G'day,
Finally got my OE aux fuel tank installed.
I'll preface this thread, by saying that to do this in North America will be difficult and probably not cost effective, due to the shipping costs involved.
Background.
Until 2013 the FJ was a single tank machine, finally the International market received dual tanks. 72 litres main tank and another 87 litres in the Aux tank.
Slightly used 2nd hand Aux tanks are now becoming available down under as owners swap to bigger tanks, or to LNG - dual fuel options, and ditching the OE aux tank.
Depending on the age of your FJ, the mounting points may or may not be already in place in the frame and underbody to mount the tank. Any FJ built before mid 2012 will not have these mounting points fitted. My 2011 didn't - so I had to create the mounting points as well.
So 6 months ago I picked up a lightly used / almost new Aux tank.
Complete with tank, mounting brackets, tank straps, skid plate, and sender units for both the primary and Aux tanks - out of a 2013 built FJ. The owner had removed the Aux tank to fit LNG. So I got a 90% complete system. The only pieces missing were the hoses, and the filler pipe with the Y - to fill both tanks.
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After months of research and talking to many people and companies, I came to the conclusion that I would not be able to totally duplicate the OE system. The OE system is a pressure / gravity feed system, that syphons the fuel from the Aux to the Main continually ..... and uses a single dash gauge to read and show the contents. The sender units combine and are read by the fuel ECU.
So I compromised and accepted the prevailing consensus to fit a pump and manually transfer the fuel from Aux to main. This method is tried and proven down under for many years, and is an easy instal for a professional. No one wanted to attempt to replicate the Yota method - let alone touch the OE wiring harness .... and in hindsight I agree. Using a pump and keeping the Aux as a stand alone system has its benefits.
I purchased a new Y filler pipe from Yota, but this isn't really necessary, as a professional can tap and solder in a Y fitting just as easily.
to be continued....
Finally got my OE aux fuel tank installed.
I'll preface this thread, by saying that to do this in North America will be difficult and probably not cost effective, due to the shipping costs involved.
Background.
Until 2013 the FJ was a single tank machine, finally the International market received dual tanks. 72 litres main tank and another 87 litres in the Aux tank.
Slightly used 2nd hand Aux tanks are now becoming available down under as owners swap to bigger tanks, or to LNG - dual fuel options, and ditching the OE aux tank.
Depending on the age of your FJ, the mounting points may or may not be already in place in the frame and underbody to mount the tank. Any FJ built before mid 2012 will not have these mounting points fitted. My 2011 didn't - so I had to create the mounting points as well.
So 6 months ago I picked up a lightly used / almost new Aux tank.
Complete with tank, mounting brackets, tank straps, skid plate, and sender units for both the primary and Aux tanks - out of a 2013 built FJ. The owner had removed the Aux tank to fit LNG. So I got a 90% complete system. The only pieces missing were the hoses, and the filler pipe with the Y - to fill both tanks.
After months of research and talking to many people and companies, I came to the conclusion that I would not be able to totally duplicate the OE system. The OE system is a pressure / gravity feed system, that syphons the fuel from the Aux to the Main continually ..... and uses a single dash gauge to read and show the contents. The sender units combine and are read by the fuel ECU.
So I compromised and accepted the prevailing consensus to fit a pump and manually transfer the fuel from Aux to main. This method is tried and proven down under for many years, and is an easy instal for a professional. No one wanted to attempt to replicate the Yota method - let alone touch the OE wiring harness .... and in hindsight I agree. Using a pump and keeping the Aux as a stand alone system has its benefits.
I purchased a new Y filler pipe from Yota, but this isn't really necessary, as a professional can tap and solder in a Y fitting just as easily.
to be continued....