MTFCA Forum

My 1927 coupe hasn't been run in 60 years. I going look into the gas tank with a light. What do you think I will find? What generally needs to be done to these tanks when restoring the vehicle?

Wishful thinking is that is was drained 60 years ago and you won't find a tank full of CRAP ! '26-'27 tanks are not reproduced but there is an outfit in Texas, I believe that will "restore" it if it's really bad.

I would expect to find rust, loose rust, and clumps of dirt. Take off the tank outlet and flush the tank out. If there is a lot of crud take the tank out for a proper cleaning and possible coating. A dirty tank will leave you stranded on the side of the road again and again.

I'd look in the tank, and see about taking a good picture of the inside, before even asking the question. It could be nice and clean, it could be a pile of rusty and funkiness. We can only guess, but you can look and tell us.

The 26-27 tanks don’t just rust out on the bottom... there is an anti-squeak pad between the firewall and the front panel of the tank that can hold water and rust out the front wall of the tank from the outside in. You won’t be able to see this rust thru the filler neck. The tank is not that hard to remove, and will be a whole lot easier to clean, inspect, and repair once removed

I have had good results with a tank I received in a pile of rusty parts, which I turned into a 1926 Touring. I took the tank to a radiator shop which boiled it out and coated the inside with some kind of sealer which is not soluble in either gasoline nor alcohol. I have been driving it for over 15 years without a problem.
Norm

I'm sorry, but I disagree with Kevin - removing and installing the "improved car" gas tank is a pain in the a__. I have heard folks say that it can be done without removing the steering column and instrument cluster, but I couldn't do it, and I have had the tank out twice. There is no particular action in the process that I would call difficult, but at least in my '27 touring car, there was a lot of disassembly and reassembly. Good luck with flushing it out.

Pulling the dash panel out should provide the room necessary to get the tank in and out. I had the tanknin and out of my 27 roadster several times. The first time was to clean and wash what looked like a beautiful original tank with virtually no rust internally. The second time was to chase a fuel leak that only happened with the tank at 1/2 full. This is when I found the rust out in the front panel. And the third time was when the stiffening bead in the tank developed a stress crack.

If the tank has been empty for 60 years... now is the time to do any needed repairs. Once you put fresh fuel in it... you will be a lot more hesitant to repair properly

A 26-27 cowl mounted tank is a pain to remove IF your steering column and transmission hogshead are in place. Then it can be a hassle, but if you are reassembling a car while restoring it, make sure you assemble the tank to cowl; the engine/trans to frame; and last steering column to frame and body in that order, if your friendly clergy is nearby.

If you do remove the tank which can be a hassle and have it cleaned, repaired and etc remember to fill it with gas and let it sit for a day or two with the gas cap on it. Only after doing that replace the tank. Don’t assume it’s OK when you put the car back together and then put gas in it.
Believe it or not people have done this and then find out later it’s got a slow leak.

This time I agree with Kevin; now is the time to do whatever you need to do with the gas tank. A previous post mentioned the steering column and hogshead as obstacles to tank removal; I found that the column and choke/mixture rod were in the way, but I never pulled the floorboards and found that the tank could be maneuvered around the pedals. I also pulled the ammeter and switch panel. I thought about removing the dash panel, but there was a reason that I chose not to. I honestly don't remember that reason however.

Take a look at my post https://mtfca.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=9508 getting rattles back on the road. I show the company that took my tank apart, cleaned it, sealed it, as well as the price. Now taking the tank out and in can be a challenge. For me it was easy. Of course I removed the steering column, dash, engine. Ha!! The guy that did the work told me that he gets work all the time from people who rebuild an engine spending thousands just to run gas through a crappy tank and trash everything. Good luck take your time and you'll get it out.

I plan on removing the coupe body in order to paint the frame. Will the gas tank be easy to remove then?

Ha! That would do it!! I think you need a degree in engineering to get it out without taking anything else apart.