Just a few weeks ago I installed a replacement fuel tank in my box wagon. I like to go 110% and not redo anything ever, so when I dropped the tank to fix my level sensor, what the hell, I did the pump and the entire tank as well. It was rusty enough to justify anyway.
The only part I could not obtain was the oversized grommet for where the filler neck goes into the tank, but, the original was not dryrotted. I popped it into the new tank.
I'd had some suspicions from faint whiffs of fuel (my sense of smell is below average, so if I smell fuel, there's a real leak), and immediately after filling the tank with 16.3 gallons, noticed gas dripping under the car.
I drove over to a shop for a quick look-see on their lift, and it's coming out all around that grommet. Not, thank goodness, at the level sensor or the pump, the latter of which is under pressure and a bit more work to get at! ...I'd also had some fears about the condition of the bracket.
Some brief research showed that fuel tanks have internal baffles, and the pumps rely on built up fume pressure to tell them when to shut off. A different tank design not quite to spec, or of course a badly calibrated pump, can lead to overfilling. Some people had real problems with their aftermarket tanks, and it seems that I do, too.
I don't think the fuel should even be getting to that grommet, and I can't imagine that even brand new 20 years ago, that filler tube grommet was ever a hermetic seal, it's not designed to be.
Not a biggie. A relief, actually. Explains a lot of 13mpg last tank, and all I have to do is put in 12-14 gallons next time the low fuel light triggers, not 16.3g.
Just a forewarning to others who replace their tanks.
Mine was a dorman. It was supposed to be spectra, but they misdelivered. dorman got good reviews too though-- I won't stress about it.
The only part I could not obtain was the oversized grommet for where the filler neck goes into the tank, but, the original was not dryrotted. I popped it into the new tank.
I'd had some suspicions from faint whiffs of fuel (my sense of smell is below average, so if I smell fuel, there's a real leak), and immediately after filling the tank with 16.3 gallons, noticed gas dripping under the car.
I drove over to a shop for a quick look-see on their lift, and it's coming out all around that grommet. Not, thank goodness, at the level sensor or the pump, the latter of which is under pressure and a bit more work to get at! ...I'd also had some fears about the condition of the bracket.
Some brief research showed that fuel tanks have internal baffles, and the pumps rely on built up fume pressure to tell them when to shut off. A different tank design not quite to spec, or of course a badly calibrated pump, can lead to overfilling. Some people had real problems with their aftermarket tanks, and it seems that I do, too.
I don't think the fuel should even be getting to that grommet, and I can't imagine that even brand new 20 years ago, that filler tube grommet was ever a hermetic seal, it's not designed to be.
Not a biggie. A relief, actually. Explains a lot of 13mpg last tank, and all I have to do is put in 12-14 gallons next time the low fuel light triggers, not 16.3g.
Just a forewarning to others who replace their tanks.
Mine was a dorman. It was supposed to be spectra, but they misdelivered. dorman got good reviews too though-- I won't stress about it.
Which now that I think of it, was a silly and exuberant response to the difficulty in finding it-- I won't have this car for another 20 years and will never need my spare, I don't think. I want the $150 I paid for it, though; parts place had me by the balls but no one else had one in 2 years, so I bought 2. PM me if you need my spare, it's waiting in my attic now. 
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