Pulled the fuel tank out today.

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IslandJ

IslandJ

10 Year
Joined
Aug 18, 2014
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Location
Los Angeles
Hey there,
Dropped the fuel tank down today as part of my slow paced project on my 1985 FJ60.
Short story is that it was sitting for 14 years or so in a garage.
Got the carb rebuilt by Mark, drained gas, new fuel filter and now I'd like the opinions of the seasoned FJ60 guys.
Oh and the fuel tank recall was done in 95 or so, cant remember. All the hose came off relatively easy.
Here are the picts


The Sending unit and pickup unit dont look so hot. What do you all think?


And the inside... do I attempt to clean it myself or just take it to a radiator shop to do the deed?

 
I just tested the sender from my '89 FJ62 (same part as on the FJ60s) a few days ago, it's not hard to test if you have the info from the factory service manual. My sender looked in much better shape than yours but wasn't functioning as it should, so I ordered a new one from toyotapartsdeal.com for ~$138 shipped. It'll be here tomorrow.
 
4Cruisers said:
I just tested the sender from my '89 FJ62 (same part as on the FJ60s) a few days ago, it's not hard to test if you have the info from the factory service manual. My sender looked in much better shape than yours but wasn't functioning as it should, so I ordered a new one from toyotapartsdeal.com for ~$138 shipped. It'll be here tomorrow.
Click to expand...

I'm kinda thinking that I might as well replace the sender and pickup while its out of the cruiser.
 
I would change all the rubber fuel lines, and flush only the hard lines.

I have found a good cleaner for fuel related gunk on metal parts - Bar Keeps Friend cleanser. Make a paste, apply to part, scub a little, and most parts come out like new.

On the tank, I would try a little muriatic acid. Put a small amount in a plastic bucket and dilute with water. Use a funnel to pour it in the tank. Shake the tank around to keep liquid moving and check on progress frequently. It will remove rust and scale, but you MUST FLUSH WELL WITH PLAIN WATER TO REMOVE ALL TRACES OF ACID!!!!

Muriatic acid is nasty, and you do not want to breath it, it will damage metal, etch concrete and eat holes in clothing, so be careful, but it works. When finished dilute with lots of water.
 
Once you are done with that I believe that POR makes a tank refurb liquid that will coat the inside (think this is what @cruiser enthuiser did with his). Lots of guys also throw some liquid in there with a large section of chain and use that to rattle around an knock more of the rust loose.

I may have to invest in one of the senders as well, always wondered how much my gauge trolls me as I can start the truck and drive for a long ways with it barely moving, shut her down for a minute and restart and suddenly I have 1/4 to 1/3 tank less than what it was showing me before the shutoff. This happened this weekend on a trail run, I ended up leaving the truck and getting in with another member that had more gas than me because on the fireroads (flat) she was telling me I had about a 1/4 tank. Once I got out of the trails and had been on the highway for a while suddenly she had between a 1/2 and 1/3rd of a tank which lasted me almost all the way to our fuel up destination (a good hour away) at which point she was telling me I had about 1/8th tank. At filling up I put 15gallons in the tank (cant remember if the 60 tank is 16 or 18 gallons). Either way I doubt she is very accurate anymore.
 
doug720 said:
I would change all the rubber fuel lines, and flush only the hard lines.

I have found a good cleaner for fuel related gunk on metal parts - Bar Keeps Friend cleanser. Make a paste, apply to part, scub a little, and most parts come out like new.

On the tank, I would try a little muriatic acid. Put a small amount in a plastic bucket and dilute with water. Use a funnel to pour it in the tank. Shake the tank around to keep liquid moving and check on progress frequently. It will remove rust and scale, but you MUST FLUSH WELL WITH PLAIN WATER TO REMOVE ALL TRACES OF ACID!!!!

Muriatic acid is nasty, and you do not want to breath it, it will damage metal, etch concrete and eat holes in clothing, so be careful, but it works. When finished dilute with lots of water.
Click to expand...
And if you need to get get rid of a body... it'll totally dissolve one. (Breaking Bad).
 
Pulled the cover off my non-functioning sender and it was obvious why it wasn't working as designed. Uneven wear on the contact surfaces will make for some squirrley readings across the range.
 
Don't know where in L.A. you are, but there's a place in Northridge, called "The Radiator Works" ... They do a lot of vintage stuff and they're very good. May want to call. The chemicals you need to clean the tank are restricted to business use now, in CA, and are very caustic. M. Acid works, but as stated, it's NASTY stuff and can eat through stuff quickly.

Those pick up tubes will prolly clean up. If the sender is within spec, use it. You can replace later, if needed, with tank in place through a access port in the cargo bed.

The Radiator Works (818)701-0504 » We are located at 18255 Parthenia St. Northridge CA 91325 "We Fix Em" since 1962
 
Spike Strip said:
Don't know where in L.A. you are, but there's a place in Northridge, called "The Radiator Works" ... They do a lot of vintage stuff and they're very good. May want to call. The chemicals you need to clean the tank are restricted to business use now, in CA, and are very caustic. M. Acid works, but as stated, it's NASTY stuff and can eat through stuff quickly.

Those pick up tubes will prolly clean up. If the sender is within spec, use it. You can replace later, if needed, with tank in place through a access port in the cargo bed.

The Radiator Works (818)701-0504 » We are located at 18255 Parthenia St. Northridge CA 91325 "We Fix Em" since 1962
Click to expand...
FYI mucuric acid is sold in hardware stores to clear waste pipes. It comes in a heavy plastic bottle and then in a thick plastic bag as well and is sold for a one time dose. So just saying depending on the chunks that might come or not come out of the tank, the remainder could be flushed IF your town permits its use AND your septic tank isn't too old to handle it. I would recommend putting the water on and flushing the pipes for a good 30 mins. I believe the bottle would direct you to do that too. I used it once when my big hair caused a huge clog, since I ditched the hair, I have no more issues. The mucuric acid is safe for pvc piping per the directions on the bottle as well as it can be used in kitchen drains as well.
 
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Yeah, I'm just saying I've seen a couple people ruin radiators using a DYI Muriatic Acid, which for peeps who don't know, is another name for Hydrochloric Acid.

I'd rather spend $50 to get it boiled and neutralized and washed, then POR 15 the inside and outside.
 
I took the tank to be cleaned out by Burbank Radiator Service. They were highly recommended by a friend who builds and restores old cars. I didn't want to mess with the acid and the mess/disposal.
Ordering the POR-15 tank sealer today. Picked up some Bar Keeps Friend cleanser to see how well the sender and pick up units clean up. Ill test the sender once I research that. Thanks for all the info guys.
 
Very good timing ... I pulled my tank today, after the 60 was running bad, I had fine rust in my fuel filter, after cleaning the tank I plan to use red kote sealer , pretty sure my new carb is going to need going through as well .
 
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Just got off the phone with the radiator shop. He does a muriatic acid treatment and then a caustic acid treatment.
He then said that he doesn't think it will need to be sealed but would know more after the cleaning, tomorrow.
Does this sound right?
 
HemiAlex said:
That's hydroflouric acid.

Makes Muratic look like vinegar.
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Ha! Whoops! Well, I knew it was water something or other. My mistake, apologies if I got anyone excited.
 
FYI I bought a new sender from Onur about 1 year ago. About $140 IIRC.

I've used the POR15 treatment on my FJ40 gas tank. Their sealer is good stuff, worked great.

Good Luck!

-Ed
 
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