Fuel Cell vs Welding my Gas tank myself.....

[Sil240]

Ok well my stock gas tank has a Tiny crack where one of th straps hold it up.I've been looking for another tank everywhere.Part outs, Junkyards etc....Haven't had any luck.Apparantly in the junkyard they have to poke holes in them to drain the gas.

I've found a guy selling a 10 gal looks like plastic cell and pump for a good price. But i've heard things like they are not good for everyday driving, they smell etc...

I haven't heard any good facts of reasons why or why not.

My 1 big why not is that I don't want to cut my car apart to put this is.But if I can't get another gas tank without spending $360 (new) then I might.

I've googled and googled i've found a little bit of info, maybe you guys have some more.

Thanks

[Coolwhip]

i believe its recommended to have a rear firewall as well, might pose some issues if going into a hatch.

Fuel level sender.

hoses.

mounting of the cell.

all things to consider in the cost of a cell.

Drop your tank, clean it up, take it to get welded. It's not a magic material, any hitch & trailer weld shop can patch that up in 5 mins.

[Mistaken]

I dont know much about plastic cells, but the metal ones if installed correctly should not smell like gas at all, unless you spill or something. If you smell gas then you have a leak somewhere, which can be very dangerous.

[ANVIL]

get it repaired or hit up one of the complete part out threads

[Carl H]

i welded up the replacement gastank for my vh car but you HAVE to be VERY careful...gasoline fumes are very flamable...my tank had been open to atmosphere for months so it was dry but even then i flooded it out with argon before welding.it can be done but requires alot of cleaning and prep to do so.it will be very hard to find a professional welder who is willing to do it as it can be very dangerous.

[Sil240]

Yeah I've been hearing that you have to fill it will gas before you weld it.I've found a radiator shop finally that said they will weld it.Hopefully the weld is good.I guess it doesn't really matter since the crack is tiny. Its less than a 1/4 and inch long.

Every professional welding place I called said that they wouldn't do it.

Yeah the fuel cell is going to come up A LOT more expensive.Plus I have a hatch, so the rear firewall thing is kinda out of the question.

I've already rinsed it out like 2 weeks ago with soap and water. It's been sitting open since.Should I wash it out again with degreaser or Fantastic or just one more wash out with soap?

[Carl H]

in all seriousness light a piece of newspaper or paper towel on fire and run by the tank and drop it in...see if it flames up.should be ok if it doesnt 'smell' like gasoline but you can never be too careful with this stuff.

[PorkChopExpress]

id do it no problem. just throw a few lbs of dry ice in there and let it do its thing.throw a match in there to make sure lik carl said and weld up.

[Sil240]

HAHAHA I was really thinking about that.But I was like naahhhh thats retarded. lol

I'll try that after I wash it out one more time. lol

[Coolwhip]

what we use to do at the radiator shop would also wash it out with mineral spirits which we picked up some industrial type from home depot.


Modified by Coolwhip at 11:21 PM 11/18/2008

[BoostFab]

Yeah I've been hearing that you have to fill it will gas before you weld it.

it's called back purging. mainly for providing a full/proper penetration during welding inside and outside. more common in tig.

in this case, it is crucial that the tank is properly welded so it wont leak and cause an explosion.

i say if you have the $ go fuel-cell. and hang it lower down in the trunk where the stock tank was.

[Carl H]

its amazing how much better the weld comes out when you backpurge...i was blown away by how well the metal pooled when i welded mine up.

[s14_sport]

Dude it says your in LINY. Which to me means long island new york. I'm in long island new york. I sell S14 parts. I am in the complete partout threads /\/\ they speak of. I have your gas tank. Email me [email protected]

[BoostFab]

this is something i am looking forward to do for my car--with dual in-tank pumps or a large weldon external pump. still debating on the pump, though.

[StricNyne]

he lives in ft lauderdale now and he has a s13

[SIL-LINE]

bry .

I say for now just take it to get welded. this way were ready for race wars .LOL.

For real , get it welded and then we can finish fabbing up all other things that we were planning on and have that thing going for now( every one is still waiting on a video of that beast ) . Then later if you want to go with the cell, then go for it.

Sorry it took so long to check out your thread, been busy @ my hell hole(work) .

[Sil240]

Yeah used to live in LI, now in So FL.Thanks though.

If you know anyone with a S13 tank in FL LMK.

Yeah i'm def gonna get my tank welded.I'm gonna clean out the inside and outside tonight.

And if anyone see's me running around my backyard like a retard, I'm gonna be dropping lit newspapers in my tank. lol lol lol

I like that cell, but it's kinda high and it looks like its only hanging from those mounts.

Plus that $$ going towards that, I could be putting into injectors and a MAF.

[ANVIL]

or if your worried about welding



saw the commercial last night LOL

[Sil240]

That stuff works wonders on TV, so its gotta work for me!!! :-)

Reminds me of the chewing gum C4 in Mission Impossible 1 lol

[SullivanRacing06]

I dont know much about plastic cells, but the metal ones if installed correctly should not smell like gas at all, unless you spill or something. If you smell gas then you have a leak somewhere, which can be very dangerous.

haha, obv its gonna stink like fuel, i have three cars w fuel cells and every one of them reeks like gas, the fumes come out of the roll over vent and stinks up the inside of your car even if the vent tube its run out the bottom of the car, opening n closing the fill cap lets fumes out too, stick to oem for now, get it welded n while its all apart drop in a walbro, good luck

[Sil240]

Ok well picked up the tank on Friday.The welding of the tank was pretty sloppy.But.... The tank seems to hold so far.So I'm happy.

Is it just me or is it a PITA to bolt up the damn straps that hold up the tank????

[Carl H]

straps are not easy to get back into place...this is fo sho.

[Sil240]

OK thanks.I thought I was retarded.I've taken this tank down 4 times and everytime its a biznatch.

Hopefully I don't have to again.

[Coolwhip]

arrangements can be made >:D

glad to see you back going man