Having a REALLY hard time filling my tank

[rang-a-stang]

Bought this truck (86, standard cab, 2.9L) and whenever I try to fill the tank, I have to let it just dribble in or the pump cuts off.

When I first noticed, I pulled the fill neck off and noticed the inner tube was broken off about 2 inches from the metal inner end. So I bought some 1" vinyl tubing and extended that so it goes into the tank. Went to put some gas in and no change.

Pulled the fill neck again and noticed the neck gets scrunched right before it goes in the tank:

I took a length of old coat hanger and made an inner structure to hold it more round:

It worked pretty well:

Put it all back together and it looks like this:

Went to pump more gas and same thing. GGgrrrrr....

What am I missing? Is the new vinyl hose too small? Does anyone make a new one of these?

 

[Jazzer]

https://www.fillernecksupply.com/1985-1986-ford-ranger-fuel-filler-hose-e5tz9034b/. Try here?

 

[RonD]

The gas is backing up in the hose and/or the air in the tank can't get out the Vent, which causes the gas to back up

At the top of the filler at the metal fitting that attaches to the bed there are Vents, can be 2, 3 or one large one
These let the air out of the tank while filling up and are sealed by gas cap

In your type of filler the gas goes down the small center hose and the air comes out around it in the larger hose and thru the vent(s)

This images shows the parts: https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61m5I8DpROL._AC_SY355_.jpg

Check that the vent holes are clear in the metal part

 

[rang-a-stang]

Vents are clear (checked them). I have 2 slots on either side of the port where the fill nozzle goes into the center hole. Maybe I will remove that part and open them up a bit more. I wonder if the vinyl inner hose is kinked some. Hmmm... I don't plan to wrench on it again in the next few days but that will be priority one.

Jazzer not sure how I missed that! wow! I checked my usual suspects (Rock, Walmart, ebay, amazon, LMC, McParts, and Craigslist) and struck out. If I cannot fix it myself this weekend, I will drop a few beans and get one from them.

 

[RonD]

In the pre-1995 Rangers there is also an EVAP Vent hose at the top of the gas tank
That's just an open hose that runs to the front and the EVAP charcoal canister(rad support drivers side)
Air comes out that hose when filling up and thru the charcoal filter
During engine operation Ported Vacuum is applied to canister sucking air out and any fuel vapors thru the charcoal filter
Now if this Vent was clogged up filling up the tank would be slower but not just a "trickle" as you described

In 1995 and up there is a Vent Solenoid, that should open when key is OFF

 

[rang-a-stang]

Copy that. When we bought the truck the EVAP line was disconnected at the top of the tank. I need EVAP to work for CA Smog check so I hooked it up. it also had a melted section that needed fixing but that is unrelated. I guess I could try unhooking it and seeing if that makes a difference.

 

[dvdswan]

Gas pumps that have the vapor recovery can be finicky on older vehicles because they don't seal correctly around the fuel neck. On my old chevy I had to angle the nozzle and hold it there to get it to pump fast.

 

[JerrySab]

SAME PROBLEM. Do you have a newer/non-motorcraft fuel pump by chance? Many of those off-brand sending units send bad data to the gauge, even if the spec sheet says otherwise. I've returned 2 at this point - 1 said half full when the thing was overflowing, another says totally empty after half a tank is consumed. I'm now waiting on a open-box motorcraft pump to turn up from eBay.

Also, CA pumps suck for these old trucks, as @dvdswan mentioned. It seams the pump vapor seal completely blocks the filler neck vent and the gas gushes out so damn fast (shakes fist at sky).

 

[rang-a-stang]

FIXED!!!!!

Step one, I looked at my vapor escape slots. This is what they looked like:

I took a punch and hammer and bent them more open, like this:

Poured gas down the throat and it immediately backed up again. Pulled the filler neck out and took it apart. I noticed the vinyl inner tube I installed was kinked where it meets the metal inner funnel dealie. I took that hose off and replaced it with another hose and used a heat gun to soften the vinyl a little to bend it. Threw it all back together and dumped 2 gallons in from a gas can without issue. Next morning, I went the gas station and put 3 more gallons in it without issue. BTW, it is MUCH easier to mess with this if you remove the 6 bolts that hold the bed down and tilt it upwards out of the way. That is waaaaaay easier than dropping the tank.

This is where it was kinked but this is the new hose installed.

So, in summary here is everything someone should do that is fighting this:
1) buy a new fill neck using the link Jazzer put in this thread ($55'ish for the part plus install) and fix this in 30 minutes or

2) take the neck off your truck. Separate the metal nozzle upper part from the outer hose and verify the inner hose is complete and goes all the way down into the tank. If it is not complete or does not go into the tank, replace the inner hose with another hose with 1" inner diameter (I had some vinyl hose laying around but fuel safe rubber would work too). Install it so there is no kink at either of the bends in the fill neck. Also, make an inner spring (I used an old coat hanger) to ensure the outer hose fill neck is round and not collapsing around the inner hose. Throw it all back together and try it out.