Thread: fuel capacity to Cape york and beyond??

I have been wondering this myself. Am planning on a Cape York trip in Aug. Figured on two 20l gerry cans of fuel. Had toyed with the idea of the Opposite Lock fuel tank that sits in the quarter panel behind the filler of the Defender. Having trouble justifying the $750 for the tank. Will probably get one when I need more room inside the car.
I can get about 700k's from my standard tank when loaded. (this does not include low range work) The extra gerry's should give me some good range. Any ideas would be appreciated

Cheers,

Ken

i went to cape york, iron range and cooktown and everywhere in between with just my standard 60l tank and two 20l jerrys

I run a 150l tank and it was fine. Really handy for our run into Chilli beach (what a quagmire, though now I know how it got its name) where we used a loooot of fuel.

the planning range on big red is 500km. (thats on a full tank)

If im planning on going off the beaten track for the full planning range I have the tank full and 2x that in spare fuel in jerries.alternate tanks/44s on the trailer.

If i have to go on highway and expect to exceed my planning range between known good fuel points I have the tank full, one more full refuel in alternate tanks/drums and one spare 20l jerry.

The main reason is I've experienced a badly holed tank at pretty much exactly the middle of the track and had to make the do I go back or push on choice and hope that what fuel i saved and the spare jerry would get me there.

get a map work out where you want to go and the distances involved

from your fuel usage rates you can work out how much fuel to take

from experience a 80 litre tank supplemented with 4 jerry cans is plenty for a diesel for a petrol vehicle 8 jerry cans

Depends on how much you think you want to save on fuel for one or two stops compared to carrying a load of fuel with you for the trip

Personally l dont think carrying all the extra weight and space lost in the vehicle was ever worth the fuel saving but it was comforting to know if l had to go somewhere l could go there and not worry about running short on fuel

We did Birdsville, Karumba, Cairns, Cape, Fraser, etc in a '91 V8 Disco - loaded with waaaay to much junk - and took 5 jerrys with the standard fuel tank. It ended up being overkill but with all the 'off track' exploring it was just piece of mind. If i did it again or something similiar in a V8 i'd knock it back to 3 jerrys... The fuel availability wasn't a problem but at a $1.66 (Bramwell Stn) it did get painfull - but a great trip all the same.

I'm going up to the cape in 2 weeks time for 4 weeks. I've got a 125l tank in a 300tdi and I'll take a jerry but only plan to fill it up if we decide to go somewhere more remote. I think its only 3-400 k maximum between fuel outlets on the cape.
Tony

If you're going 'as far off the beaten track as possible', you will end up paying 'isolation tax', even with a 1000kay range, but just cop it sweet, don't let something as paltry as a few bucks, ruin a trip of a lifetime. 120ltrs at 30c per litre extra is only $36, if thats going to break the bank, maybe you should think twice!. Take a jerrycan for peace of mind.