Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Interesting, what did they use for a steam source?

So I have a question - how do I go about getting rid of this old fuel? I drained about 5 gallons out last weekend. I thought after it settled I'd run it through a filter funnel and throw it in my Bronco, thinking it would be diluted enough in that tank that it wouldn't cause me too many problems. Has anyone done this? Now I'm not so sure - after sitting all week it still looks way nasty and super dark, almost black.

Filling holes in the top of the tank is easy.....fill it with water why welding or soldering. That should displace all the fumes.

I save my old gas, paint and other stuff like that for when they have a scheduled day to turn in stuff like that in our city.
Plus I got lucky by taking my gas tank down to get it cleaned out and after the Radiator Shop flushed it out, they said it was already coated inside and there was nothing they could do about it leaking. So they just gave it back to me free of gas flumes.
Wes

Well, the weather was crap yesterday so I decided I'd keep my work in the garage, instead of standing in the rain transferring old gas around and whatnot. I did some reading online and plenty of people are using old gas in their cars, diluted with fresh, I plan to do the same.

So I went ahead and rebuilt the fuel pump. I was surprised that, when I opened up the pump, the internals were actually in fairly decent shape. I was very tempted to simply screw it back together and re-intall, but ultimately decided I'd go ahead and use the rebuild kit from "Then and Now".

Based on the condition of the internals, I'm second guessing my prior diagnosis of a failed fuel pump. I think now that, when I placed the suction line in my gas can, I didn't have enough gas in the can or something; the line coiled up and out of the fuel.

I read and re-read the service procedure, but could NOT figure out how to get the vacuum diaphragm disconnected! Luckily, it appeared to be in good shape, so I left it in place. Otherwise, the pump has a new fuel diaphragm, all new valves, seals, etc.

I re-installed the pump and poured some fuel into the carb, and dropped the suction line into a can of the old fuel (my can of fresh fuel being too low), and turned her over. The car now purrs, even on the old fuel, and the pump appears to be working flawlessly!

I was so excited to hear it run (for longer than about 20 seconds) that my (Lovely, Beautiful) wife had to remind me that it had no coolant in it, and I should shut it off! HA!

So based on a recommendation from this thread, and a review of water pump repair procedure (it requires an arbor press, which I don't have) I decided to go ahead and order a new water pump from Kanter instead of trying to use the rebuild kit I have on hand.

Thanks for reading!

Gents, I've looked through all seven chapters of the Service Manual, but I can not find instructions for removing the water pump, or the fuel tank. Any suggestions? Thanks!

-Mark

Water pump procedure is about the same in most inline 8's. There are a few lines on removal in the radiator section of 51-4 manual. Think your car was earlier so on the 22-23 series in addition, if the front motor mount rubber has sagged you will probably need to jack the engine up slightly to access the two lower bolts. Those may have been obstructed by the mount. If you have the 356 engine, don't forget to remove or loosen the two side stabilizers to frame used on that engine before jacking. Use a wide block of wood under the oil pan as far forward as you can get and lift engine a bit till the bolts clear. When you remove the pump, take note of the two bolts with copper washers and two with regular lockwashers.

You may also want to take the opportunity to change the mount rubber if it has sagged and deteriorated.

Fuel tank is also similar in procedure to the 51-4. Just a different shape in 22-23rd. That is mentioned in the fuel/exhaust section of 51-4 manual. One thing they don't mention and a suggestion I would make is to use penetrating oil on the nuts and threads of the tee bolts. Let oil sit and do it's job for awhile before trying to loosen. If things are rusted, don't just twist or you could rip the spot welds where the top brackets are attached to trunk floor pan.

Thanks for that, Howard. I just hit those tee bolts with PB Blaster, I may give it a shot tomorrow.

With so much trouble/interest in fuel tanks, I don't understand why some OEM manufacturer just don't make a run to fit ours. It costs >>2X to repair a tank, than to make a new one. So that's money left on the table for these guys.
I bought a new slightly larger tank for $100,(fits another year/brand) and it'll cost me <$100 to modify. Which is still half the cost of the renu (best) procedure and wouldn't you really rather have a new tank? They didn't come painted from the factory, just insulating spray, probably some phosphating or other steel anti-rust treatment.
It's difficult to prove the market, without some sort of registry/inventory of those still out there, to convince these guys. It's self preservation long term.
ps: I'm not a fan of putting old fuel in a good motor. Why mess up two cars to save $10-15, in fuel? Ship it COD to the EPA!

There have been reports and rumors for a year that Kanter is in the process of repro'ing the 51-6 tanks. So far, nothing I can remember reading stating that it's a done or imminent deal.

For a 6 year application, maybe it is worthwhile to pay tooling for a drop in repro. Since tanks varied enough model to model before 51, I doubt there would be enough demand to pay for tooling to make a drop in repro for many of the earlier cars.

If you have a number for a readily available starting tank for the 22-23 series and some information or photos/drawings of what is needed for modification, I'm sure many would be appreciative.

Even though there were two 22-23 sizes, there might even be enough similarity in that modification that with minor detail changes, it could be made to work all the way back to prewar Clippers. Getting a correct sender for those with originally different size tanks might be an issue although that might possibly already be worked out. IIRC, there is a recent poster on the PAC forum who I believe successfully adapted a modern universal sender to his 22-23 car.

Quote:
" I bought a new slightly larger tank for
$100,(fits another year/brand) and it'll
cost me <$100 to modify".

What year and brand???? Where did u get the tank.??