Gas Tank • The Dodge Challenger Message Board

by **Marcus** » 16 Apr 2001 3:22

What would you do if you had a car that sat for 10 years and about 5 of the 10 years was in a dusty body shop with the neck of the tank cut and open?

by **Henry** » 16 Apr 2001 7:33

Definitely flush it out with petrol/gas

by **alex** » 16 Apr 2001 12:49

Buy a new one!

by **dave-r** » 16 Apr 2001 16:39

Have you had a bump on the head or something Alex?
Have you seen the price of them?

by **Henry** » 16 Apr 2001 21:20

Alex has suggested the expensive option.
A decent fuel line filter would not go amiss if you have not already got one.

by **Ouch, my head!!** » 16 Apr 2001 21:42

Ya dont know whats got in there over the years and what sediment is in there, it may not just wash out, it may break up over time and cause loads of hassle, I know they aint cheap, but the risk of problems later on may well justify it. If the old one is kept, the least I would do is get it hot tanked, this way there is a much better chance of removing all the crud from the tank, petrol washed around it wont cut the mustard, filler dust sets hard and it is very abrasive, a filter will help, but it must be downstreem of the pump to save problems and changed monthly for about six months, till you are absolutly certain all the grunge has washed through, this sort of dust is very good at blocking filters as well, trust me I "revived" a car that had been in the same situation and had nothing but grief for months, it was a Marcos though so I should have expected it !

Oh yeah, check the tank strainer as well.........

by **Henry** » 16 Apr 2001 22:02

Alex is probably right.
It may be cheaper in the long run.
It reminds me of the 40's Caddy that a firm I know prepared for the Round the World classic rally.
They were getting all kinds of problems once they got to eastern Europe & beyond & got onto the rough unmade roads, where years of sediment in the bottom of the tank started to get agitated & kept blocking the filters.
Obviously their preparation was not as thorough as Alex would have done.

by **Humble Al to Henry** » 16 Apr 2001 22:44

Henry, I hope you arn't offended mate, I wasn't having a dig at ya about the petrol bit, most times it will work o.k., but if a tank has been open for ten years, it will have dryed out and the sediment will be like concrete.

by **Henry** » 17 Apr 2001 6:48

No prob Al.
That's what these places are for.
Discussing things gets the memory banks working.
Flushing may be enough but in the case of the Caddy I don't think they even did that. They had to fly a mechanic out to sort it, not that you can get new tanks for that age of Caddy.
Us layfolk don't realise the problems filler dust can cause.

by **dave** » 17 Apr 2001 17:33

BUT!!!
That stuff I used to cure the small leak in my tank also seals any flaky bits and creates a smooth hard plastic coating on the inside that will last forever!
I can't remember what it was called but I got it from Frost Auto Restoration in the UK and they get it from the USA.

by **Hans** » 17 Apr 2001 18:06

I searched in the Year One catalog and they sell a fuel tank repair kit for 67,95$. It sais it repairs small holes and splits. It's containing some chemicals and POR15.

BTW, a new fuel tank can be bought for 219$

by **alex** » 17 Apr 2001 18:14

for $219, why mess abiut and risk problems k a new tank is a good tank, an old tank is a liability

by **dave-r** » 17 Apr 2001 19:30

That was it! POR15.

It works a treat. Honest Alex. It is a product that REALLY works. Pour it in the tank, swill it around, and after three days standing drying it gives you a thick, hard plastic coating all around the inside of your tank. In fact if your tank is rusty on the inside it works better.

My tank had some surface rust and a pin hole that just refused to seal with other methods. I have had no problems since and the fuel is very clean.

A lad in Yorkshire called Chris put me on to it. He has a '71 Challenger with a 440+6. His tank was like net curtain. He used this stuff and again has had no problems since and it has been in for a couple of years now.

It is not cheap stuff but a lot less than a new tank.

by **alex** » 17 Apr 2001 20:27

Yeah I know about this stuff, and yes it does work very well, the only reason I said new tank was because the original question was what I would do !

I stand by my original thoughts, coz that IS what I would do, just for piece of mind, it's up to Marcus to decide which of the all good replies he decides to go with. We arn't points scoring , just trying to help as many folk as we can, and lots of ideas are better than none at all !
Bouncing questions and answers of everyone will help compile a wonderfull resource centre for all, perhaps as strings die out, you can sift the juicy bits and leave them up for reference.

Take it easy dudes

by **Marcus** » 18 Apr 2001 1:46

First Id like to say I LOVE THIS SITE!! ill be sure to visit it every day.As I'm deep into restoration.not sure really what I'm going to do yet.219 doesn't sound like a lot for a nice challenger.Ill also check out that other stuff.ill be sure to post other problems I have in the site.Thanks ALL!!!

by **ted** » 27 Apr 2001 1:12

time for a new tank.

by **Marcus** » 10 May 2001 2:36

Hey anyone hear of a fuel cell? heard you just put it in your trunk and you have a instant gas tank.Anyone know about this that can tell me how costly and easy it might be to install.

by **dave-r** » 10 May 2001 9:27

Fuel cells are what racing cars have for gas/petrol tanks. They can be very expensive and I am not sure but do they have provision for a fuel guage sender?

