get tanked

[RCC]

Hey TRS'ers,

I have a '96 extended cab Ranger and need to get
the gas tank off. Hole in it somewhere.
The blasted thing is about 6' long and front part rests
on a non-removable cross member.
I can't slide it back enough to clear that cross member
without hitting the rear axle.

HOW do I get the tank out short of taking the rear end
loose or cutting the cross member??

RCC

 

[ZSK]

I assume that you already have the bed off? Or are you trying to removed it from under the truck?

 

[JohnnyU]

Remove the straps and drop it out the bottom....

 

[RCC]

Hey JohnnyU,
Obviously, you ain't never tried this on a '96.
With every line, hose, and strap taken off,
the tank don't drop nowhere!
Just hangs by the front of the tank over that freakin'
cross member.

ZSK, no.
I have not taken the bed off, but I thought about it.
Been underneath and it seems impossible.
Gave that cross member a stern look. It supports
the front of the tank and the drive shaft carrier bearing.
Almost ready to grind the rivets off! IF that thing were
removable, the tank WOULD just drop down.

RCC

 

[BOSS302Man]

You can't do a search under the old forum, but everybody always says it's easier to take the bed off any Ranger than try to drop the tank. 6 bolts and it's off. It's got to be the best way to replace a sending unit or fuel pump, rather than work under a dirty truck.

 

[RCC]

BOSS302Man,

Yep, I came to that conclusion after looking
at all the other alternatives. Still a pisser
that Ford had to rivet that mid cross member
in place. If it just unbolted, the tank would fall
right out from underneath.

So, I'm going to start pulling the bed tomorrow.
Got to get this tank out. See if I can repair it.
Anybody ever made a permanent repair on
one of these polyethylene tanks?
Otherwise, I'll be looking for a replacement.

 

[Shoeboy]

When pulling the bed, remeber about the 3 bolts (7mm if I remember right) from the fuel filler neck, and to unclip the tail light harness (clip should be above the licence plate, or between the licence plate and left (driver) side tail light. or remove the lenses and feed the wires down.). The bed bolts are a T-55 torques and you may need to get a breaker bar (long arm, strong arm, L handle, ect) on it, and if one brakes (like in my case) the bolts, are quite pricy, and are a Ford Only item (I paid about $12 for 1 bolt, and about $15 for one of the "nuts", thats when I ran it through the shop account, I love that part about working in a garage, thats CDN funds as well). Ya, when I was doing my box swap, I forgot about the tail light wiring, and ripped my apart, so I used the one out of the doner truck, luckly, it worked.

 

[wahlstrom1]

I pulled the straps, bent the guard out of the way and pulled the rear driveshaft and it came out.....oh damn, wait....I removed the crossmember when I did my one piece driveshaft swap...goodluck, lol.

-andrew

 

[RCC]

Hey wahlstrom1,

Said you "removed" that cross member and went
to a one piece drive shaft. Did you put it back in?
I ain't changing my shaft, so I have to retain the
carrier bearing. Wondering if there would be any
problems later if grind the rivets off, take the cross
member out and bolt it back in when I'm done.

Don't have the T55 Torx socket for bed removal and
the thought of breaking one of those "pricey" bolts
doesn't encourage me much. What I do have is a side
grinder, cutting/grinding discs, and a bunch of grade 8
nuts& bolts.

What to do, what to do....remove bed or cross member?

 

[brendank]

Why make more work then you have to by removing the bed? Just grind off the rivets and then bolt the crossmember back on. There's nothing wrong with doing that. I switched to a one piece a few years ago and I've been running with no crossmember ever since.

 

[High Desert Ranger]

Try jacking the truck up in the back by the frame and let the rear end drop down.
Then maybe you can slide the gas tank back and let the front fall.

 

[Jeepman401]

You can't do a search under the old forum, but everybody always says it's easier to take the bed off any Ranger than try to drop the tank. 6 bolts and it's off. It's got to be the best way to replace a sending unit or fuel pump, rather than work under a dirty truck.

Its much easier to pull the bed.
Do it all the time at work

 

[brendank]

Its much easier to pull the bed.
Do it all the time at work

Depends on the situation. I would rather pull the tank out than worry about peeling off that stupid drop-in liner, hoping I don't snap off any of the bed bolts, then trying to find a way to rig up a lift to pull the box off. Not to mention I'd have to put the body lift back under and then get the body lines to match.

Not worth the hassle IMO.

 

[RobbieD]

BOSS302Man,
Anybody ever made a permanent repair on
one of these polyethylene tanks?
Otherwise, I'll be looking for a replacement.

Yeah, I've used epoxy to repair a crack in a Ranger plastic gas tank. Done right is working both sides (the inside through the fuel pump hole), drilling small holes along the crack (especially the ends) and roughing up both inside and outside surfaces so the epoxy bonds to the plastic well.

FWIW, I've dealt with the gas tank both ways, and hands down I'll pull the bed to work on the tank. Good luck with it.

 

[kunar]

i have done 2 rangers and a b2 from underneath and never had any problems. i would rather not risk breaking 20 year old hardware on my bed...