LRA fuel tank - Any buyer's remorse?

[Miloslavich]

Anyone have any regrets about their Long range fuel tanks? or any opinions about them other than they are great? Anyone think "ah i shoulda left my stock spare down there, or i've drug the tank across rocks, i wish i didnt have this much fuel onboard" - anything like that?

 

[cruiserpilot]

Anyone have any regrets about their Long range fuel tanks? or any opinions about them other than they are great? Anyone think "ah i shoulda left my stock spare down there, or i've drug the tank across rocks, i wish i didnt have this much fuel onboard" - anything like that?

I can drive from Whitehorse to Vanderhoof non stop.

 

[rhah]

Anyone have any regrets about their Long range fuel tanks? or any opinions about them other than they are great? Anyone think "ah i shoulda left my stock spare down there, or i've drug the tank across rocks, i wish i didnt have this much fuel onboard" - anything like that?

I don’t have one but wheel with a couple of people who do.

•we all fill up when I need fuel anyways
•Bladders don’t make it that long
•Added armor for the tank and wheeling is a must
•Unless your leaving the United States on an overlanding mission you can find a gas station pretty much within 20 miles
•forced to relocate spare tire.

do you double your fuel capacity- yes.
Can you carry Jerry cans and do the same- yes
Are long range tanks cool - yes

will I do one on mine after watching a couple buddies do it? - no

 

[Chris Cahill]

I don't have one, but thought long and hard about getting one recently because I had a rusty tank. In the end I decided to source a used clean tank, have it professionally cleaned and tested, and I put it in this week. My thought process included: 1) I'm gonna stop anyway for bathroom, 2) I have 2 jerry cans on my rear carrier if I need extra capacity in a remote area, 3) the high cost and current lack of availability of long range tanks, 4) I don't drive the 60 all the time and I don't want that much fuel sitting in the tank.

I can see how they make sense for some people but it just didn't for me.

 

[cwwfj60]

I don’t have one but wheel with a couple of people who do.

•we all fill up when I need fuel anyways
•Bladders don’t make it that long
•Added armor for the tank and wheeling is a must
•Unless your leaving the United States on an overlanding mission you can find a gas station pretty much within 20 miles
•forced to relocate spare tire.

do you double your fuel capacity- yes.
Can you carry Jerry cans and do the same- yes
Are long range tanks cool - yes

will I do one on mine after watching a couple buddies do it? - no

good points mostly, I disagree with the gas station within 20 miles. I’ve ventured down some trails before with no definitive end in sight, unknown wheeling difficulty, and rarely gas available within 75-100 miles. When there is gas available within 50 miles, it’s sometimes 50 miles the wrong direction. The extra fuel on board gives you the freedom to keep driving when you’re not sure where your going.

That’s how I personally spend a large part of my off-roading time, going down a dirt road looking for cool trails, historical landmarks, or just a campsite for the night.

I also go solo 90% of the time, If your trail riding with a bunch of cruisers with stock tanks then it defeats the purpose.

I don’t wheel hard enough (in my 60) to be super concerned with rocks, but I have made contact before....viable concern for a harder trails.

I sold my last 60 with the LRA tank, putting another one in my current project.

 

[HemiAlex]

The bladder comments are all valid. You should be stopping. I just don’t like being at the mercy of the stopping points for fuel and the cost of fuel on my trips.

What worries me often is what if I plan my stops accordingly and where I expect there should be fuel; there isn’t. This happened to me in west Texas in the evening when I had a 90 mile drive into the park and the station that was in the park was closed. I nearly ran out and I had to limp it on the Jerry can half way across the park to get to a station that was nearly out and only took cash.


I wouldn’t mind skipping the daily fill up or venturing into the Jerry can for reserve when I’m in the middle of nowhere.
Driving calmly on flat ground I can get 270 miles to a tank. Add an uphill stint and that number quickly falls off.

Since I can’t make my truck be more fuel efficient to make use of the 23 gallons I do have, it’s far cheaper to double the capacity and not stress as much.

 

[Miloslavich]

Thanks for all of the comments so far.

Anyone have any installed pics of their LRA tanks showing the clearance and how it hangs under the truck?

 

[HemiAlex]

Expect that it’s lower than your current spare by a few inches. I’ve never hit my spare off road and I don’t do buggy style rock crawling so I’m not worried.

 

[Miloslavich]

I've certainly hit my rear bumper on quite a few things in Moab, but thats why it's back there. I'm concerned I'd drag the LRA over something

 

[cwwfj60]

Yup, you’ll make contact in moab depending on what trails you run.

Fins n things - you be fine

Poison spider - you’ll make contact, and mainly because of the Rocky/jagged sections you’ll have to bounce over. Also I know nothing else about your truck....tire size, lift, etc.

