Cracked fuel tank #2

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Howard705 said:
How are they cleaning/defueling the tank well enough to solder?
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I did the soldering on my own tank. I used a pneumatic die grinder on an empty tank and a slow flow of water to avoid sparks as I sanded the area clean of paint which took maybe 10 seconds. Dried the area and heated a thick steel bar with my torch and set it over the area to warm the steel up, did that a few times and applied soldering flux paste and heated the bar and placed it over the flux and let it boil out reheated the bar and applied thin Rosen cored solder until it flowed into the crack. I might mention the tank was out, empty, and the torch was probably 10ft away when I was heating the bar. The solder job didn't hold all that long before it started leaking again, haven't had a chance to pull the tank and have a look to see how it failed. I can only assume that since I didn't dent the edges in at all, that the solder cover was thin and cracked. I'm going to work on cleaning the old tank out and I'm going to weld it, grind it flat, beat a thin peice of copper sheet into a cover and then I'm going to use a propane torch to tin the damn thing on, then cover it in an epoxy aircraft fuel tank sealer that was suggested to me.
 
I tried brazing a 40 tank-it looked good-covered well/thick but still leaked though "porous" spots. Have watched radiator guy solder tank-made it look so easy-radiators too. He had a tank of some caustic type stuff he soaked in and used a torch.
LandCruisinMy93 said:
I did the soldering on my own tank. I used a pneumatic die grinder on an empty tank and a slow flow of water to avoid sparks as I sanded the area clean of paint which took maybe 10 seconds. Dried the area and heated a thick steel bar with my torch and set it over the area to warm the steel up, did that a few times and applied soldering flux paste and heated the bar and placed it over the flux and let it boil out reheated the bar and applied thin Rosen cored solder until it flowed into the crack. I might mention the tank was out, empty, and the torch was probably 10ft away when I was heating the bar. The solder job didn't hold all that long before it started leaking again, haven't had a chance to pull the tank and have a look to see how it failed. I can only assume that since I didn't dent the edges in at all, that the solder cover was thin and cracked. I'm going to work on cleaning the old tank out and I'm going to weld it, grind it flat, beat a thin peice of copper sheet into a cover and then I'm going to use a propane torch to tin the damn thing on, then cover it in an epoxy aircraft fuel tank sealer that was suggested to me.
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Same crack, same place, same problem when full. Tried patching the original tank (208k mi) and it didn't last but a few months. New tank has lasted about 6mo, and failed in the same place.

Will be putting in a Delco VC120, and have been reading the FSM tonight. Also looking at possible failed Fuel Pressure Regulator as a cause for high tank pressure. Never had any issue with what I'd call excessive tank venting-on fillup, but a slight whoosh when cap removed telling me it was sealed.

Maybe others have started to see tank issues with summertime temps on the way (expansion),
 
Well, I finally got around to cleaning up my original tank and welding the crack. Then I ground it down and cut a patch to go over a larger area in case it's stress related from the complex bend where it occurs. Here are a couple pics. Funny thing happened while I was welding, as I got toward to top of the patch (the radius where the tank steps down) the welder blew through and I mean like poof! nearly a dime sized hole. The metal was as thin as a Pepsi can in that spot, so I assume my original theory of the metal being stretched super thin when the top was stamped out is correct. Anyway, cut a separate patch for that and welded that in too. We will see how well it works, I welded around the perimeter twice on every bit of weld in case there were any spots where it may have tried to leak out.

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The top photos are
1) the affected area cleaned
2) the cover patch
3) the welded and dressed crack
4) the curve on the bottom lip of the patch

These 2 photos are of the final welded patch which did get cleaned and sanded prior to being welded on and the finished product cleaned etch primed and engine enameled.

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As soon as I get a chance I will install it and see what happened on the previous repair. I will report any failure of this patch as soon as it occurs and if it hasn't occurred in the next 3 months I will let you guys know and we will keep a running tally on how many months it holds out.
 
Well would be interested in how it is holding up? Please add me to the list of leaking fuel tanks when full. I now only do 2/3 fill-ups. Havent had the tank out but did pull the rear seat and hatch and there is no leakage from that area. But when tank is full I see a steady drip coming from the forward hole on the protective plate. This is a piss-off as I have already had to repair a leak on the filler neck where it rusted through as it passed over the body on the way back to the tank... that little episode required purchasing a new filler neck and 'sectioning' and then 'splicing' it so that it could be reconnected. Also fabricating an aluminum flat bar to support the upper end of the neck at the cap. These issues and the piss poor head gasket life (which I am convinced is completely due to improperly manufactured torque to yield head bolts) certainly puts more weight on the right of the Love/Hate equation.
 
AJP said:
Well would be interested in how it is holding up? Please add me to the list of leaking fuel tanks when full. I now only do 2/3 fill-ups. Havent had the tank out but did pull the rear seat and hatch and there is no leakage from that area. But when tank is full I see a steady drip coming from the forward hole on the protective plate. This is a piss-off as I have already had to repair a leak on the filler neck where it rusted through as it passed over the body on the way back to the tank... that little episode required purchasing a new filler neck and 'sectioning' and then 'splicing' it so that it could be reconnected. Also fabricating an aluminum flat bar to support the upper end of the neck at the cap. These issues and the piss poor head gasket life (which I am convinced is completely due to improperly manufactured torque to yield head bolts) certainly puts more weight on the right of the Love/Hate equation.
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When my filler neck rusted I used Gates filler neck hose to replace the bad section. I just cut it out and put in the (2') approx. hose. 1 7/8"??
 
