Thread: '96 Defender 110 Fuel Tank Sender Unit?

Try parking on a hill
When I replaced my tank, mr nobody (I have 2 mr nobody’s at my house) decided to play with the sender and it wasn’t reading correctly
I had to pull it apart and straighten the copper windings before reinstalling it
I even got the low fuel indicator working at about 1/3 of tank
Not hard just fiddly

Originally Posted by Robmacca

Guys...

Just fitted a 2nd hand fuel tank into my 110 along with a NEW sender unit and seals, etc. I've just put 50ltrs of fuel in the tank and the gauge is only reading 1/4 full...

The gauge is reading I assume as it goes up/down as I turn the ignition on/off. There's no way that u can get the connection plug around the wrong way so I'm left with either a faulty gauge or the internal lever is caught on one of the internal baffles which I can't see how. The sender unit can only really be installed in one way so I'm at a loss... I've taken the defender for a short drive around some right/left corners to get the fuel to slosh around but no change in the gauge reading.

Anyone with some ideas??

Not wanting to remove the tank again, is it possible to remove the sender unit while the tank is still mounted in position?

Mike from Britannica restorations (YouTube) shows how you can remove the sender with the tank still fitted. He made a special tool out of a short length of pipe!

I’m having a similar issue, the gauge has never read correctly in the time I have had the vehicle (second hand tank new sender by the previous owner) but now it always reads under a quarter no matter how much is actually in the tank. It did read up to almost full at first. The brains trust here suggested most likely a cabling problem. I’m going to run a cable from the gauge directly to the sender to see if that fixes it.

Might be worth a go for you as would be easier than the other options as a first step.

Cheers - Simon

Originally Posted by Robmacca

Guys...


Anyone with some ideas??

Not wanting to remove the tank again, is it possible to remove the sender unit while the tank is still mounted in position?

If anything like the Disco 1 you can remove the lid via a hatch. Some brittle plastics involved though.

Had success once in improving a senders accuracy by bending the float wire in the desired direction to change the resistance gauge pickup position, Can't remember if it was LRover. Believe the resistance track can be damaged or worn through in one spot if people constantly 'top up' their tank rather than run to near empty before re-filling.

I have been playing with a sender unit for a 300 tdi in the last week. Some things i noticed . 1 it appears you can put it in upside down. Now the big one: it possible to bend the float arm when putting it back in so you do not get full range of motion. The float arm can hit the pick up pipe , might be worth a check.