Fuel issues fixed?

The current theory on the very poor fuel economy is based on the observations that (1) the temperature only gets about 1/4 of the way round the dial (I'd expect it to sit about halfway) and (2) the fan comes on, a lot, even in just-above-zero temperatures. In other words, this points towards the engine not getting up to temperature because the fan is on too much, and therefore using more fuel (apparently fuel economy drops considerably on these cars if they don't get up to temperature). The only flaw in this theory is that I'd expect the thermostat to close, so the fan being on shouldn't be an issue because water wouldn't be flowing to the radiator - but it's a start.

I boiled up the fan switch in a saucepan today and found that it switches on at 87 ºc, and off at about 79 ºc, whereas it should be switching at 97 and 105, so I've requested a new one from Peter. Hopefully this will sort the engine temperature and fuel economy - if not, then I'll have to try replacing the thermostat in case it's stuck open, which apparently occasionally happens even with new thermostats (which mine is).

Peter also tells me that he's sorted the steering column bracket and will post it tomorrow, and plans to get the IVA people to look at his new headlight bar design towards the end of the week, with a view to getting mine modified and returned once he's happy that the new design will pass IVA requirements. We're still not sure how the indicator position problem is going to be solved (they need to be slightly further outboard), but we'll think of something.

With these issues progressing on Peter's side, I took a look at the fuel lines issues raised by IVA. They felt that the fuel lines were chafing against the tank, so I removed the boot floor to address this. They also weren't happy about the earth to the tank (they wanted photos), and the lack of a tank strap securing the tank (they couldn't see the bracket holding it in on top of the tank).

Once the panel was off, I took a bunch of photos for evidence of the earth and the brackets, then decided that actually I might as well just fit a tank strap and make 100% sure that they're happy with it rather than hope that they're OK with my photos of the bracket arrangement. Thanks to Jason for the strap.

Strap in place. Note earth lead on the right.

I also found time for an extended and long-overdue garage tidy - I can actually find my tools now which helps.

I've noticed that I'm seeing a slight leak from both the diff and the transmission (by slight I mean a very, very occasional drip from the drain plug). The ideal solution would be to get new gaskets and replace the plugs, but that would mean (another) oil change, which is annoying. I'll have to start by making sure they're properly tight and see if that helps.