Care in Removing Gas Tank Parts

[tanny]

Since this gas tank removal process is fresh in your mind and I will be removing mine shortly, could you give a brief description of the complete removal process, detailing in sequence what(hoses, etc.) you had to loosen or remove before you took off the straps and lowered the tank, and any tips you might have to make the process easier. Thanks, Victor.

[kmack]

Tanny, since I've had my tank out a few times (more than i want to mention), I'll take a stab at the process.

Of course you'll want to drain as much gas as you can get out of the tank. The is a drain plug on the bottom in the center.

Disconnect wires from fuel gauge sending unit.

Disconnect fuel pick up and return lines from tank (right next to sending unit).

I then loosen the straps holding the tank up. I don't take them off, just loosen the bolts up so the tank will drop down but still hang in place. Then I start working on disconnecting the vent lines. Starting with the one on the driver's (exhaust) side of the tank.

That allows that side of the tank to fall a little further so you can then reach the vent line that is on top of the tank (about in the middle, right up against the rear valence).

Now you can disconnect the 3rd vent line and main fill tube (from fill door). There is a big clamp on the fill tube, don't lose it. It's hard to find another one.

Once all of those lines have been disconnected, then finish taking the straps off, and remove the tank from under the car.

You can get the tank out from under the car without the use of jack stands (as long as it isn't lowered), but it's much easier with the extra room that jack stands provide.

Hope that helps.

[mdbrandy]

I don't have too much to add to that. I don't have two of those vent lines, so I didn't have to worry about that. I didn't remove the top back vent line from the tank - I removed it from the inside of the car, and fed it through the tube in the rear deck as I lowered the tank. If the hose is in good shape, I think this is easier. If not, it will probably crack, but then you'd want to replace it anyway, right :classic: .

Also, I was surprized at the connections to the sending unit. I was trying to 'lift' the caps over what I assumed were nuts holding the wires onto the unit, only to find out that the connections were essentially a clip-on over studs on the sending unit, so the connectors just popped off.

On the J-bolts, make sure to put a wrench on the weld-nut on the top of the fitting so that the bracket does not twist as you apply torque to the nut on the bottom. You can probably break the strap if you don't. I didn't do it at the beginning, but learned very quickly as I saw the strap start to twist. That weld nut seems easy to round off, too. I used a 14mm flare nut wrench after my open end wrench started to slip.

Lastly, the clamp on the main filler tube as it connects to the tank. The screw on mine was rusted (as expected), and the "captive" nut on the back side just spun as I turned it. I couldn't get a wrench on the darned thing. So, I lubricated the clamp to hose surface, and carefully pryed the clamp around on the hose until the screw faced out into the wheel well. After trying everything to get the screw to come out (I hadn't learned the benefits of penetrating oil vs. WD-40 yet), I used bolt cutters to cut the screw body. This left the clamp completely intact, and all I'll have to do is get a machine screw of the right length to replace it.

I had the car way up on jack stands, and getting the tank out was very easy after getting all the clamps and bolts loose - it doesn't weigh much as long as you've drained in completely.

Hope that helps.

[tanny]

kmack,

That's just what I needed. So the filler hose stays attached to the tank, you have to loosen it at the top by the gas cap? Are all the vent lines detached at the tank, or do any come out with the tank? Do you need to put any support(jack?) under the tank or is it light enough to not worry about? Thanks, Victor.

[Bambikiller240]

While removing the gas tank for treatment, you might as well replace the vent hoses as well. To do this you will follow KMACKS instructions AND you'll need to remove the two interior panels (Right rear and the one at the very back under the hatch) to gain access to the vent tank end of the hoses. The vent hoses can be replaceed with generic "fuel/oil" rated hose from the parts store EXCEPT for the one that has the pre-formed 180 degree bend in it. That one needed to be a factory hose (unless you can find a stainless spring to fit into generic "fuel/oil" rated hose that will keep the hose from kinking when the bend is made. If you use generic hose there, and let it kink, you'll have fill problems as the tank will not vent properly. The rubber nipples that seal the vent hoses as they pass into the passenger cabin are no longer available, but can be replaces with large diameter shrink tubing to effect a seal.

