For the past month I've been smelling gas by the rear axle of the car after driving it. Then I woke up this morning and found a fairly large puddle of gas under the rear of the car. When I got home from work I pulled the tank to find that there is a tiny crack on the underside of the tank a little bit to the right of the passenger side strap that holds the gas tank in.

I imagine the crack may have formed due to the "thud" I've hear from the gas tank since I've owned it. Every once in a while I will hear the gas tank "thud" when I'm driving or less commonly when it is parked. All of that expanding and contracting of the tank must have caused this crack because nothing else is around this spot on the tank.

With that, I have a few questions:

1. Are the reproduction fuel tanks any good? This one says it is baffled so it should be a direct replacement right? http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo....035773&jsn=507
2. Is it possible/worth it to repair the crack I have? JB Weld would work but I don't know how long it would hold up. Or is there shops that repair fuel tanks?
3. These look like the correct liners that go on the fuel tank and the straps to replace mine that are falling apart: http://www.classicindustries.com/pro...arts/k915.html
4. Does anyone make a new fuel tank vent valve so I won't have the "thud" anymore? It looks like this was the part number but it is discontinued: 10033125.

 

I saw a thread on fixing the vent do a search for it.. I haven't used a 3rd gen tank from doorman but have had good luck with the one I put on an S10 yes those pads would work also could use an old bike tire tube of $$$is tight

 

I have the dorman tank. It works fine but I did have trouble with the tank filler caps not fitting the threads. I ended up having to to round off the sharp tips of the threads to get it to thread all the way in to the filler neck and seat on the cap seal. Not that big of a deal really. Getting the straps bolted back up with the new foam tape I stuck to the outside of the tank for vibration was a challenge but it got done. I did it on a lift.... I also used a pickup tube/sending unit from dorman and a high volume 800 HP fuel pump - closest kit I could find, which was for a C4 corvette. Worked great. New pump is a turbine style pump and completely silent.

I used foam tape for RV's and campers, etc. Hardware store. Just look at what they have - you want something 2" width.

I just left the vent line open under the car. Mine broke as well. Open to atmosphere works for me. I deleted the evap purge system anyway.

Rick

 

i think i'd just replace the fuel tank VS the cost/hassle of welding it it.

i did come across some stainless straps that might have the foam rubber on them already? i can't tell for sure by the description or pic.

http://www.rickscamaros.com/1991+che...002.html#close

Part #:
33-254671-1

 

Classic Industries has replacement straps with rubber on them if your straps are bad. That kit is what I used, though.

Aftermarket tanks are often larger than OE, so prepare to get longer tank strap bolts to compensate.

 

I'm going to order the Dorman tank off of Rockauto and just take the $225 hit. Easier than having to pull the tank again in the future if a repair on my current tank didn't pan out. New strap isolators will be ordered as well.

I found this video for cleaning out the vent:
Initially I was only able to suck air in through the vent but after cleaning it I can now suck air in and blow air out through the vent. Hopefully this will prevent a repeat of the crack on the new tank.

 

What's wrong with just deleting the vent? It's only for vapor. Mine has been that way for a couple years. No issues. The nipple is just left open under the car. No fuel smell or other issues. I'm in Oregon as well and they don't inspect this stuff. Just tail pipe sniff.

Rick

 

I'd rather have all of the emissions equipment working if possible. If I still have pressure issues with the new tank and the cleaned vent then I can always take it off. But that will be a last ditch effort.

 

Heh. I guess. Seems pretty silly to worry about fuel vapor emissions on a chipped V8 that's nearing 30 years old. At my shop we delete emissions equipment on 2016's almost as a matter of course if we are doing performance upgrades. Just the way it is. Not a stich of emissions equipment other than a new 3 way cat on my 86 Trans Am. Makes things a heck of a lot simpler in the engine bay.

Making power often involves emissions poor fuel ratios. That's just the nature of tuning. Worrying about fuel vapor emissions. The tank is vented to atmosphere through that valve when too much pressure builds up. Deleting the valve just has it venting all the time.

Rick

 

The story continues with this...I filled up the new tank today when it was at about half a tank. I drove it home and parked the car. About 2 hours later I went into the garage and smelled gas. Under the car there is a large puddle of gas and under further investigation a stream of gas is leaking from the filler neck area of the tank. It turns out that the weld on the filler neck is bad and I can wiggle the filler neck back and forth. I have no idea when this occurred because I don't remember it moving at all when I was installing the tank two weeks ago. As a temporary fix I pumped out 4 gallons of gas into a container to get the leak to stop.

One of these weekends I'm going to have to pull the tank again, return to it Rock Auto, and figure out what to do from here. I'm leaning towards trying to fix my original tank. I was never happy with the aftermarket tank fit. The gas cap never sealed well even with modifications and the filler neck on the aftermarket tank is sorter than the stock tank.

Another odd thing, it turns out the gas station pumped 12.5 gallons of gas when it should have been 7-8 gallons to fill it at half a tank. I have no idea how it wasn't spilling out of the filler neck at the gas station with that much extra fuel.

 

I think this is pretty common because my 87 had the same thing. Maybe there was a recall at some point that some owners missed. Not sure

 

I know its common for the stock tank to crack at the filler neck weld but this is on a new aftermarket tank I paid $225 for. Its not even two weeks old and on its second fueling it already has to be pulled....

 

Final update on this:

My dads friend was able to repair my OEM tank. It took about 10 minutes to seal it up with some brazing rod and there are no leaks to report with the tank back in the car. Hopefully this is the true end to this story.

 

When I first looked into this thread I thought it might be about drug smuggling...

At least you got a resolution to the leak. If the crack was relieved before brazing it should stop there. Usually that involves drilling or slotting the metal at the ens of the crack before brazing. Good luck.