Reventec Ltd, a UK-based sensor design and manufacturing company, has developed a fuel level sensor with custom fittings for an Aston Martin DB2 Lightweight race car.
Originally built for the 1951 racing season, the DB2 Lightweight was a purpose-built racing variant of the standard production DB2. Designed with the Le Mans 24 Hour race in mind, the DB2 Lightweight featured lighter chassis components and used thinner aluminium for many of body parts.
Image courtesy of Glynn Allen
One of only five surviving examples, this car is currently privately owned and still active in historic motor racing. The car needed a new fuel level sensor as it had run out of fuel during a race on more than one occasion. In addition to preventing this problem, precise knowledge of the amount of fuel also cuts down on unnecessary weight being carried during a race. The owner of the car approached Reventec to find a solution.
Photo of the DB2 LW Dashboard. Images courtesy of Glynn Allen
A unique challenge for this application faced by Reventec was the need for authenticity – any visible parts of the new solution would have to blend in with the historical aesthetic of the vehicle. The finished solution comprised of a new tank sender unit and a custom gauge to display the fuel load. The sender unit was a custom built unit from the Reventec EcoSense product range which was customised to interface to the original Aston fuel tank but benefitted from the same modern internal electronics that Reventec use for its range of F1 and Indycar fuel level sensors. This was coupled to the original Aston gauge that again benefitted from a custom engineered solution involving a micro stepper motor fitted behind the bezel, converting the 0-5V output from the sender to the full range of movement of the gauge’s needle.
The updated DB2 LW fuel gauge
Since installing the new fuel sensor and gauge, Chief Mechanic Darren Roberts stated: “we no longer need to estimate our fuel load, but rather accurately measure in the precise amount of fuel for each race, ensuring we minimise any excess weight. The needle on the gauge no longer dances from side to side but stays planted to the position appropriate to the fuel load in the tank to the extent that we can now totally rely on the reading”.
Neville Meech, Director at Reventec, commented: “This project is a great example of how our Ecosense technology can be adapted to custom requirements. Fitting a sophisticated measuring system to a historic car was a unique and enjoyable project that showcased the versatility of our motorsport sensors.”
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