Does anyone have photos of a SCCA aproved Fuel Cell in a CRX ?

 

Here are some pics of my 10 gal Fuel Safe in my '88 EP/FP car. I haven't run the hoses or hooked up the wiring and built the mandated metal cover yet. I did use customize it with a ball baffled internal surge tank and a Jackson Racing in-tank fuel pump.





[Modified by CRX Lee, 1:49 AM 2/21/2003]


[Modified by CRX Lee, 1:50 AM 2/21/2003]

 

what does the cover have to cover ??? and 2 strapes will pass ? Is this a SCCA car or a DRAG car ...

 

SCCA

 

I thought the Jackson pumps were Walbros... Mighta been cheaper than to get the JR branded stuff....

 

I got the best price...I know Oscar and there will be a JR sticker on the car

 

It is an SCCA car and they require that a metal bulkhead be between the driver and the fuel cell box. In most trunk style sedans and coupes, the car would naturally have a bulkhead seperating the trunk from the cabin but since it is in the passenger compartment in the CRX, a new bulkhead must be made.

 

ahhhh, you cheater.

 

I'm not sure but Wouldn't it be more benificial for handling to mount it lower in the body?It loos like it has a big lip around the top...is that a mounting lip?

 

Yes that can be used as a mounting lip and it would have been easierhad I been able to but the SCCA has a minimum height from the ground that a fuel cell can be so I removed the stock tank and fabricated a box that reached down to the lowest allowable level then swelded it into the car floor pan.

If you have a car with a trunk floor higher up with no ground clearance issues, then you just cut the hole and bolt it to the floor and then put a little bracing below it. Also since the cell is in the passenger compartment, I had to have a sealed floor area and couldn't leave the cell open to the air like you would in a trunk mount situation.

I have seen some CRXs with the cell mounted back in the spare tire area but I chose the harder route of putting it where I did as low as allowed to get the weight inside the wheelbase and for more crash protection.

 

Makes a little more since now - for a while there I was wondering why your 10 gallon fuel cell looked smaller than my 8 gallon fuel cell. Now that I see it's actually going through the floor into a welded container it makes sense.

 

ok ok makes sense

what size gauge steel did you use to make the box

Yeah I think its good you put it in between the f&R as putting it in the back wouldn't make sense.

 

Thanks lee for the photo and helping me out .....but I don't think i'm going to put it in to the floor might run something smaller then a 10 gallon ..... there is going to be a 3 inch exhast pipe right under the car so i whounld have to do a head sheld or something like that .... But I know what your talking about the coupe and wounld like to see how you are going to do the bullhead in the crx .....

Thanks for the help guys

 

Since the cell is in the stock tank location, there is no needs to do any heat sheilding because the standard CRX race exhaust of a straight pipe with a small muffler/resonator and turn down tip will end before it ever gets to the tank. Actually with the cell box and the steel shel of the cell and the inner bladder, the fuel will be mucg better isolated than a normal ITA car, etc. If it is a true racecar and you are running the pipe any longer, you are running it too long and likely losing power.

My plan for the bulkhead box will be to make it as big as the roll cage will let me. I'd like to make the top basically a shelf to run flat about the bottom of the windows and the front edge come up by the main hoop. Making it that big will reduce the inner volume of the passenger compartment and reduce the parachute effect of having your windows open but the rear area and hatch sealed. We'll just see what the sheet metal person I pick to do it says about the complications going around the cage bars.

 

here's a big newb question...

does the stock fuel gauge work? How do you know when it requires filling besides refilling it everytime you come into the pits after a session on the track?

 

This is a entertaining story about fuel cell fuel level
http://www.nsxfiles.com/fuel_cell.htm

 

No, the fuel gauge was scrapped but so was the whole dashboard as well. You just open the cap on the cell and drop in a ruler or yardstick between sessions to see how much gas you have.

 

Thanks for the link!

Interesting since I've always wondered about how to make the gauge work with a fuel cell!

 

Thanks for the help guys if anyone esle have photos of fuel cells please post !!!!

 

Anyone esle have fuel cell photos ?

 

I could take a picture of my fuel cell tonight if you want - it's not installed, but will show where I'm putting it in the car (in the trunk well area, as far forward as possible). Still need to take the 'tar' out of the trunk area... Maybe I'll also take a picture of the tear I punched through the drivers side floorboard with the flatblade screwdriver when I was removing the tar up front.... My brother was doing a better job of removing the tar from the passenger side than I was on the driver's side, so I thought I would try his technique...

 

I wounld like to see it please post or im me thanks

 

Ok, here's a link to the photo's (the last five are the new ones):

My Yahoo album

As you can see the car is having too much fun....