Adding a 2nd fuel tank door

[RangerReviver1990]

So I've noticed the couple times I've been under the bed of my truck that there's a part of bed and in the bed liner that little wedge shaped but on the left side of the bed where I'm guessing the fuel filler neck sits inside of. But since there's one of those stamped into the rear section of my bed, if I were to cut a hole into my bed, I'd find an opening for like, a 2nd fuel tank? And also if there was. How hard would it be to add another fuel door in that spot?

 

[sgtsandman]

It would take someone great with sheet metal work to make that happen and have it look good. You could probably fab something from existing parts for the fill tube. A bracket or two would need to be fabricated to hold a tank in place after the spare tire carrier was removed. Then there is the finding a tank. The factory tank, from what I remember, was a 10 gallon metal tank. Most of those have rusted way and were not a common option to begin with. I have seen one or two people use a Bronco II tank instead but it will hang down below the frame since it is a larger tank. Once all that is sorted, you would have to setup the fuel lines, switching valve, and swap over for the sending unit from the main tank to the second tank. It's do able but will be a lot of work.

 

[RangerReviver1990]

It would take someone great with sheet metal work to make that happen and have it look good. You could probably fab something from existing parts for the fill tube. A bracket or two would need to be fabricated to hold a tank in place after the spare tire carrier was removed. Then there is the finding a tank. The factory tank, from what I remember, was a 10 gallon metal tank. Most of those have rusted way and were not a common option to begin with. I have seen one or two people use a Bronco II tank instead but it will hang down below the frame since it is a larger tank. Once all that is sorted, you would have to setup the fuel lines, switching valve, and swap over for the sending unit from the main tank to the second tank. It's do able but will be a lot of work.

Yeah, those 10 gallon tanks are impossible to find outside of junkyards and such. And I've seen the bronco II tank thing everywhere but you're right, without a body lift or just a lift in general it'll be pretty low to the ground. I was up under an '88 F-150 today that had dual tanks and the rear tank looked kinda flat, mainly because it had a spare tire directly below it, could I also use a F-150 rear tank? Apparently it's a 19 gallon tank, looks kinda small and rectangular so it's possible. I've also seen people slap those full size 32 gal. Bronco tanks under their rangers but I'm not attempting that

 

[sgtsandman]

Yeah, those 10 gallon tanks are impossible to find outside of junkyards and such. And I've seen the bronco II tank thing everywhere but you're right, without a body lift or just a lift in general it'll be pretty low to the ground. I was up under an '88 F-150 today that had dual tanks and the rear tank looked kinda flat, mainly because it had a spare tire directly below it, could I also use a F-150 rear tank? Apparently it's a 19 gallon tank, looks kinda small and rectangular so it's possible. I've also seen people slap those full size 32 gal. Bronco tanks under their rangers but I'm not attempting that

It might be too wide to fit between the frame rails.

The problem is that I have only seen what others have done on this forum and not in person. So, the best I can give is a general idea on what they did.

 

[JoshT]

So... The bumps are on the bed floor because Ford only used two (three if you include the flareside) sets of forms for the interior panels of the Ranger bed, one for short bed and one for long bed (and one for flareside). Yes, they changed them in the 2000s to add more bed bolts, but they still only had two forms for those years.

Ford was putting dual tanks in trucks back in the 70s and earlier. When they got fancy with the integrated fuel doors in the 80s, but still had them in the 70s and earlier. When the Ranger was introduced in 83 it was designed with dual tanks from the onset, both short and long beds. The dual tanks ended in the late 80s, but the same bed interior panels were used clear through and the bumps never removed.

Only the dual tank trucks ever got the dual tank bedside. The second filler location was not there when the second tank was not used, it is not hidden behind the sheetmetal. To add second filler port you would have to acquire a dual tank bed or bed side to install, or cut in an aft filler door.

Surprisingly enough a BII tank does work out fairly well on a 2wd Ranger. They sit low enough that they do not stand out too bad when hanging under the bed. You do need to be mindful of the fact that you ahve less ground clearance, but it is still above the bottom of the axle tubes, that is assuming that you haven't slammed the truck. Works ok on a 4x4 truck too, but since the bottom of teh truck is more visible the tank stands out more.

I'm 90% certain that the F-150 rear tank is too wide to fit between the frame rails. Before I acquired a dual tank Ranger I was heavily investigating a rear mounted tank for a fuel tank relocation on a mildly lowered street truck build. Basically I had settled on the BII tank being the best option for me and the space available. Even went so far as to acquire the tank. Don't need it now that I've got the dual tank truck and plans for the build have changed, but I may still use it behind the axle on my F-100.

 

[JoshT]

The problem is that I have only seen what others have done on this forum and not in person. So, the best I can give is a general idea on what they did.

Same here. I can confirm what I've said about the bed having my hands on all of them at some point, but I've only see the BII tank installed in pictures on the forum. I had the BII tank strapped (literally with lashing straps) under the frame of a short bed 2wd Ranger using a scavenged BII crossmember for the front, but never had the bed installed on it or weight on the wheels.