289 Fuel neck / cap location

[rsk289]

The other dimension you definitely need to check before you make the hole is where the bootlid rises to when you open it. And - importantly - not just where it sits when the boot is open, but where it has to be lifted to in order to release the sliding boot latch. I've seen a few cars with marks on the bootlid where the skin has kissed the filler cap when closing the boot.

If your car is a replica, the dimensions of an original tank may be misleading as it will depend where and how your tank will mount to the chassis. The inverted 'U' clamps, accessed through the inner rear wing, do not allow much adjustment. And yes, the tank is removed by removing the seats, carefully peeling back the glued trim, drilling out the pop rivets on the forward-facing rear bulkhead for removal and sliding the tank forward into the cockpit.

A tip: the 'U' clamps are accessed through a hole in the aluminium inner rear wing, visible in a lot of the period AC factory black-and-white photos of cars in construction. This hole is closed with a very large rubber plug. I don't know the actual diameter of this hole in originals, but the large floor plug supplied for the (might be 4" diameter? Can't remember) drain hole in a Triumph TR4/4A is close. Get the plug before you make the hole, or you may end up with an open hole!