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dropping the gas tank, have a question...

S

SVT#4967

CEG'er
Joined
Sep 12, 2007
Messages
322
Location
Michigan
So my brake lines are leaking and I need to drop the gas tank on my 98 SVT to gain access to the rear lines.

I have the exhaust and heat shield removed so I can get to the strap bolt on the driver side. So the tank is somewhat ready to start dropping but I need to empty the tank first. I tried putting a tube down the filler tube to see if I could get into the gas tank to siphon the gas out but that didn't work. I'm guess there is a something in the tube that will prevent gas from going up that tube which is stopping me from getting a tub down into the tank (ran into this problem when doing a fuel pump on my girls Jimmy).

So, how do I drain the gas?

Its close to a full tank with only 60 miles put on it since filling it up so it would be quite heavy and awkward to drop while it has this much gas in it.

Also, the manual says to press the tabs and pull the ring out to remove the filler tube from the gas tank? Is it really this simple or is there a trick I should know about first before I start?

Any help would be appreciated as I need to get the tank out so I can start running my new brake lines.

Thanks
 
i too am curious what the best way to siphon gas out of the contour would be as i have a full tank of gas in the zetec that i would love to put in the SVT.
 
how about disconecting one side of fuel filter and draining from there? i dont know the size of hose your trying down the neck either but might want to try some thing small like 3/8 or 1/2 inch tubing to get past the flapper at bottom of neck
 
If I were to disconnect one side of the fuel filter then what? Turn the key to prime the pump and have it pump it into a gas can instead of through the lines? Something just doesn't sound safe about that...

I'm probably using a 1/2" hose now. So there is some sort of stopper at the bottom of the fill tube, thats what I figured.

I ran into this when doing a fuel pump on my girls Jimmy. I ended up dropped the back of the tank just enough to disconnect the filler tube so I could siphon from there. But looking at the tank on the contour that doesn't look like it would work because of how the straps are. Looks like the front of the tank is going to drop first so I can get to the electrical connection and that on top, that wouldn't help me to get to the filler tube at the back of the tank.

Any thoughts? I really want to have this tank emptied and removed from the car today.
 
fastest way?

drain out of the fuel filter.

additional steps if wanted? tap the fuel pump power lines to trigger it separately without having to "crank" the engine. so that only the pump is running by itself and you've got a tank of gas out and empty in no time.

Although, I think that gravity drain will be as fast, or close without the ability to modulate the pump speed (don't want to run full speed, etc), so I'd just pull the fuel filter on one side, then perhaps you could unhook the line that leads from the fuel pump(internal) to the fuel filter(external) and just have it "under" the level of the gas so that its just a bare tube leading from within the tank to underneath the car.


Now, finding something that holds 15 gallons (or close to it) and still is low enough to "catch" the fuel underneath the car is going to be fun.
 
Ray said:
fastest way?

drain out of the fuel filter.

additional steps if wanted? tap the fuel pump power lines to trigger it separately without having to "crank" the engine. so that only the pump is running by itself and you've got a tank of gas out and empty in no time.
Click to expand...

well, I like fast but is it safe?

How/where would I "tap" into the power lines to trigger the pump?

Ray said:
Although, I think that gravity drain will be as fast, or close without the ability to modulate the pump speed (don't want to run full speed, etc), so I'd just pull the fuel filter on one side, then perhaps you could unhook the line that leads from the fuel pump(internal) to the fuel filter(external) and just have it "under" the level of the gas so that its just a bare tube leading from within the tank to underneath the car.
Click to expand...

not quite sure how I would unhook the hose from the fuel pump inside the tank to get the hose to the bottom of the tank.

Ray said:
Now, finding something that holds 15 gallons (or close to it) and still is low enough to "catch" the fuel underneath the car is going to be fun.
Click to expand...

yeah, I will be using three 5gallon gas cans to hold the gas in. I figured if I did the gravity feed way I would have trouble once the cans start getting full and I have to switch to another gas can.

The "power" way of doing sound most appealing since it sounds easiest and fastest, just nervous since I've never done it that way before.
 
disconnect the fuel line at the filter not the pump. The filter is on the side. Let gravity drain it.

Getting the filler neck out requires tearing the clip to pieces. Get a new clip for reassembly.

NOT A FUN JOB!!
 
my_black99svt said:
disconnect the fuel line at the filter not the pump. The filter is on the side. Let gravity drain it.

Getting the filler neck out requires tearing the clip to pieces. Get a new clip for reassembly.

NOT A FUN JOB!!
Click to expand...

Not quite sure that will work.

I am thinking it will have to be EITHER:

tapping the pump and pumping it out
OR
removing the line AT THE PUMP and making sure its under the fuel level, then gravity draining.


