jermdm

Hey guys. Got my 89 iroc 350 tpi. I’m in the market for a new fuel tank. I know the OE tanks are discontinued so aftermarket is the only choice. Wanting to know for those who have bought a new tank, what was your experience with it. Did it fit correctly. Have any issues with filler neck or anything in general. I’ve looked at tanks on the market and read reviews. Seems like stay away from spectra and dorman tanks because of filler neck alignment issues. I searched on here and found people with gas cap fitment issues. Weird that tanks that are out there are 14 gallon tanks and the originals are 15 gallons. Probably no big deal though. Might just go with a salvage yard tank if I can find a good one.

dan5

I used a Dorman in my '85 TPI. It worked fine, alignment was good. It just needs a different cap than factory.

I posted details in these threads:
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/tech...fuel-tank.html
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/tech...ml#post6380560

LiquidBlue

Beat me to it Dan, was just about to mention you!

Dyno Don

iTrader: (7)

Too bad you are so far away, I have a nice one from a '91 that was a factory replacement

GeneralDisorder

iTrader: (1)

All the aftermarket tanks are coming from the same manufacturer and they all require a newer style cap. They seem to fit just fine and are actually better than stock due to having all-metal baffles rather than plastic like stock. The only issue seems to be damage in shipping as they are normally shipped with the filler neck exposed and simply with some cardboard taped to it,etc. This can lead to easy damage and cracked welds, etc. so make sure you buy from a reputable seller that's going to guarantee and insure the shipment.

GD

dan5

It would not surprise me if there is only a single set of stamping dies at one manufacturer, but the specifications for the final assembly appear to vary some amount at the final assembly level. In other parts of the auto parts world, one manufacturer will supply the base part that is then customized by the the next tier supplier. Or, one supplier will supply variants for the final customer. For example, Spectra indicates that they sell a part that is plated only, equal to OEM plating. Dorman supplies one that has an additional paint coating over the basic plating. My Dorman tank definitely seems to have a paint layer. Also, in some of the online pictures that I have seen, the filler neck configurations differ between brands with respect to the filler neck baffles and filler nozzle restrictor.
I agree with the shipping issue. My tank was ordered from Autozone who had it direct shipped from Dorman by UPS and the paint near the end of the filler neck did get scuffed up and required touch up. They also didn't pad the tank inside the box, so there was a spot where the tank flange was protruding slightly.
I liked that the tank is all steel and doesn't have the plastic baffle / tray. However, you need to be very careful on assembling the pump and sender into the tank, because that metal is sharp and could damage the wiring.