hoses from the pumps, I covered the tank and boot in Silent Coat sound deadening pads.  These make a huge difference to the resonance of the fibreglass and the stainless fuel tank.  I really went to town with it, maybe a bit too much, but I didn't want to have steps in the carpet once it was laid.  I did the boot floor, wheel arches, rear bulkhead, main seating area, engine bulkhead and under the dashboard.  It has added a good bit of weight!

Once the fuel tank was in position, I cut the fuel pump wires to length and crimped the ends.  This will all require clipping into place, but I will wait until I finalise the rest of the boot lights.