abecker

You asked the question rhetorically if these tanks crack. I don't know, however, my 86.5 smells really bad if I fill more than 14 gallons. My father took it to his Porsche dealer and they "tightened" some fittings, charged several hundred and the problem never went away. I knew I needed to fix it myself which I prefer anyway. I read your post about changing the fuel sender O ring and ordered one hoping that is the problem. Received it yesterday. However, I recall one time I filled the car and looked underneath and fuel was spilling out. Since then, I've been careful not to overfill. Every once in a while I forget but it hasn't spewed fuel like that since. I really think I have a cracked tank also. Not in the mood to spend several hundred on another tank, so I really hope the O ring fixes the issue. I'll post the results in case the crack is a common issue with these tanks.

BTW, I love reading your procedures. They are just fantastic and really help a novice like myself feel like an ASE!

oaros

Pretty much the same here, smell and dripping fuel if filled to the top; dripping stops after driving a bit.

Suspects: breather hose/cracked breather hose fittings/crack in tank similar to Dwayne/fuel sender seaL.

I took the tank out using Dwayne's guide - most like culprit, slightly folded-over sender seal that also caused the sender to rub against the tank splash well. As my car is in an advanced state of undress I can't tell you if the new seal worked even though it seems logical.

My tank was covered in liquid run stains/trails that didn't help. I put some fuel in the tank and moved it all around to see if the top of the tank had a leak - nothing.

How is the flexible fuel return hose at the toop of the tank? Clamped at the tank, crimped at the pipe end.

Fogey1

I'd bet our vendors carry them, but ...
Just because I once went nuts trying to find anti-vibration mounts for a Jaguar, just like those shown in Dwayne's second post at the pump and filter:

http://www.vibrationmounts.com/

abecker

Oaros - I replaced my oring this weekend following Dwayne's guide. Went very smoothly but like you mine is so undressed, I can't tell if the smell stopped. It seems reduced at least

abecker

The oring replacement worked for me! My wife is so happy the garage doesn't smell anymore. Thanks a bunch, Dwayne.

Dwayne

That's great news! Glad it was a simple fix - Enjoy!

oaros

so there is hope for mine which ponged at both ends before I started taking bits off.
Cheers!

abecker

My o-ring looked to be in good shape, so I was surprised it made such a difference in smell. Hope yours works too.

sharkbite84s

Dwayne,
Thank you so much for this excellent thread!

I just became determined to get my 84 Euro S 5 speed that I have had since 1986 back on the road. It has been in my garage since 1999 and the gas was pretty bad! The fuel pump is dead and I was wondering what would be the best thing to do. With your help I am taking the tank out for a full cleaning. The screen had fallen off the fitting and is rolling about at the bottom of the tank and I had to blow out the return valve with my compressor as it was completely jammed and full of gunk. Two good reasons the pump is dead. Pretty gross inside the tank.

I am hoping the screen plug unscrews and does not ruin the tank. Going to PB Blast it for a few days before I try. The baffle that surrounds the return line/sender is really gunked up and pretty hard to get to. Any suggestions on cleaning that?

The only other thing I have noticed so far is a weird short on fuse 17, the "heater" fuse. I can get the fan to run but there is a short somewhere. Do relays ever cause an internal short? I was shaking things around on the central panel when the fuse first blew. Otherwise I suspect a mouse.

Thanks again and I will post when I finish the tank.

Terry

jpitman2

I know one guy who pressure washed his tank's inside while it was out of the car. Let it sit(sealed) with a solvent in it for a while then give it good hose out, and a slow dry. I heard a couple of hints to render a tank safe to work on (ie remove all combustible vapour) - apply a vacuum cleaner nozzle to a vent , so it will suck clean air in, or pipe a car exhaust into to drive out the dangerous stuff. I must admit I didnt do much in this direction, as I removed old tank (spun threaded insert), and replaced with a newer very dry unit.

jp 83 Euro S AT 54k

Tampa 928s

I keep putting it off but my Euro fills about 1/2 way I need to get the venting hose replaced your thread may get me to do this. I am always saying I will document my repairs but once I start covered in dirt I end up shooting a lot of pictures but never take the time like you so they become instructive. Your providing a great service to the community keep up the good work.

RFJ

Dwayne,how many of you are there? if only one you are just short of amazing,you must have the patience of a saint. thanks for all your show and tell.Ray. and yes would it ever be nice to have a method for repair our gas tanks.How about Plast-aid? I did repair a lawn mower tank using this stuff.

Dwayne

Terry,
Thanks for the feedback! On the "Fuel level baffle that surrounds the return line/sender" you can use carburetor cleaner to clean off gunk on the sender unit. If it's the plastic fitting at the bottom of the sender unit, it can be removed by removing the small nut on the bottom of the unit and you can detach the plastic fitting and clean around it.

I'm not very familiar with relays causing an internal short that would cause a fuse to blow. However, there may be others here that can chime in on that. If you are blowing a fuse regularly, I would check the fuse rating first to make sure the correct amperage is being used. Then I would consult the wiring diagram and trace the wiring associated with that fuse checking the harness/wiring casings for signs of overheating/melting as a starting point. If the car has been in storage for a long time and there are signs of rodent droppings around, it would be a good idea to inspect the CEB for possible rodent damage.

Ray - Thanks for the feedback!

Hilton

Do NOT do this. There's a high risk of the vacuum cleaner igniting the vapours it sucks out of the tank.

Much safer to blow compressed air in to displace any residual vapour before cleaning the tank.

sharkbite84s

An update on my 84s tank removal.

Using Dwayne's how-to guide the tank removal was painless. I did need to cut the the vent tube that goes from the top of the tank to the fill spout since the clamp was really corroded. You do need to be very careful of the tube fittings that come out of the tank. Other than that, no drama. I was pretty worried that the strainer plug would be seized, but it came right out with very light pressure using a 17mm deep socket. No corrosion in the aluminum threads. As I mentioned, the screen was broken off the plug and just hanging in the tank.

After having the tank out, I think this should be a mandatory maintenance if your car has been doing more sitting than driving. Not that hard to do and you can get the tank completely clean. My car was driven a total of about six years of it's twenty-eight year lifetime. Under a cover in my garage the rest of the time. It was shocking how much crud was in the tank and the return line tower/ level sender and tank baffle. It cost me my fuel pump so far and am hopeful the injectors are OK. When you take the tank out, you can use a toilet brush to scrub the tank through the sender hole in the top. I bought one at Home Depot that allowed me to scrub the baffle while spraying with Berryman B12 spray cleaner and then rinse the tank with clean gas after swishing about 1/2 gallon around in the tank and draining out the strainer hole. Each time, I would screw in the plug, pour gas in with some Berryman B12, scrub and shake the tank around and drain the gas. It took about 5 times doing this and a couple of times swabbing out the bottom of the well under the baffle with a shop towel duct taped to a dowel which nicely removed the grit that did not want to wash out.

I was going to use degreaser and spray with hot watter, but found that to not be necessary as the tank is now pristine and I do not need to worry about getting all of the water out. Four cans of Berryman's B12 did the trick.

Now I just need some parts, put it back together and will give it a go.

Definitely something to do for your garage queen. BTW, you can learn alot just by removing the return line / level sender and having a look in the though the hole in the hatch area with a flash light. I don't know why I never did this prior. I would have seen all the gunk. If you do this, keep in mind that the strainer feeds in through a hole in the baffle so you can't move the baffle with the strainer in. You can see into the circular baffle where gunk collected in my car.

More later when all is back together.

Thanks again to Dwayne for the excellent instructions.

Terry