So Fix it

Removing the fuel tank from your Ford Bronco may be necessary if the tank is leaking or has sustained some other form of damage. The tank on the Bronco sits between the frame rails all the way to the rear of the truck. It is held in position with a set of steel straps on top and a full skid plate underneath. The upper straps do not need to come off as lowering the tank out through the bottom of the truck is the simplest way to remove it.

Instructions

1

Raise the rear of your Ford Bronco with a jack and support it with a set of jack stands. Slide under the truck and locate the fuel lines on the fittings at the front of the fuel tank. Remove the hose clamps from the lines with a flat screwdriver and remove the lines from the tank fittings.

2

Position the jack under the center of the fuel tank skid plate and place a wide piece of wood between it and the tank skid. Raise the jack just enough to support the tank then remove the retaining bolts around the perimeter of the tank skid with a socket and ratchet.

3

Lower the jack slowly, until the filler neck hose from the body to the tank is accessible. Remove the hose clamp from the filler hose and the vent hose next to it with a flat screwdriver. Slide the hoses off the tank.

4

Slowly lower the jack, lowering the fuel tank and skid plate out of the frame. Once it is low enough, slide the jack back, bring the fuel tank and skid plate with it.

5

Remove the tank from the jack and set it somewhere safe. Outside or in a well ventilated area if perred as the tank will still have some fuel vapors in it even if completely empty.

Finding your locked gas cap frozen can be more than an inconvenience, especially if youre nearly out of fuel and need to fill the tank. Although you can use hot water to unfreeze a gas cap lock, this could result in water leaking into the gas tank. If youre at the gas station, you may not have access to conventional methods such as de-icing sprays or hairdryers, but there are methods to unlock the cap without them. If you live in a cold weather climate or the lock freezes frequently, keep remedies for thawing it with you in the vehicle.

Instructions

1

Heat the key on the engine while the car is running and try inserting it in the lock. If the key is warm enough, it will thaw the lock. You may have to repeat this several times. Its a handy method if you dont have any other method of thawing the cap available in the car. The key can also be heated with a match or cigarette lighter.

2

Wet a cloth with warm or hot water and lay it over the lock. Avoid pouring hot water on the lock, as this may compound the problem if the water reezes or gets into the gas tank.

3




Spray de-icer on the lock and the key. Use it sparingly on the lock. Spray the lock caully to avoid getting the de-icer into the gas tank.

4

Direct hot air from a hand-held hairdryer at the lock if youre at home, in a garage or close to an outlet that will allow you to use one.

5

Use a cardboard cylinder from a paper towel or toilet paper roll. Place one end over the lock and breathe through the other. Your warm breath may help thaw the lock. This may take some time.

Its a commonly heard anecdote that an easy way to exact expensive vengeance on an enemy is to put sugar in the gas tank of his car. Its assumed the sugar will liquefy in the gasoline, turning it into a gummy, unburnable mess that ultimately destroys the cars fuel system and engine. It turns out that this is an urban myth. Putting sugar in the gas tank may slightly affect the vehicles running, but it is unlikely to do lasting or major damage.

Sugars Reaction With Gasoline

In reality, sugar does not dissolve in gasoline the way it does in water. When poured into the fuel tank, sugar will sink to the bottom and remain solid. If it is picked up by the fuel pump, it is caught by the cars fuel filter, which is designed to keep particulates from reaching the fuel injectors or carburetor where they can do damage.

Damage From Sugared Gasoline

Usually, the worst thing a handful of sugar in a gas tank will do is clog the fuel filter -- a time-consuming repair on some vehicles, but hardly an expensive or incapacitating one. If enough sugar is poured in, the tank itself may need to be removed and cleaned by a mechanic. The worst effect of a sugared gas tank it that it can cause the car to stall and be difficult to restart until the sugar is cleaned out.

Mythbusters

The television show "Mythbusters" put this theory to the test in 2004 by pouring sugar into a cars fuel tank and letting it run. The shows testers reported that the car was not damaged, and in fact ran even better after the tank was sugared! This does not mean that sugar can be considered a performance additive, of course.

Other Fuel Tank Pollutants

Other solid contaminants, like sand, react similarly in gasoline. Sand is less likely to get into the fuel filter because it is heavier than sugar and sinks to the bottom of the tank. A gas tank with sand in it will need to be removed and cleaned, but further damage is unlikely.

Any time a high-pressure fuel system is opened for service, air is introduced into the fuel hose. Bleeding, which requires running fluid through the hose, will eliminate air from the system and help reduce vehicle stalling and intermittent operation problems. The fuel system must be bled to prevent these hazardous operating conditions.

Fuel Filter Work

The fuel hose must be bled when the fuel filter is replaced. Typically, fuel filters are ahead, behind or both ahead and behind the fuel pump. Some fuel filters are made of clear plastic or glass to make it possible to visibly locate the presence of air.

Fuel Pump Work

Modern fuel-injection systems may have two or more fuel pumps. Each of these is designed to work at high pressure. Any time a fuel pump is replaced, it needs to run for a few moments to pull enough fuel through to draw air bubbles out of the fuel line.

Fuel Hose Work

Deteriorated or damaged fuel hoses or lines may themselves draw in under the vacuum of a fuel pump. When a fuel hose or line is replaced, the fuel system should be bled under pressure to draw out any air.