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We take it for granted that we can drive our vehicle to the gas station and fill it up. We know that after installing the fuel cell, the fuel will be controlled and ensure our safety while we are driving. In most cases, the factory fuel tank is left in the home under the vehicle before construction becomes serious. With the help of Holley and Fuel Safe, we will look at how to build the ultimate off-road fuel cell. The time to upgrade the fuel system will come sooner or later. We will not only explain how to upgrade, but also why you need to follow certain guidelines.
Building a fuel cell is more than just finding a can and throwing fuel into it. It takes time to think about everything that might happen on the trail or in the desert, lest you get into trouble. We spoke with Keith Jessee of Holley, Mike Torvik of Fuel Safe, and Cory Sappington of Best in the Desert to gain insights into fuel cells, their components, and the safety surrounding them.
We will install this unit in our 2005 GMC Canyon preliminaries project car Project Storm Trooper. The truck was recently fitted with a front long travel kit, Currie F9 shell, Bilstein M9200 bypass shock absorber and the beginning of the rear cage. The fuel cell is one of the last components installed on the truck.
Why run a fuel cell
If you have never engaged in fuel, this may be a terrible task, but it will have a beneficial result. Compared with any other safety device, one advantage of fuel cells is that they can improve performance and protect your engine.
The factory fuel system is not intended to abuse off-road. “When the OEM fuel tank is strongly driven, insufficient fuel is very common, which can cause the pump to burn out or damage your motor,” Tovik said. "Using fuel cells, you can integrate fuel removal systems, storage tanks, baffles, redundant pump settings, and more."
Fuel cells of various shapes and forms can be seen in all types of racing cars.
According to local smog regulations, fuel cells may be illegal, so leave them to the vehicle that will be racing. If the vehicle will drive on local streets, local laws should be considered.
For racing drivers, when purchasing a fuel cell, please ensure that it meets the certification requirements specified in the rule book issued by the competition sanctions agency. "Even if the rulebook does not require it, it is a good idea to get a certified battery. Torvik said: "This ensures you get the best safety. In addition, ensure that the manufacturer can customize your fuel cell to suit your application and provide the battery with the accessories needed to optimize the fuel system. "
Ordering parts can be the fun part, but to make sure everything goes well, you need to plan. When the parts need to be assembled together for installation, we have experienced this firsthand. From accessories to pumps, everything needs to work together.
Fuel is used to cool and lubricate the pump. If the fuel pump is idling, or worse, cavitation occurs, the possibility of mechanical failure will increase exponentially. One way we help prevent this in our settings is Hydramat.
Hydramat is a fuel storage system designed to reduce fuel shortages during sharp turns, accelerations, stops, tilts and low fuel conditions. Even after the fuel tank is drained, Hydramat still retains a small amount of fuel. "Hydramat acts as a 15-micron pre-filter," Jesse explained. "This means that the fuel entering the pump will be cleaner compared to using a typical 100-micron pre-filter."
When building any type of fuel cell, Hydramat is a great addition to ensure that no matter what the situation, you will not run out of fuel engines.
Holley's 12-1200 pump allows you to run two pumps in one housing. If one pump fails, the other pump only needs to press the switch.
Diving into the water tank, we use Holley's 12-1200 pump to install with Hydramat. "12-1200 is essentially two pumps in one housing," Jessee said. "This allows you to enjoy all the benefits of a dual pump system without the additional hassle of installing piping for two separate pumps. You can also choose to run both pumps at the same time to support more horsepower."
It's great to have all these components, but you need something to connect everything together. Holley’s Earls Plumbing product line has what we need. It can be connected to the fuel tank and the fuel line of the factory can be replaced with the motor.
With the help of new regulators and gauges, we will be able to fine-tune the fuel pressure.
"When choosing a fuel hose, you need to consider which type of fuel you will use, which will determine which type of lining you need," Jessee said. "The size of the hose will depend on how much fuel needs to be allowed to flow. Most applications under 500 horsepower only require -6 hoses. Engines in the 500 to 750 horsepower range will require -8 hoses, for any power over 750 horsepower For engines, I recommend using -10 or larger hoses."
Our prerunner version currently has about 200 horsepower and plans to eventually replace the truck to approach 500 horsepower. We used the -8 send line and -6 return line, which are suitable for both applications.
We chose Earl's Pro-Lite Ultra hose because it matches our project and can withstand abuse. Pro-Lite Ultra is composed of an oil-resistant "PKR" synthetic rubber inner tube, a partially covered steel wire inner braid, and an oil-resistant, weather-resistant and wear-resistant inner tube. The hose is covered with black tangled filament nylon fibers. This stainless steel braid added under the lid and above the lining adds extra hoop strength to increase pressure ratings and increase strength for small radius applications.
We chose not to use the traditional stainless steel hose because it may wear anything with off-road friction. The hose can also transport automatic transmission oil, coolant, diesel, E85, methanol, pump gas and competition gas.
These pipelines can not only withstand off-road abuse, but also won't wear anything that may be rubbed like traditional stainless steel hoses.
