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

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

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!

I'm very interested in your conclusion. I've used Lucas in other vehicles, mostly to gain oil pressure.

Where are the pics of BigKev's car, did I miss them?

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.

Gentlemen, thank you all for the feedback and inputs! I plan to drop the tank this weekend and take a peek inside. Maybe try some stripper and see if the old liner will come off, and go from there. I'll try to snap so pics along the way.

-Mark

Pack120c, thanks for that. One nod for the POR15 kit.

Any other takers? I think my biggest concern with this kit is whether the "Marine Clean" and "Metal Prep" are strong enough to remove whatever old coating/lining is still in the tank. Presumably, not ALL of the coating has failed - some is still in there stuck to the metal. Presumably, again, an additional coating on top of the old may not last? Thoughts anyone?

-Mark

How much should one expect to pay to dip/boil a gas tank? I just got off the phone with a radiator shop that does this service, and they couldn't quote me a price. Told me to bring it in and the owner will look at it, to see what it needs. I asked him for a general ballpark figure, he said it would probably start at $225, and go up from there depending on what the tank needs for restoration.

That seems high to me, and more than I can really afford right now. Has anyone used the POR15 gas tank repair kit? I see that Max offers the same kit on his website. $75 sounds way better than $225, but of course I'd be doin a lot more work. And Id be concerned about getting all the old lining out...sigh.

-Mark

Thank you for the reply - you make a good point about safety. Especially since my car is in my garage, parked just inches from my gas water heater!

I've definitely decided the tank will have to be removed and cleaned, now that I found all that gunk in it. I don't believe it will require replacement; it has obviously been replaced at some point as the exterior paint on it is in good condition.

Replacing the fuel line seems like it may be the way to go. Once I get the tank out, I'll try compressed air on the line and go from there.

As always, thank you all for the input!

-Mark