Best Way to Drain Fuel Tank (And Other Questions)

sneaky98gt · Jul 14, 2010

Short Story and Primary Question

I need to drain the fuel tank on my 98 GT. It is almost level full and the fuel pump is not working. What is the best way to get all (or most) of the fuel out? I would like to avoid siphoning as I just had my wisdom teeth out and my mouth still hurts, but I may could get someone else to help me.

Long Story and Other Questions *Warning* *Novel Ahead*

I was on the way home from a friends house last Wednesday night. While on a recently paved (as in, that day) road about 2 miles from my house, I ran over a nicely sized chunk of cement left on the road by the DOT. The car sputtered a couple of times and finally just cut off. Because I have a fuel pressure gauge, I noticed that I had no fuel pressure. Oh crap. Off the side of a sketch country road at 1:00 in the morning I go.

I hop out of the car to inspect any damage. Front end suspension: check. Exhaust system: check. Frame and rear differential: check. Fuel tank: no check. Crap. There's quite a nice sized dent in the bottom front side of the fuel tank. The fuel pump will not even try to come on, not even a little bit. Inertia switch isn't tripped either. Oh well, nothing I could do about it then. So I call my brother to come tow me home.

Next morning, I'm inspecting the damage. It's not quite as bad as I first thought, but there is still some damage. The black plastic piece under the fuel tank looks worse than the tank itself, although it's hard to say for certain what is damaged and what isn't. The dent is about 1/3 the way from the left side. It's hard to say if the fuel pump was hit or damaged. Hopefully it'll be fixable.

So I go on to check the power going to the fuel pump. I have power all the way to the inertia switch, which is the last switch before the pump. I jump that switch just to make sure, and still nothing. So the problem is either in the pump itself or the wires going to the pump. Either way, the tank has to be dropped, and here I am.

I'm hoping to work on it tomorrow. The fuel tank is FULL, or within 20 miles of it. I can't siphon it myself with my mouth like it is, but I may could get a brother or friend to help me. Is there any other option?

What kind of damage does anyone think I'm looking at? Because it isn't even trying to come on, I'm thinking something electrical, like a broken wire or something. Anyone got any ideas?

Will I be able to bend the fuel tank back to normal, assuming it isn't too badly messed up? Or will a new fuel tank be in order?

Also, I've already contacted my county's DOT about them paying the damage, considering they left chunks of rocks in the middle of the road. I'm gonna file a claim and try to get some money for it, but I have to figure out what needs to be replaced first.

mat82284 · Jul 14, 2010

sneaky98gt said:
Short Story and Primary Question

I need to drain the fuel tank on my 98 GT. It is almost level full and the fuel pump is not working. What is the best way to get all (or most) of the fuel out? I would like to avoid siphoning as I just had my wisdom teeth out and my mouth still hurts, but I may could get someone else to help me.

Long Story and Other Questions *Warning* *Novel Ahead*

I was on the way home from a friends house last Wednesday night. While on a recently paved (as in, that day) road about 2 miles from my house, I ran over a nicely sized chunk of cement left on the road by the DOT. The car sputtered a couple of times and finally just cut off. Because I have a fuel pressure gauge, I noticed that I had no fuel pressure. Oh crap. Off the side of a sketch country road at 1:00 in the morning I go.

I hop out of the car to inspect any damage. Front end suspension: check. Exhaust system: check. Frame and rear differential: check. Fuel tank: no check. Crap. There's quite a nice sized dent in the bottom front side of the fuel tank. The fuel pump will not even try to come on, not even a little bit. Inertia switch isn't tripped either. Oh well, nothing I could do about it then. So I call my brother to come tow me home.

Next morning, I'm inspecting the damage. It's not quite as bad as I first thought, but there is still some damage. The black plastic piece under the fuel tank looks worse than the tank itself, although it's hard to say for certain what is damaged and what isn't. The dent is about 1/3 the way from the left side. It's hard to say if the fuel pump was hit or damaged. Hopefully it'll be fixable.

So I go on to check the power going to the fuel pump. I have power all the way to the inertia switch, which is the last switch before the pump. I jump that switch just to make sure, and still nothing. So the problem is either in the pump itself or the wires going to the pump. Either way, the tank has to be dropped, and here I am.

I'm hoping to work on it tomorrow. The fuel tank is FULL, or within 20 miles of it. I can't siphon it myself with my mouth like it is, but I may could get a brother or friend to help me. Is there any other option?

What kind of damage does anyone think I'm looking at? Because it isn't even trying to come on, I'm thinking something electrical, like a broken wire or something. Anyone got any ideas?

Will I be able to bend the fuel tank back to normal, assuming it isn't too badly messed up? Or will a new fuel tank be in order?

Also, I've already contacted my county's DOT about them paying the damage, considering they left chunks of rocks in the middle of the road. I'm gonna file a claim and try to get some money for it, but I have to figure out what needs to be replaced first.

I didnt read your whole post but i can answer the first question.

The tanks have a protection on them to stop you from siphoning anyways. So the only way around it is to do it like this. Jack up the rear end (or drive on ramps) then look at the two small hoses sticking out the side of the tank (near gas filler neck) and undo one of those hoses. Next take a Siphoning tool (sold at any autoparts store, but much cheaper if bought at walmart) then stick that hose into the whole and siphon it all out. With the tool you don't use your mouth it uses a pump. Next make sure you have some kind of container you can empty the gas into, If not you could just dump the gas into a small gas container and then dump it into another car you own. repeating the process over and over untill its full. I find that leaving 1/4 a tank is sufficient to drop the tank.

wmburns · Jul 14, 2010

Try car-part.com to locate a salvage gas tank.