Been a long time since I did it but I needed to 'fabricate' a way to properly secure the upper neck area (the cap end) of the pipe as the hose 'splice' I inserted to reconnect my sectioned filler pipe allowed to much flex at the cap end without adding the aluminum bar to reinforce/support it. Hard to explain without pictures (and I am trying not to relive that episode)
 
LandCruisinMy93 said:
@jfz80, I appreciate the input. That's a great list, I was hoping more people who had the tank cracking issue would chime in. Those are the ones we know about through postings, I was hoping some others who haven't posted would come forward...always an assumption that there are more. Toyota responded by sending me an 800 number to call that nobody answers Lol.
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jfz80 said:
From your thread and mine here

Landcruisinmy93. 2+ tanks
Jfz80 5+ tanks Multiple repairs
Ppc
Macca80
Kief
Uferblugen
Permiancruiser
Newtomelx
Cryorunner
SWcruiser
Tools r us -- client/club members
Ink pot --customers/club members 1 repeat
-some dude that posted in another thread that sold his lol

Unconfirmed
Bilt4me
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BILT4ME: Confirmed. Mine was leaking for over a year and I bought a used fuel tank from @slow95z after his rig got rolled. I just installed it about July because I got tired of driving the rolling Molotov cocktail. If I overfilled it, I could pull the front wheels up on a curb and slow down or stop the dripping.

I checked out the new tank, coated any slightly rusty or scuffed areas with POR-15, installed new gaskets and seals where I could and replaced the bad one. I also replaced the Charcoal canister with the VC120 and now I get no vacuum or pressure buildup in the tank.

I always felt as though my tank was under vacuum each time I opened it, with only a few times of real pressure. Based on the look of the cracks on my tank as well as the pics of everyone's it appears to be fatigued due to vacuum/pressure cycling in that spot. Some of these tanks look like they are on the verge of collapse due to vacuum more so than being blown up like a balloon.

I also replaced the high pressure hose and low pressure hose while I was in there. I wanted to replace the filler neck hose, but I forgot to order it up front, and the replacement straight hose that I found at O'Reilly would kink as I tried ti install it, so I put the old molded hose back on.

It's nice to fill it all the way up again........

Now my odometer quit so I can't check my gas mileage..........

I am keeping my old tank for future repair/replacement......
 
LandCruisinMy93 said:
Subject
Fuel Tank Failure

Discussion Thread
Response Via Email (Tiffany H.) 01/04/2016 05:14 AM
Dear Mr. *****,

Thank you for contacting Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.

We are sorry to learn of the concerns you are experiencing with the fuel tank on your 1993 Land Cruiser.

So we may effectively address your concern, and to ensure we have all the pertinent information, we ask that you please contact us at our toll free number, (800) 331-4331. Our hours of operation are 5:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m Monday through Friday and 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday, Pacific time.

Your email has been documented at our National Headquarters under file #1601040003. If we can be of further assistance, please feel free to contact us.

Sincerely,

Tiffany H.
Toyota Customer Experience Center
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AJP said:
Well would be interested in how it is holding up? Please add me to the list of leaking fuel tanks when full. I now only do 2/3 fill-ups. Havent had the tank out but did pull the rear seat and hatch and there is no leakage from that area. But when tank is full I see a steady drip coming from the forward hole on the protective plate. This is a piss-off as I have already had to repair a leak on the filler neck where it rusted through as it passed over the body on the way back to the tank... that little episode required purchasing a new filler neck and 'sectioning' and then 'splicing' it so that it could be reconnected. Also fabricating an aluminum flat bar to support the upper end of the neck at the cap. These issues and the piss poor head gasket life (which I am convinced is completely due to improperly manufactured torque to yield head bolts) certainly puts more weight on the right of the Love/Hate equation.
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UPDATE: Still rolling around with the patched tank and fingers crossed she is still holding her water so to speak. Been on a couple rough wheeling trips...one so rough my front lightbar rattled off the bumper...stainless cap heads with a lock washer a flat washer and other flat and a nyloc....the road still defeated them and left me dragging it until I thought I'd broke something serious. Got out and it was hanging on by the molex connector I installed it with lol. So that and a couple more really rough situations and all is well so far. I will update again in a few months time.
 
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GREAT!!! .. maybe in the spring I can convince my cousin (who has all the talent in the family!) to do something similar for my leak!! I'll keep my fingers crossed with you....
 
@AJP make sure to have your tank professionally cleaned beforehand. Last thing you want to do is blow up your cousin. Well...hopefully you don't want to blow him up. Have it hot tanked. I didn't... But my tank had been sitting outside for several months open to the elements and was full of rain water at one point...I had to use OSPHO inside the tank sump area to stop rust and prevent further rusting. I tested mine by placing a candle down inside and heating around the weld area with a propane torch aimed at it to see if the metal would beat up and outgas...it didn't so I carried on. But freshly empty dry tanks of even several weeks can emit enough fumes to blow up unless you have them professionally dipped. My $.02
 
My 97 has the dreaded leaking tank as well. Same spot as everyone. I spent quite a bit of time on toyotas 1 800 # only to get shot down. They said they hadn't heard the problem before. 88 land cruisers gas tanks had a recall we got screwed.
 
Chiming in - had my original tank and a used replacement I picked up each fail nearly back to back. On my third tank now and no problems in ~3.5 years. The two that failed had the same crack as above in this thread, same location.

The first failed after about a year of owning the truck (early 2012), the second after about 3 months following the install (and no, it wasn't damaged prior to install). '96 Lexus LX450
 
For those wanting to try and weld theirs up another option would be to fill the tank with water before welding to remove any vapors. Afterward I followed some advice given here with some rice in some panty hose and a shopvac on reverse to dry it out.
 
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