There are two main drawbacks to using one on a street car. Firstly it will take up a lot of room in your trunk/boot so for those overnight stays at shows you will have to pile everything on the back seat. Including the spare tyre and any sharp objects like tools that might rupture the tank in a crash.

Secondly there should be a metal barrier between you and the tank. You would have to seal off the trunk with a sheet of steel or ally behind the rear seat.

by **Marcus** » 11 May 2001 0:31

I see,I don't think thats for me.I will use one of the other options above.By the way got my car up and running but Im using gas out of a container now.So I have to make a move now.I heard alot of pro's and con's about this I thing im gonna drop the tank and clean the hell out of it.Then maybe even seal it off with that stuff.Thanks all.......Brakes are next...so keep an eye out for me in that section dave.lol

by **Marcus** » 12 Jun 2001 1:19

old tank was unsavable.....went all new.I have to say now that the money is spent I feel so much better to have a nice new fuel system,I recomend to people to go new on this part,money is gone.....and ill just go out and make more right?

by **Marcus** » 24 Jun 2001 20:35

I just got a my new gas tank for my challenger.it came silver(bare metal)should this be treated? and what do you recomend with?

by **frank** » 26 Jun 2001 3:18

marcus .. first off did you get a regular gas tank or one that has the thermal expansion? if it is the expansion job then you have to have a vapor separator it fits in the rear of the vehicle and keeps the car from vapor locking (this is on a 70 chall right? if not they may have done something different for the yr you have) there is also a tank insulation pad that goes on the top side of the tank be sure to undercoat(car) before re-installing the tank as well then the tank is undercoated...thats the way mine is.what shape is your inside rubber filer tube seal in?.... hope i haven't opened a can of worms here.

by **Marcus** » 27 Jun 2001 1:37

Its for a 72,I got it from year one.it has 4 vent tubes next to the filler hole.maybe thats what ya mean.its a perfect match to the old one.all the hookups I mean.O and the seal......all new..I went all new parts....sending unit..filler tube..trunk seal..everything..yes the top pad too.
the car is at a undercoating place now,getting welded for something else.without the new tank in yet.ill tell em to undercoat before I put it in.then you say undercoat after the install too?I plan on keeping the car for a lifetime so.thanks for your help man.

by **frank** » 28 Jun 2001 4:03

yes that's the one, do the 72s have the vapor separator in the trunk? or did they do something else that yr? sorry about the mix-up on undercoating, when i undercoated mine i did the tank set it aside then did the car then installed the tank. no need to undercoat again(unless you want to) oh one other thing i would make sure the body plugs are in before the undercoating is started, that stuff gets everywhere if noone took yours out no worries - the guy that stripped mine took almost everything off the car(then sold it to me) so i learned something new every day, and yes keep the car DONT sell it i sold one and couldn't wait for another one took me 5 yrs to get this one and i will not be selling this one!

by **Duane** » 25 Jul 2001 19:09

Has anyone replaced the fuel tank vent hoses leading from the fuel tank to the vent riser in the trunk? Can you do this without dropping the tank?

The vent hoses on my 72 have cracked and are leaking; I just want to get a feel for what is involved once you get the hose shield off. My manual is not too detailed.

Thanks!

by **Joel** » 02 Aug 2001 9:27

I have a sediment problem as well. I don't know what the sediment in my case is from, but I plan to purchase a new tank as well. My brother washed the tank out a little while before I bought the car from him, but the sediment returned. Don't want any hassels so I have decided to buy a new tank when I get that far into the restoration. I can't believe you payed $219 for a new tank. I thought that they were a little cheaper than that. I suppose it is worth the money in the long run. Does anyone think that having a sump welded on a tank is a good idea? I have heard that fuel flow is increased because the fuel flows down and into the feed line than being pumped out from the origianl location, and so you can get every last drop of gas out of the tank.

by **dave-r** » 02 Aug 2001 9:54

A lot of the crap in the bottom of your tank came with the fuel. When the filling stations are waiting for a delivery and their tanks are getting low you get all this crap in your fuel. The older the tank at the station the worst it will be. I don't know if they are supposed to clean these things out now and again or what.

Adding a sump will allow it to collect in the sump but if you then take your fuel feed from there you will get nothing but the sediment!

You should try not to let your tank in your car get low anyway. Keep it full. The more air you have in the tank the more rust you get in there and the thicker the sediment in the bottom.

Change to a filling station that gets fuel deliveries on a more regular basis.

by **Joel** » 02 Aug 2001 19:58

I was planning to purchase a new tank and then have the sump welded on. There is no way in heck that I am going to use the old crudy tank. Actually, the tank is in superb condition except for the fact it has alot of crap in it.