fuel tanks

[rodymartin]

I have 2 fuel tanks in my 85. I need to know what they can hold please. The fuel gauge seems to be not working right.

 

[icanfixall]

19 in front and 17 in the back tank.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

They differ from truck to truck.

Some have two metal tanks, some two plastic tanks, some a metal front and plastic rear, and some a plastic front and metal rear.

I have seen them all different ways.


My 85 F-350 came factory-original with a metal front and plastic rear.

When pulled down below the pick-up in the tank, I can squeeze about twenty-gallons in either one.

 

[rodymartin]

A couple more questions.

Do the gauges in 85 have problem? It seems to go down to half then to 0 in a few miles. Is this common?

Other question does anyone make a oversized tank for these trucks?

 

[funnyman06]

Mine has a poly midship and a steel rear tank, if i remeber correctly ive put over 17 into both. I just figured it was 2 19 gallon tanks.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Do the gauges in 85 have problem? It seems to go down to half then to 0 in a few miles. Is this common?

Yes, sadly to say, all too common.

The gauge-senders develop dead spots and whenever the fuel-level reaches one of the dead spots, the needle goes to nothing; once below or above the dead spot, the needle reads again.

The sender in my front-(metal)-tank gave me fits for years, until I found FELLRO's tech write-up on how to retrofit a $16 J.C.Whitney sender onto the Ford tank pick-up assembly; since then, the gauge has worked flawlessly, much better than the Ford junk ever did.

I believe the sender in my rear-(plastic)-tank must be of a better design, as it has always worked fine.


Do a search and you will find a link to FELLRO's fine write-up on just how to accomplish the fix.

 

[Full Monte]

A couple more questions.

Do the gauges in 85 have problem? It seems to go down to half then to 0 in a few miles. Is this common?

Other question does anyone make a oversized tank for these trucks?

Sometimes the hollow brass float fills up with fuel and becomes a sinker instead of a floater. I recently replaced my float for $8 at the local auto parts store.
Works fine now.

I put a 45 gal rear tank on my '85. Works great. The biggest problem is figuring out where to put the spare tire (with a camper on the truck).

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

I put a 45 gal rear tank on my '85.

How close to the ground is that tank ??

The twenty on the rear of mine is about as low as the differential.

 

[Full Monte]

It's about as low to the ground as the spare tire used to be when I had the stock tank and tire below it.