1993 Festy L fuel tank

[Beans]

I think I need a new fuel tank. Mine leaks if filled too much, and that doesn't seem safe to me...

Do I have to buy a Festiva specific one, or do other Ford models use the same tank perhaps?

Thanks!

[JPT]

A 2 door Aspire tank will work. 4 door Aspire tanks are different.

[wybnrml]

Do you know where its leaking? You might be able to fix it. Mine was leaking where the rubber sleeve connects the filler neck to the tank. It was just a broken hose clamp. Yours might be something simple also.

[Beans]

Do you know where its leaking? You might be able to fix it. Mine was leaking where the rubber sleeve connects the filler neck to the tank. It was just a broken hose clamp. Yours might be something simple also.

I was thinking that actually... How would I check to see if that's the problem? Do I have to remove the whole tank?

[wybnrml]

No. Just remove the back seat, then remove the rear interior panels that have the arm rests. Then just pull back the carpet and there is an access panel on the drivers side where you can access the filler and tank hoses. And just check your connections.

[juryrigger007]

and disconnect the battery first.

Scott

[Beans]

Okay, so I checked the hose connections and unfortunately didn't find anything amiss. I also noticed a rather large chunk of rust right about where the gas seems to be leaking from, on the underside on the seam of the tank. Looks a bit to gnarly to try repairing it IMO... Looks like I'm going to have to buy a new one and install that... Rockauto.com has one for $150 or so, so I'm happy with that.

I know on a motorcycle you have to coat the inside of the gas tank before you use it to prevent rust, is the same true for a car gas tank? Also, the stock gas tank appears to have a rubberized coating on the outside, whereas the one from Rockauto.com doesn't appear to have it.... What does this do, and is there any way to replicate it? Rockerguard perhaps?

Thanks for the input!

[1988festivazoom]

you can just get some cans of underbody coating and spray a good coat on it and it will be fine and prevent rust.

[bravekozak]

Sure you can can put rocker panel guard on the gas tank.
All gas tanks are bare bones steel. You would prime, paint, and then seal it up. I used Tremco TP-50V on mine. A brushable, black urethane for vertical applications.

[Beans]

Sure you can can put rocker panel guard on the gas tank.
All gas tanks are bare bones steel. You would prime, paint, and then seal it up. I used Tremco TP-50V on mine. A brushable, black urethane for vertical applications.

Do I need to coat the inside to prevent rust though...?

EDIT: I just noticed you said "seal it," which I assume means coat the inside? ...How would I go about doing this?

[Safety Guy]

I've installed one new tank and reinstalled another newer looking one that I undercoated first. I didn't put anything inside either of them and I've never heard that advice before.

Karl