Check the electrical connector near the rear center of the tank. Look to see if the impact damaged it.

Good idea to use the vent line to siphon.

Good luck on getting it back together.

sneaky98gt · Jul 15, 2010

Update: Finally got around to it late this evening. Got the fuel out and tank off.

Results: Axle back fuel system is totaled.
1. Tank is bent way worse than I thought. The plastic shield under it made it look not as bad as it was. I don't see any way it can be repaired.
2. Top of fuel hat looks okay, but underside is a mess. Wires are pinched in two, as are the fuel hoses that are in the tank. I can't imagine fixing it would be cheaper than replacing.
3. Fuel pump assembly apparently imploded. The impact on the bottom forced the assembly upwards (where it didn't have any room to go anyway), and plastic + lots of compressive force = lots of broken plastic. Bits and pieces of it are lying all over the bottom of the tank, and you can't even recognize the main assembly. It is wedged so tight that I can't even budge it. There is no fixing this.
4. Fuel pump's status is not known, as I cannot see it amongst the mass of plastic destruction. I can't imagine it fared any better than the rest of the assembly. Status until proven otherwise: not fixable.
5. The plastic piece under the fuel tank is bent beyond fixation.
6. One of the metal straps that holds the fuel tank on is bent and mangled beyond being able to be fixed. The other is bent, but should be fixable.

So yay! Now I get to spend lots of money.

trombonedemon · Jul 16, 2010

I always wondered how fast the claims department in the DOT moved, keep us posted please. Was this in Wake County?

sneaky98gt · Jul 16, 2010

Parts and labor quote from my local dealership: $855.86 + the cost of a new fuel tank (Ford doesn't make them anymore) (estimated $150 from salvage yard). So about $1000 to fix.

trombonedemon said:
I always wondered how fast the claims department in the DOT moved, keep us posted please. Was this in Wake County?

No, it was in my hometown in Martin County. I'm gonna find out how long it takes. I at least don't have to have my car right now, and my granddad has said I can drive any of his vehicles for however long I need to (3 Mustangs or a Lightning), so I'm not too worried about how long it takes as long as it is before I go back to school a month from now.

They had better pay for at least the parts ($700 new, give or take), or else I am NOT going to be a happy camper. I've got to submit 3 estimates and a tort claim, and the attorney general's office makes a decision. 1 estimate down.

trombonedemon · Jul 17, 2010

sneaky98gt said:
Parts and labor quote from my local dealership: $855.86 + the cost of a new fuel tank (Ford doesn't make them anymore) (estimated $150 from salvage yard). So about $1000 to fix.

No, it was in my hometown in Martin County. I'm gonna find out how long it takes. I at least don't have to have my car right now, and my granddad has said I can drive any of his vehicles for however long I need to (3 Mustangs or a Lightning), so I'm not too worried about how long it takes as long as it is before I go back to school a month from now.

They had better pay for at least the parts ($700 new, give or take), or else I am NOT going to be a happy camper. I've got to submit 3 estimates and a tort claim, and the attorney general's office makes a decision. 1 estimate down.

Attorney General huh?! Well, be prepared for them to make them-selves look like the victum, unless the Attorney General is laid back about the subject. Get your story air tight and unchanged when you give them the explaination, I'm thinking they are like we get a lot of these complaints and looking for any reason for them to say its all your fault, should've been paying attention. I would go back to the area and look for sighns that weren't giving notice to the situation. Best of luck, oh and take some pictures of the road and everything has to do w/the situation. Gotta play Matt Lock.

3ponyshow · Jul 17, 2010

My apologies if I missed this earlier, but why aren't you just submitting this to insurance?

sneaky98gt · Jul 17, 2010

trombonedemon said:
Attorney General huh?! Well, be prepared for them to make them-selves look like the victum, unless the Attorney General is laid back about the subject. Get your story air tight and unchanged when you give them the explaination, I'm thinking they are like we get a lot of these complaints and looking for any reason for them to say its all your fault, should've been paying attention. I would go back to the area and look for sighns that weren't giving notice to the situation. Best of luck, oh and take some pictures of the road and everything has to do w/the situation. Gotta play Matt Lock.

Yea, I've been taking pictures of EVERYTHING so far. I'm going back to the road after lunch to take pictures of the hunks of cement tile laying all over the shoulder of the road (one of which was in the middle of the road that night). I'm gonna try and find the exact one that hit the fuel tank, and take a picture of it butted up against the fuel tank to show that that is what caused it. I think THAT should be more than enough proof.

The rock was through a curve that I couldn't see around. It was left center of my lane; there wasn't enough room to swerve right safely, and there was no way I was going to swerve WAY over into the left lane at 60 mph, especially not knowing what was coming around the curve. I got on the brakes, but I still hit it running roughly 45 mph. That's the way it happened and they can believe it or not. But hey, I'll take a broken fuel tank/pump over a totaled car any day, regardless of what they have to say about it.

3ponyshow said:
My apologies if I missed this earlier, but why aren't you just submitting this to insurance?

$500 deductible.....

Best Way to Drain Fuel Tank (And Other Questions)

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