Rear Gas Tank Removal

Hello all. I started doing a little work to my 73 chassis and was fooling around with the rear gas tank, which the PO installed the oversized one. I was wondering if anyone knew if you can manuever it out or do I have to take the rear bumper off(which is welded to the frame). Seems like a simple question, just wanted to know if any one knew. Thanks!

 

Its a PITA but you can get it out. My biggest problem was getting the front skid plate bolts out.

 

Same here. Front bolts on skid plate are a pain to get to. You have to maneuver the tank around a bit, get it low enough to disconnect all the plumbing and then take it on out. I had more trouble getting the new one back in.

 

Are all the tanks the same. This one has 4 "brackets" on the rear part resting on the inside of the bumper, and 2 in the front that bolt to the bottom of the cross member.

 

You are in for some fun and excitement. I replaced my sending unit a couple of months ago. I ended up cutting off the two bolts that sit next to the rear cross memeber. To my knowledge there is no other way to get at them without taking the tub off or removing the cross memeber. When I put it back in, I added a few washers to make it easy to get a nut splitter on them. It's really cold in January here in Chicago, so I wasn't under the Jeep for very long. Needed an easy way to snap the nut when I rewire the sending unit. Good luck. Hope this helps.

 

Intermediates have brackets that hold the tank, separate from the skid plate. The skid was optional, so the tank had to stay put without it. Just FYI.

Later models used the skid plate to hold up the tank, IIRC.

 

Yes - I'd think so. Didn't mean to distract from your message.

 

Thanks for the help everyone. Is that the rear bumper/crossmember? Because the way my tank is in the brackets rest on top, in the inside where your nuts are welded.

 

The brackets are welded to the tank, but I'm sure if I get the dang thing out I can figure something out.