Fuel tank sealing

[Richard McDonel]

I recently cleaned my 240Z gas tank and sealed it with POR. I was a little concerned that with all the small dia. fuel and vent lines, the sealant might clog something. So I took a piece of mechanics` wire and ran it through the various pipe fittings. When I got to the main pick-up line (immediately adjacent to the fuel-gauge sensor opening), the wire kept sticking and binding. Once I worked it past the first two obstructions, it ran well for a few inches, then stuck again. At that point I had no idea whether the wire had got caught up in another bend in the pipe, or had reached the bottom of the tank. Fortunately, I had a spares-only wreck with a rusted tank. I cut open the old tank, and was able to view and measure the fuel pick-up pipe.

What you have in the pick-up pipe are two roughly 90-degree bends near the top that will snag your feeler wire. Past that, it`s pretty straight. Measure the mechanic`s wire, and once you are 14 inches (35.6 mm) in, you have reached bottom.

The things they don`t tell you in Haynes!