The last piece of the puzzle is the accessory. When each hose is manufactured to a certain length, the accessory is placed on the hose. "We use 2024 aluminum for the adapter and straight pipe ends," Jessee said. "This is a very strong material that is very suitable for high-stress applications. We are one of the few companies that use this higher quality material when applicable. At the end of our tube elbow, we use 6061 aluminum, which makes We can braze the elbow to the component."
Now that we know what we will use in our installation, it's time to turn to the safety side and understand why we need to run these components.
We all know the importance of helmets, seat belts and roll cages in off-roading, but fuel cells are equally important in terms of safety. "During an impact, the OEM fuel tank may crack and spill fuel, causing a fire or even an explosion," Mike Torvik explained. "The fuel cell has an air bag inside the container that can absorb collision energy and prevent fuel spillage, fire and explosion."
A fuel cell is more than just a fuel tank. "Fuel cells have four main components," Tovik said. "The container is the first line of defense for the fuel cell. It provides puncture resistance for the airbag and provides qualified constraints for the flexible airbag. The container is usually made of steel or aluminum."
Fuel cells have many components, all of which help ensure the safety of the driver. The aluminum shell is only the first layer of defense.
"The core of the fuel cell is the airbag," he continued, "This is the certified part of the fuel cell that can absorb collision energy to retain fuel without spilling. Next is the foam baffle inside the cell, which offers many advantages. It prevents fuel sloshing, degassing fuel, and most importantly, it prevents fuel atomization and acts as a spark suppressor to mitigate explosions. "
All components are important, but the most prominent in terms of safety is one of them. "The most important safety device on a fuel cell is the airbag," Tovik said. "Make sure you get FIA-FT3 or SFI 28.1 certified airbags to ensure you have the highest level of safety. Meeting these specifications means that the materials used by this manufacturer have been tested and meet or exceed the highest safety standards in the industry. Each Fuel Safe fuel cells meet or exceed the highest industry safety standards."
The lid of the fuel cell is connected to the airbag, which makes it easy to repair the pump and the inside of the battery.
According to the end use of the vehicle, the setting method of the unit can allow you to pass the technical inspection in the first time. BITD technical officer Cory Sappington (Cory Sappington) said: "All off-road vehicles, trucks and UTV must be equipped with fuel cells in BITD." "All vehicles have the same fuel cell requirements."
Sappington has been involved in this sport for some time. "As long as I can remember, desert racing needs fuel cells, which can be traced back to the 70s," Sappington said. In 2005, he was the first person to compete in UTV in the desert. Sappington created the UTV course for BITD and has managed the course for more than 12 years.
Another safety feature of fuel cells is the identification valve. It is a valve connected to the exhaust hose. When the water tank is full, it will cut off the release of air.
When building a fuel cell, it is important to prepare for the worst. No one thinks they will throw away valuable assets, but this can happen to anyone. "Ensure that the fuel cell has complete rollover protection," Tovik said. "Ensure that the filling valve and exhaust valve have rollover protection. This will prevent fuel from spilling when the vehicle rolls over."
Now is the time to start work and use our fuel cell for Project Storm Trooper. We have activated the rear cage and know where we want the fuel cell, but before the battery enters the truck, we need to make a pallet to put it in after the factory fuel tank falls.
With the pipe connection inside the fuel cell, we can move to the outside.
The pallet allows a place in the cell to sit down and also wear a seat belt. After the pallet was properly installed on the outside of the truck, we were able to weld it to the factory beam to ensure that the battery has more structure.
After removing the factory water tanks and pipelines, we continued to lay new pipelines.
We removed all factory fuel lines because we are replacing them with Pro-Lite Ultra hoses. The factory fuel system presses the fuel pressure regulator into the fuel rail. A trip to the local machinery factory gave us a customized part that we used to adapt the new production line to the track.
Each fuel cell needs a tray to place and fasten to the vehicle. We made the tray with 1.5-inch angle iron and installed the fuel cell in place.
Earl's has an adapter that can be connected to the factory's transmission line. After measuring the distance between the battery and the motor, we were able to run the production line and install the correct accessories. Everything is tightened, and the fuel filter is fixed to the driver's side frame rail.
The fuel pump has two separate wires for the two fuel pumps. We only connected them for the time being. The second one will be connected to the internal switch, if one fails, it can be flipped.
When everything is ready, we can start the truck.
Before starting the installation, we had no chance to fill up our gasoline tank, which left us with only half a gallon of gasoline. This is all the gasoline we need to get the truck to burn up and down to the gas station. We were skeptical, but it ignited. This is the first example of Hydramat's capabilities.
After everything is connected, it's time to add some fuel and start the truck.
After filling up a tank of gasoline (and some strange expressions), we are going to dig the dirt to see how it handles this abuse. The pump in the water tank is quiet. We can see that it is opening, but this is not overbearing.
Trucks spend longer in the dirt, and we know that no matter the terrain, we will be safe. We don't have to worry about the fuel sloshing around during bumps. To put it simply, the durability of the fuel cell has been greatly improved; we don't have to worry about the stone hitting the factory tank and piercing it.
All in all, we are very satisfied with the entire setup and its combination. For more information about fuel system products, be sure to check the Holley and Fuel Safe websites.
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