The reason I say this is that I am not sure that gravity draining will work THROUGH a pump that isn't powered. isn't it going to be a seal/block to fuel flow if its not powered up and pumping? If it is, which I think it will be, then you'd HAVE to power the pump to move fuel through it, or remove the fuel line from the pump (access from under rear seat cushion) and gravity drain with no pump in the way.
 
is the contour like the cougar in that you can access the top of the fuel pump from inside the car? If so...you could in theory pull the fuel pump, drop a line with a hand pump, and put fuel into the can that way.
 
when i changed my fuel filter gas just kept coming out from the tank until i pinched the line. so draining it that way i think should work. its the easiest so why not try it?
 
no, disconnecting the inlet hose to the fuel filter will not drain the tank. It's a trickle at best, probably just whats in the hose. I know cause I disconnected both sides of the fuel filter while I was messing around.

Ray is correct though, powering the pump to drain the tank worked the best. I removed the outlet hose on the fuel filter and put a 5/16 hose on it with a hose clamp and ran that to a gas can sitting outside the car. Took a while but it worked.

I thought about opening the tank from under the seat cushion and gravity draining the tank with a long hose to a gas can that would be outside the car and lower than the tank but didn't feel like pulling the sending unit and all that. But I am sure that would work.

yes, the retaining ring from the filler tube broke while trying to get it out. It was already broke in one spot which I later found out but upon removing it I broke it again. Nothing major, just it is now in two pieces. Got so frustrated with that damn thing just for it to brake on me, pissed me off. Do they sell them at Ford?

I have the two electric connections disconnected, the vapor tube disconnected, the outlet on the fuel filter and the filter tube retaining ring out. I didn't get the filler tube out of the tank yet, seems quite stuck. It also looks like I have one more vapor tube type that will need to be disconnected and the return tube that runs along side the filler tube to still disconnect as well as another line that runs to the sending unit from over by where the fuel filter is at. Sorry for not knowing the names, the manual is pretty vague on what is required to drop the tank. Once I get the filler tube out of the tank, will the tank drop enough to get to the return tube? I can't see how I could get in there to disconnect that with the tank still up in the car.

Anyone who has done this, if you could give me some pointers I would REALLY appreciate it. I really just want to get this job done and the car back on the road.
 
hamill said:
is the contour like the cougar in that you can access the top of the fuel pump from inside the car? If so...you could in theory pull the fuel pump, drop a line with a hand pump, and put fuel into the can that way.
Click to expand...


Do this next time. It's easy. Did mine that way.

Do purchase the replacement clip and perhaps the filler tube seal beforehand. I found no way to release the clip without destroying it. Perhaps there is a special tool, but the manual makes no mention of one. Parts at Ford only.

Steve
 
ok, I got the tank dropped from the car. But I still have one hose that needs to be disconnected. It's the return hose to the sending unit. It looks like I press in the tabs on the collar in and then pull the hose/fitting up and out of the sending unit and collar? Is this correct? I tried this but it wouldn't move so I stopped not wanting to break it.

I'll have to make a trip over to the dealer to get that retaining collar for the filler tube as well as a fuel filter, figured I should do that now as well.

Also, where can I get new tank straps? Mine are rusted badly and pretty flimsy. Does the dealer carry them? If no one knows I will have to ask when I go get the filler tube retaining collar and fuel filter.

Working on this car helps if you have long arms and small hands...
 
Why would you not just remove the rear seat bottom, remove the fuel pump and siphon the gas from there?

Thats what I did when I did my brake line repair.

Do not buy the Rock Auto ones.

CSVTs have 2 different length straps, so only one will work....
 
ok, no offense, but I'm going to guess you didn't even read the thread?

I don't need to go from under the seat if I have the tank on the ground. It's not that I need to know how to get to it, I need to know how to actually remove it. Everything is disconnected except for that hose. I need to disconnect that hose so I can get the tank out from under the car and get started on re-doing my hard lines.
 
just as you said, squeeze the tab and pull the return line out. it can be pretty difficult sometimes though.
 
SVT#4967 said:
ok, no offense, but I'm going to guess you didn't even read the thread?

I don't need to go from under the seat if I have the tank on the ground. It's not that I need to know how to get to it, I need to know how to actually remove it. Everything is disconnected except for that hose. I need to disconnect that hose so I can get the tank out from under the car and get started on re-doing my hard lines.
Click to expand...

My apologies. I originally started reading about the straps and answered there but I didn't read from the get go.

Like others have said, just squeeze and twist. I put a shot of WD40 on mine and let it soak for a bit.
 
ok, thanks.

Like I said, I figured thats what I needed to do and figured it was just stuck but I wanted to confirm before I broke something and since all the manual isn't very descriptive on how to remove some of the connections.

I didn't get a chance to work on the car yesterday, so I should be able to get some work done on it today and get the return line out of the sending unit and the gas tank out from under the car.
 
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