ver the years automobile manufacturers have gone to extraordinary lengths to play hide and seek with the fuel tank filler. Cadillac went so far in 1949 to conceal it under the hinged driver side taillight. Chevrolet did the same thing in 1956 with a unique flip-down taillight. For those old enough to remember hiding the gas cap, this was not only a slick styling trick, it was also the origin of a classic gas station gag. There was always an old-time pump jockey who would flip open the taillight of one of these cars and tell the new kid at the service station “that’s where you add blinker fluid.” No telling how many trusting young men were sent to a parts house to ask an amused salesman for a gallon of the stuff.

Recently we were talking to Chadly Johnson, our man on the scene at MetalWorks Classic Auto Restoration in Eugene, Oregon, when he mentioned they were installing a hidden gas tank filler behind the taillight of a 1966 Chevy Nova. That sounded like a cool idea, but what piqued our interest was hearing this was not a kit. All the modifications made to modify the taillight and hide the fuel filler were designed and fabricated by their own Dave Williams. We had to see how it was being done.

Williams began the transformation by removing the inner support structure of the original taillight. He then fabricated a housing from sheetmetal to mount the fuel tank’s relocated fill pipe. A hinge was fabricated from flat stock that mounts an LED taillight that now swings open to access the gas cap. A cable-operated gas door latch from a Nissan holds the light tight to the body when in the closed position. All of these modifications required some crafty engineering.

With the modified taillight/gas filler assembly in place, Williams turned his attention to filling the hole that was left in the quarter-panel; more precisely the two holes that were left, as there was one in the inner fender panel and another in the outer skin. The inner hole was simply filled with a round patch, but the outer panel was more complicated. The factory stamping caused a slight distortion in the panel, and to blend the area to Williams’ satisfaction, a larger patch panel was necessary.

Like everything MetalWorks does, this hidden fuel filler was perfectly executed. It’s a modern version of the classic gas cap hide and seek, but where the blinker fluid goes is anyone’s guess.