- Joined
- May 15, 2020
- Messages
- 3,118
- Reaction score
- 5,482
- Age
- 69
- Location
- Atlanta
- Vehicle Year
- 1997 1987
- Make / Model
- Ranger XLT x2
- Engine Type
- 4.0 V6
- Engine Size
- 4.0 & 2.9
- Transmission
- Manual
- 2WD / 4WD
- 4WD
- Total Lift
- 97 stock, 3” on 87
- Total Drop
- N/A
- Tire Size
- 235/75-15
- My credo
- Never put off ‘til tomorrow what you can put off indefinitely
I didn’t make mine longer, but I have a little info that may help.View attachment 111181
Set my bed. Using a 3” body lift to clear my trans resulting in fuel filler neck being short of the gas door by 2”. Any solutions for this? I can make a drop flange if need be
When I built the Road Ranger, I took my bed off and put a weatherguard diamond plate toolbox across the frame right behind the cab. I cut out the gas door assembly from a junk bed I had, and I cut the side of the weatherguard box and installed it there. I didn’t move it up or down, rather, I actually relocated it (the door) about 8 or 9 inches horizontally closer to the center line of the truck. It was a colossal pain in the butt.
So what, huh? The fill neck is actually a hard plastic tube inside the bigger, rubber hose that you see. If you take the big hose off, you might be able to lengthen the plastic tube. I’m not sure what it’s made of to be gasoline resistant, but you could experiment and maybe plastic weld it or such. I would suggest getting a scrap fill neck out of the scrap yard. I would not trust any glue or adhesive without putting some kind of mechanical retainer on it in case the gasoline eats the glue (regardless of whether it says gas resistant or not). That could be as simple as a couple of sheet metal screws or such. You don’t have to worry about a perfect seal, because this is a drop tube, it doesn’t have to be air tight. You would want to do this about 5 or 6 inches below the door assembly, in a relatively straight vertical section.
The big rubber tube is as simple as cutting it and splicing in a larger diameter tube, of aluminum, or even steel, anything that will hold shape when you tighten the clamps on it. This will have to be airtight for you to pass emissions, and have the gas cap/missions system work right. But this outer hose/tube is not in direct contact with liquid gasoline, you simply need something stiff enough that you can tighten the hose clamps.
Do you have another case of beer? Unfortunately, your problem is that you have to do this with the bed off. Inserting the fill neck assembly into the tank is a real pain in the butt. If you just jack up the front, you may be able to do it.
Keep in mind, if you take the bed back off, that would be an excellent opportunity to absolutely bathe the bottom side with Rustoleum. Remember to mix Rustoleum 50-50 with mineral spirits for the first coat, so it runs in to all the nooks and crannies, and then use the full strength thick stuff a few hours later.
Hope it helps…
Edit: if you lengthen the drop tube, be positive you use something that will not decay in the gasoline. The pick up screens in my 96 F250 diesel, from the factory, were made out of something that the diesel ate up after a few years. I’d use an aluminum tube before I experimented with just PVC or something.
All my two cents…
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