There was a good article on the subject in an early issue of SportZ

[kmack]

So the filler hose stays attached to the tank, you have to loosen it at the top by the gas cap?

No. You have to disconnect the filler tube at the gas tank, as it is installed into the car from through the fill door.

Are all the vent lines detached at the tank, or do any come out with the tank?

You can detach them at the tank. Most likely, if your car has been sitting for quite awhile or the hoses have never been replaced, they will crack and break. And you should look at replacing them anyway. There are a few threads that outline the procedure on that or I can send you an article I wrote for our club newsletter on it.

If the lines are in good shape, you can disconnect them from the expansion tank and the route them out of the car through the floor.

Do you need to put any support(jack?) under the tank or is it light enough to not worry about?

As long as you have most or all of the gas out of the tank, it's fairly light. When putting it back in, I lay under the car with the tank on my chest, hoist it up into position, and then use my knees to hold it there while I put the straps back in place. I wouldn't worry too much about the weight.

One to keep in mind when sliding the fill tube back into place; it may not want to go back on very easy. I use a light coat of vaseline or spray lubricant to help it back on. Just a thought.

[Bambikiller240]

Originally posted by tanny

That's just what I needed. So the filler hose stays attached to the tank, you have to loosen it at the top by the gas cap?

No, you disconnect it at the tank. To get to the clamp at the tank, you must remove a little cover plate at the rear of the right rear wheel well. Probably about 3 or 4 small screws.

Originally posted by tanny

Are all the vent lines detached at the tank, or do any come out with the tank?

All vent hoses should be disconencted at the fuel tank

Originally posted by tanny

Do you need to put any support(jack?) under the tank or is it light enough to not worry about? Thanks, Victor.

When empty of fuel the tank is fairly light. 20-25 lbs maybe less?

[mdbrandy]

Originally posted by BambiKiller240

When empty of fuel the tank is fairly light. 20-25 lbs maybe less?

I'd be surprised if it was more than 15 pounds empty from the way it felt last night.

Also - you mention a plate covering the opening to get to the fuel tube to tank clamp - I didn't have one of those. One more thing that was added on later cars, or is this missing on mine? Is the cover plate plastic or metal? I'm assuming this is part 17270-E4100 on the fiche, listed as: PROTECTOR - FILLER HOSE RH. Where does it actually screw into? I know the PO had the rear quarter sheet metal replaced, so if it screws into brackets there, it could have been removed at that time.

[Bambikiller240]

The cover plate that I refer to actually forms the rear wall of the wheel-well (or at least the bottom 8 to 12 inches of it. It doesn't attach to any brackets, it is just secured to the rest of the wheel-well by sheet metal screws. About 3 or 4 of them. Very Low tech.

I've never worked on a low VIN Z car so I don't know if it was added or was always there, but if the wheel-well is heavily undercoated, it can be difficult to detect that there is a removable panel there.

You are probably right about the tank weight. I'm a poor judge of weight (by feel), and distance (measured by eye).

[mdbrandy]

Originally posted by BambiKiller240

It doesn't attach to any brackets, it is just secured to the rest of the wheel-well by sheet metal screws. About 3 or 4 of them.

I'll have to look around and see if I see any screw holes that look like they should be filled. The fiche shows that the one that should be on my 280Z parts car looks very different than the ones listed for the 240Z, so that won't help...

[Bambikiller240]

Do you have a picture of the rear part of the right rear fender well on you car that you could post?

I'm thinking, that there has to be some panel to allow access to the bottom of the filler tube (at the tank), but it would be the first time that a design was changed after the first few cars came off the assembly line.

[mdbrandy]

Originally posted by BambiKiller240

Do you have a picture of the rear part of the right rear fender well on you car that you could post?

I've attached the best one that I have here. I think I've got a better on on the digicam that I havent' downloaded yet. The gas tank is in the lower right. Along the lower left, you can just see the edge of the fender lip. The main part of the inner fender well goes off picture to the upper left.