OK, my hawk has been off the road since September 1999 with a full tank of gas. I'm pretty much screwed so I need to know how dificult it is to get the gas tank out. Is it plastic or steel?

I'm pretty sure the gas is crap regardless if it's full or not.

Thanx

 

Metal tank.

 

It is not "easy" to remove the tank on a 4th gen, especially if it is full. Why not try to syphon or pump the gas out of the tank? I wouldnt try to drop the tank unless you needed to replace the pump.

BTW, cliff notes on removing the tank are:
drop the rear end, remove the back section of your exhaust, drop the tank.

 

Good god I'm so screwed.

 

I wouldn't say you are "screwed" It isn't THAT bad.... You can do it all with a basic tool set. It just isn't a quick thing to do, nor would I do it for the fun of it, and if there were alternatives I would explore those first. Worst case scenerio is you just do it.

 

If I recall, you don't need to drop your rearend. But you do need to remove you rear exhaust. Also, the neck of the tank is curved, so there's so manuevering of the tank to get the neck to drop down.

 

I wouldn't rely on simply siphoning the fuel out. There's a good chance that there is a lot of corrosion in the tank, and sludge at the bottom. The tank needs to be removed and professionally refurbished.

 

You have to drop the rearend to remove the exhaust to maneuver the over axle pipe out of the way. There would be scenerios that you could get by without doing it this way though. i.e. if you cut the over axle pipe, or if there were some flanges that you could unbolt. I am not sure if the OP has an aftermarket catback or not, if it is a stock exhaust and he dosen't want to do any cutting, the rearend has got to come down.

 

im about to drop my gas tank for the new walbro...glad this came up and i didnt have to post

more happy that my exhuast is all unbolted already and i dont have to drop the rear end

 

Yeah it isn't impossible, my buddy did it in his back yard one time by himself when I wasn't there.

 

I also did this by myself a couple of years ago so my memory is sketchy. You can do this in an evening with some ambition. I remember dropping the rear end to the floor and (I think) unbolting the muffer and tailpipes to get them out of the way. I don't recall having to screw around with the main exhaust pipe.

WestCoast mentioned the filler neck being curved. This is the biggest pain in the **** about the whole project IMO. And this is why you want the tank to be close to empty... you will need to move the tank around, twisting, etc. to get it out. Good luck... it's not that bad if you have patience and a decent place to do it.

 

This sounds horrible and redneck, but it works. When my fuel pump went I cut a hole through the trunk floor to remove the pump. I cut three lines about five inches long, in the shape of a "U" and folded the metal up and pulled the pump. The new pump went in and I fold the steel back down and covered the cuts with duct tape, some thin soundproofing foil, and the factory carpet. The entire process took about two hours, if that. Of course you have to BE VERY CAREFUL when cutting steel around the fuel tank. I had a ready extinguisher, used a load of safety equipment, and an empty tank. I was very careful with sparks, and was very careful to check for leaks. My brother has an identical '94 and we did the same to his car. No troubles there either. I'm quite certain that by passing this on I will catch a bunch of grief for it, and in no way accept responsibility for someone blowing themselves up. Good luck.

 

Removing the rear end isnt that hard as it seems if you have the right tools.

 

Ditto. Got Air?

 

You don't NEED to remove the rear end, just drop it. Remove panhard bar and panhard bar support, unbolt sway bar end links (remove links), unbolt shocks from axles, slowly lower rear end until springs are loose, then remove springs, remove upper springs isolators (or they will fall later and scare the crap out of you), unbolt brake line bracket from chassis, and lower the rear end until the torque arm nearly touches the tunnel brace. I did it all with hand tools, jack stands, and a jack.