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Gas tank repair question

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NOSLO2PT0

20+ Year Contributor
2,686
244
Aug 31, 2002
Joliet, Illinois
Not too long ago, I attempted to get my project car running. I bought the car in July 2019. Test drove fine then, but had a trans issue, so the car sat until April 2020. Got the trans fixed (or so I thought) and took it for a quick drive. Something in the drivetrain didn’t sound right so the car was parked once again.

Forward to Jan 2021. I had the trans rebuilt, new clutch/flywheel, new master/slave cylinders. Removed abs. Went and fired the car up and it ran for about 30 seconds before I shut it off. Heard a noise coming from the fuel filter area. I jumped the fuel pump and isolated the noise to be coming directly from the fuel filter. Pulled the filter to find an internal piece of the filter loose and rattling inside. As I shook the filter, a lot of sediment came out. Figured now was a good time to replace that filter.

Concerned about the sediment, I decided to pull the fuel pump to see its condition and what condition it was in. To my horror, the gas in the tank was well on its way to turning to varnish. Very very dark colored. Also, lots of large, scaly rust inside the tank. I mean there was a LOT. I drained the tank of the fuel and immediately started calling around for places that could possibly clean it.

I took the tank to one shop that attempted to clean it by dipping the tank in an acid solution. However, their dipping tank wasn’t large enough so I ended up taking the tank to a restoration specialist shop that has the ability to acid dip entire car bodies/frames. The tank is now clean.

Here is my question. The original shop drilled a small hole in the bottom of the tank to allow the acid solution to drain. The tank is going back to them to fill this hole. Part of their cleaning process is to line the inside of the tank with some sort of epoxy liner. They say they do it on all their gas tanks they repair, everything from boats and motorcycles, to cars and whatever else has a Gas tank. But, they can’t guarantee the liner will hold up to E85 over long term use/exposure. Do I have them line the inside of the tank with this or leave it bare? I’m afraid the the inside of the tank will rust easily, especially after the acid dipping, and with E85’s ability to absorb moisture.

Can anyone give me some insight on what to do here? I need to pick the tank up soon, so I have to make a decision on whether to get the liner or not.
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Tough call. I used a sealer from Eastwood, but I’m not going to run E85. What about galvanizing the interior? Though maybe the moisture that ethanol can harbor would cause the zinc to oxidize and end up in the fuel. Not sure what that would do in the combustion chambers and exhaust (turbo, cat.). I guess if it were me, I go with the sealant and inspect it after a few years. If you don’t line it, you WILL have rust again, especially with E85.
 
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