Fuel Cell Input

[PhiloCruiser]

All:

I've got the spare out of the way and am going to have either the 24 or 40 gal fuel cell installed. My questions for everyone are pros/cons for either?

I don't need to really worry too much about clearance because I don't plan on serious crawling ever...

IDK, would really just appreciate any feedback to see if I'm thinking about this clearly enough.

 

[wardharris]

Howdy -
Take this with a grain of salt from a vendor, but we know a little.

Not sure if you are considering purchase of a kit, repurpose of an aux tank from another model, import of an offshore kit or fuel cell build from scratch, but as for clearance..... We offer add-in auxiliary tank kits in three sizes for the 200s, including 40 and 24 gallons. Same price (and currently on sale). Both of them tuck up nicely and you will likely not have clearance issues with the 40 unless you get froggy on the trail/line selection.

Not a direct comparison, but the 80 Series tanks are quite similar and you can see the differences for that kit below. We are working on similar comparison for the 100 and 200 Series tanks but nothing in hand to share yet.

Hope this helps, feel free to call with questions.

Ward

 

[TeCKis300]

So is the question whether going the big monty 40 is worth it? Or perhaps more is just more, and what would it compromise?

I don't think there's necessarily a right or wrong answer as both are prodigious in terms of added capacity. It's going to come down to how you use your vehicle.

As there's no cost difference between the two. And unless you're really really into rock crawling where clearance doesn't seem to be an issue. I think the discriminator potentially comes down to weight.

I don't know how much more weight the 40 gallon subtank is over the 24. But it is going to be incrementally heavier. The tanks are about 100lbs IIRC. Then there's gas weight at ~6 lbs / gallon. 24 gallons is 144 lbs. 40 gallons, 240 lbs. Between the tank and gas, the 40 gallon is going to put another ~350lbs on your rig, which is definitely something you will feel and will take a bite out of performance.
I said potentially earlier as you could of course not fill all the way. At which point it's just the incremental difference in the tank weight itself which I'd guess to be ~25lbs?

The wild card and might be hearsay...I'd read something about being able to feel fuel sloshing with a partially full 40 gallon tank?

I'm personally critical of weight as I want to keep as much payload for hauling.

As someone that has the 12.5 gallon baby tank. I'm content with my current 500+ mile range. 24 would put that to almost 700 mile range. 40 gallon, almost 1000 mile range.

Does anyone need 1000 mile range, where 700 mile range wouldn't be enough? Only you can answer that.

 

[PhiloCruiser]

So is the question whether going the big monty 40 is worth it? Or perhaps more is just more, and what would it compromise?

I don't think there's necessarily a right or wrong answer as both are prodigious in terms of added capacity. It's going to come down to how you use your vehicle.

As there's no cost difference between the two. And unless you're really really into rock crawling where clearance doesn't seem to be an issue. I think the discriminator potentially comes down to weight.

I don't know how much more weight the 40 gallon subtank is over the 24. But it is going to be incrementally heavier. The tanks are about 100lbs IIRC. Then there's gas weight at ~6 lbs / gallon. 24 gallons is 144 lbs. 40 gallons, 240 lbs. Between the tank and gas, the 40 gallon is going to put another ~350lbs on your rig, which is definitely something you will feel and will take a bite out of performance.
I said potentially earlier as you could of course not fill all the way. At which point it's just the incremental difference in the tank weight itself which I'd guess to be ~25lbs?

The wild card and might be hearsay...I'd read something about being able to feel fuel sloshing with a partially full 40 gallon tank?

I'm personally critical of weight as I want to keep as much payload for hauling.

As someone that has the 12.5 gallon baby tank. I'm content with my current 500+ mile range. 24 would put that to almost 700 mile range. 40 gallon, almost 1000 mile range.

Does anyone need 1000 mile range, where 700 mile range wouldn't be enough? Only you can answer that.

Thank you! Exactly the input i was looking for. I don't want to fall victim to the old "if it's the same price get the bigger one" syndrome when in fact, I probably will never need the 40 gallon. I don't crawl and am not too worried about weight...but there's no justifiable reason in my mind to get the 40 unless I'm missing something.

 

[Markuson]

Thank you! Exactly the input i was looking for. I don't want to fall victim to the old "if it's the same price get the bigger one" syndrome when in fact, I probably will never need the 40 gallon. I don't crawl and am not too worried about weight...but there's no justifiable reason in my mind to get the 40 unless I'm missing something.

Thing is... The price is the same for either...and there’s no rule that says you have to always fill it to 40.

Even on highway trips with fuel available...it can actually save you significant $.

For me in crazy CA, the difference in gas prices can be massive. Filling up in Arizona, Utah...or even just 50 miles east toward the desert can mean a difference of as much as $1.60 per gallon higher or lower...so if I can dump 64 gallons in at $2.05 in New Mexico vs the $3.79 (or worse) on the way home...I’m gonna stuff as much fuel in as I can where it’s cheap. Then with massive capacity, it means I get to choose when fill rather than the E constantly forcing my hand (and wallet).

The 24 is great, so you can’t really go wrong. But without clearance concerns? I think the 40 is an easy choice.