heartless Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 We have an 89 GL wagon with the dual range 4whl drive that we are trying to get roadworthy, and has a leaking fuel tank. it appears to be leaking right at the seam at the back edge. We also have an 88 GL wagon parts car with the p/b 4 whl drive that the gas tank appears to be in much better shape.... Will the tank from the 88 fit the 89? how big of a pain is it to pull the tank on either car and is this a worthwhile endeaver? or should we just try to "repair" the existing tank on the 89? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorganM Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 Repairing it will be a pain at best. I'd shoot for a replacement in this situation. You have the parts car and yes they will swap. The only differences I've seen in EA82 tanks is 4WD and 2WD and even then I belive your 88 will have the 4WD tank; I know mine did. There is a big dent for the rear diff and carrier. Compare the 2 tanks you'll see if they are different. Sealing that old tank will be almost worthless. Fuel eats through most any sealant. Using 'fuel safe' sealant will just bid you time untill more area rusts out around where yo usealed. Only true fix I've seen for fuel tanks is to get them welded and that REQUIRES it being removed and flushed. To me, anyway you cut it, you are going to need to pull the tank so you might as well replace it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calebz Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 Since both cars are 4WD, definitely no problem Btw.. Both of my 2WD wagons had dents in the tanks for the rear diff that wasn't there.. AFAIK all EA82 wagons and sedans used the same tank.(except of course for differences in the lines coming off of them for different fuel systems) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorganM Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 Since both cars are 4WD, definitely no problem FAIK all EA82 wagons and sedans used the same tank. That's what I figured but didnt want to assume Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 Replace it. But before you put the new one in, find a radiator shop to go over it for you (most of them do gas tanks as well...) and seal it up good. No sense putting it in there only to have it fail too.... GD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carfreak85 Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 Don't you love parts cars?!?! They make life SOOOOOO much easier! Replace it for sure! Why use old, rebuilt parts when there are good, original parts to be had? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thealleyboy Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 The tanks are all the same on those latter EA82's, regardless of whether the car is 2 or 4wd. Personally, I think the OEM tanks are much higher quality than the aftermarket types in terms of durability. Something to think about if you drive through a lot of rough terrain, or trash-strewn alleys. Thats why I usually have the old one repaired if it springs a leak. If it's too far gone, consdider having your spare cleaned up and re-used. As mentioned above, many radiator shops do fuel tanks too. The tank is boiled out and the leak is patched, or seam welded, etc. I've never had a repaired tank fail me. On the other hand, I did once gash up a cheap aftermarket tank without even trying. Not a very good feeling when you look out your rear-view mirror and see a stream of gasoline pouring out the back... good luck, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RavenTBK Posted April 19, 2004 Share Posted April 19, 2004 Not a very good feeling when you look out your rear-view mirror and see a stream of gasoline pouring out the back... ...or trying to outrun the fireball thats consuming that trail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted April 20, 2004 Author Share Posted April 20, 2004 Thanks for the replies, gang!! Will be changing it out I guess. Wont know how far gone the original one is till we get her outta there. Will decide what to do with it then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thealleyboy Posted April 20, 2004 Share Posted April 20, 2004 HL: It just depends on what your after. If you want something a little more rugged, go with OEM. If you are just using this thing for transportation, the aftermarket will work just fine. I'm more of a body guy, so I think in terms of "structural integrety". Probably worth considering anytime you are driving a 20-year old car.... Alot of people overlook the engineering that went into putting these things together. You start cutting corners, and the Sube becomes a piece of sh*t just like the rest of them. The thing that makes the Subes so great is that they DID NOT cut corners at Fugi H.I. in in Tokyo. These cars were built solid. Anything less than OEM is a step backwards, IMO. Keep that in mind anytime you put any half-*ss crap on your Sube. Always use the best parts you can afford, and you wont go wrong. good luck, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted April 21, 2004 Author Share Posted April 21, 2004 Thanks John. We do try to keep things as close as possible to oem on our Subies. Gonna pull the tank from the parts car first to see exactly what we have there. From looking at it underneath, it seems to be in way better shape than the one on the d/r car. But need to get it out of there so we know just what the next step would be. If it looks pretty good all around, will get it cleaned out good and checked over, then stuff it under the other car. :-p We were hoping to get the d/r up and running by now, but have run into some minor setbacks here and there, the fuel pump and gas tank being the latest...so far we have !. put in new timing belts 2. resealed the oilpump 3. complete new brake system in front (rotors, calipers, pads, and flex line) 4. new shoes and hardware in back 5. "new" coil bracket/ignition amp (thanks Calebz!) 6. new coil 7. new NGK's, wires, cap and rotor 8. changed battery cables (used ones from parts car, but in very good condition) Tried to fire it up last week and had fuel dumping all over from the fuel pump area, so went to change the little round thingy under there, and geez, what a mess. The mounting plate for the fuel pump was so rusted, it fell apart trying to get it out of there! needless to say the fuel pump itself doesnt look so good either (we have one coming from gabe, thanks gabe!) Stole the mounting plate from the parts car - looks decent enough to use. So now we are looking at replacing most of the fuel delivery system, pump, tank, and lines as needed! I sure hope this car lives up to all the effort and parts going into it!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thealleyboy Posted April 21, 2004 Share Posted April 21, 2004 HL: I haven't had much luck salvaging old fuel pumps-or the mounting brackets on the Subes. In this part of the country, at least, that area of the undercarriage takes an absolute beating. You can easily modify the fuel pump system without too much difficulty, and make it run as good or better than spec. The universal type fuel pumps are just fine for these cars. The biggest challenge is fabbing a connector that'll plug right in without splicing the cars wiring harness. Luckily, with a parts car available, you can create any custom connector you would ever want. As far as mounting the aftermarket unit, there are all kinds of standard brackets available that were designed for other puposes (electrical, plumbing, HVAC etc). You just need to alter one of these to mount on the undercarriage securely. This is a good system to upgrade anytime you get into some serious work on a Sube. You can almost consider it a maintenance item on Subes in the 150k range. good luck, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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