Since I've not been lucky enough to work on the early Mustangs (64-66ish) I didn't know that the gas tank IS the trunk floor.... sure is a lot easier to RnR than a Mopar tank where the tank is going to need you to lift it into position to reinstall it
not so good when you get rear ended and the gas splashes all over the back seat, since there is no metal bulkhead between the gas tank and the passenger compartment. I think a couple of places sell the metal bulkheads for the mustangs
well dang, Ford sure did not hire engineers that thought about rear end collisions and fire in the passenger area... that Pinto was notorious for that. That hadn't occurred to me either when I was dazzled by the simplicity of removal and reinstallation. Sucks to lift on into place on a mopar, and then try to get some threads started to hold it there!
oh i know what you mean, I just removed and replaced a tank on a 80s F-150, it was a giant pain, even with two people.
alot of the GM cars in the 70s had the filler for the gas tank behind the license plate, I know the Firebirds and Camaros and Impalas did. also not very good for rear end collisions.
I think 67 or 68 was the last year that the companies could build an automobile with zero federal regulations?
Justin's post reminds me that years ago I replaced the tank on my '78 F150. It had a big dent and a leak. I managed, with a floor jack and lots of time, to do it, put gas in, headed off for someplace, and of course had forgotten that the dent pushed the fuel pickup up. I ran out of gas with something like 5 gallons in the tank. It was a 4WD, and wow, is that a hard sucker to push! I got help from a passerby and we got it over the crest of a little rise and I managed to sputter the last two miles home, feeling really stupid.
68-71 torinos were that way too.
ReplyDeletenot so good when you get rear ended and the gas splashes all over the back seat, since there is no metal bulkhead between the gas tank and the passenger compartment.
I think a couple of places sell the metal bulkheads for the mustangs
well dang, Ford sure did not hire engineers that thought about rear end collisions and fire in the passenger area... that Pinto was notorious for that. That hadn't occurred to me either when I was dazzled by the simplicity of removal and reinstallation.
DeleteSucks to lift on into place on a mopar, and then try to get some threads started to hold it there!
oh i know what you mean,
DeleteI just removed and replaced a tank on a 80s F-150, it was a giant pain, even with two people.
alot of the GM cars in the 70s had the filler for the gas tank behind the license plate,
I know the Firebirds and Camaros and Impalas did.
also not very good for rear end collisions.
I think 67 or 68 was the last year that the companies could build an automobile with zero federal regulations?
Justin's post reminds me that years ago I replaced the tank on my '78 F150. It had a big dent and a leak. I managed, with a floor jack and lots of time, to do it, put gas in, headed off for someplace, and of course had forgotten that the dent pushed the fuel pickup up. I ran out of gas with something like 5 gallons in the tank. It was a 4WD, and wow, is that a hard sucker to push! I got help from a passerby and we got it over the crest of a little rise and I managed to sputter the last two miles home, feeling really stupid.
ReplyDeleteMy 69 Mach 1 got the same setup. As for a rear bulkhead: When you have folding rear seats, a rear bulkhead makes no sense.
ReplyDelete