 

[OSS]

I had a 49 gallon aluminum ARB gas tank on my 60 (only 2 ever sold in the USA) and it was the most valuable add on I had. If I had to get rid of all my extras added over the years (lockers, 5 speed, winch bar, winch, roof rack) the big gas tank would be the last thing to go. It was THE most important add on on my vehicle.
On some very long trips in Mexico, I'd also sometimes bring an additional 8 gallons of gas (total 57 gallons) and by the time I'd get to the next gas station - I'd be near empty.

I was never into boulder crawling so I never got close to hitting it on rocks. I had a welded on trailer hitch though that protected the rear end. The hitch would drag and protect the tank on steep departures.

 

[MANUCHAO]

No regrets here...

going down a dirt road looking for cool trails, historical landmarks, or just a campsite for the night. I also go solo 90% of the time

^^^This....

Great for exploring DV... Or The back roads of SW to SE Utah with no need to refuel....

I have sprung a leak in the middle of no where...
Was able to mend it, and continue on...

I did scepter JCs for a while, but I don't dig the smell of any type of fuel on me...

If you planning on doing an LR fuel tank and worry about trail damage, perhaps an auxiliary fuel tank would be best...
Moving the muffler to the other side would give yah lots of real estate under the rig and piping both tanks would make it $$$$...

 

[Miloslavich]

Maybe I can get Jason @TRAIL TAILOR to custom build me a tank ever so slightly less exposed & stronger so I can both back road explore with sufficient fuel and still make it through Moab without springing a leak. Thanks for all of your input thus far

 

[tmxmotorsports]

Maybe I can get Jason @TRAIL TAILOR to custom build me a tank ever so slightly less exposed & stronger so I can both back road explore with sufficient fuel and still make it through Moab without springing a leak. Thanks for all of your input thus far

He mentioned making a lower profile tank @TRAIL TAILOR

 

[DickM]

Attached are a couple of pics of my LRA 38 gal. tank.
Absolutely no regrets, it is hands down one of the best mods for my use of the truck. We do a lot of solo multiday trips with no set agenda, so the extra fuel provides a lot of peace of mind and extended range when exploring . As far as hard core wheeling with it, it I think that it is not the limiting factor on what trails you can handle or where you can go, the 2.5 " lift and 33's on my truck, for instance, are more of a limiting factor clearance- wise than the tank. I have never hit it (knock on wood), and we typically run Cruise Moab 6-7 level trails.. Metal Masher, Kane Creek, Steel Bender ,Poison Spider, etc.
The tank itself fits great, is a straightforward install, and comes with all parts and pieces needed. And as a plus, if you do go with an LRA tank, Ward and Georg at Cruiser Bros are great guys and big time supporters of our community.

I originally had a Long Ranger TA 39 auxiliary tank for several years before moving to the LRA. It was not the answer for me because it was hard to fill and a bit of a pain to transfer from it to the stock tank. The final "nail in the coffin" for it was going to an in-tank pump for the 2FE.

If you want to try the auxiliary tank, try calling Classic Cruisers in Poncha Springs. I traded it to them in 2018, so it might still be around.

And of course, anything from Jason would be awesome.

Hope this helps your decision.

 

[Miloslavich]

Thanks for those @DickM, those pictures really helps seal the deal. That doesn't hang down nearly as bad as I had thought, and looks decently protected. My rear bumper is similar to yours and would be the first thing to hit in most cases. Makes me realize I certainly need a set of those quarter sliders too.

 

[lcolon]

My cruiser is sitting at Valley Hybrids right now for a 4x4 Labs bumper install and a LRA tank. I have spent too much time out in the desert where you are 50 miles from gas worrying about my fuel levels (ie Death Valley, Anza Borrego, etc.) This should fix the problem. Going into death valley is getting even worse because the closed the gas station in Trona so the closest gas is Ridgecrest - far away from the trailhead...

 

[Miloslavich]

Agreed! i'll be putting one in my rig. Fuel anxiety is not a good feeling when you're way out. Even worse in an Airplane!

 

[cruisermatt]

Has anyone ever done an auxiliary tank in addition to the stock tank? That would make more sense to those that go off-roading (anyone who has one of these long range tanks and hasn’t hit it isn’t really doing anything more then a dirt road, sorry, just saying)

 

[DickM]

(anyone who has one of these long range tanks and hasn’t hit it isn’t really doing anything more then a dirt road, sorry, just sayin

Well, Matt, I am going to have to disagree with you and stick by my description in the previous post of how (and where) the truck goes and how the tank performs. I am no hard core rock crawler, but I ain't no mall cruising, dirt road driving cissy either, just saying. The bumper bangs and drags coming off ledges, and if you look at the previous post photos you'll see that the rear quarter sliders have been exercised more than once. They are a big help to protect the long back end of the 60.

And , as I am sure you know, it is a lot about the line you pick and your driving style in executing it as far as how bad you beat your stuff up.