Had a fuel filter clogged after only a few months of driving. The left tank is new (I replaced it). The right tank is presumably original.
A couple questions:

1) If I just run off the left tank, should that be fine?
2) Are there any substances (POR for fuel tanks?) that could be poured into the right tank in an attempt to save it? If I pull it out I'll probably just replace, but curious if there are any bandaids that might buy me a year or two.

Thank you!

 

The clog is presumably rust.

Since it took months for the filter to clog the tank might not be all that bad.

Year ago I had a pal with rusty tanks. He installed pre-pump filters...which clogged after a couple days. He replaced them, and those clogged after a couple of weeks. The next replacements went a couple months. He went thru this 5-6 times and eventually all the loose rust inside the tanks had worked its way into the filters. No problems for years after that. It cost him $150 or so in filters but it a lot easier than replacing tanks !

Just tossing it out as an idea.

Cheers
DD

 

If it were me, I would pull the bad tank and replace it....be done with it. If that's not in the cards just now, running on just the good tank would be perfectly fine, operationally, you would just have to stop at the gas station twice as often (but a "fill up" would only cost half as much, might be a psychological advantage there). The last thing I would try to do is put "perfume on a pig" with the bad tank, even if there was a product that would maybe coat the inside of the tank. IMHO.

Dave

 

Thank you both! Yes- I lean towards replacing the tank, but probably a spring project if I do. Might play around Doug’s “filter cleaning” idea.

lol- “psychology advantage”

 

I found draining the tanks by the tank drain allowed a heavier flow of gas and allowed a lot of sediment to leave the tank. I did this by removing the large tank plug, not the smaller one. I drained the gas into a large clear plastic container so I could see what came out of the tank. I let the fuel sit for a while so all of the sediment would fall to the bottom and then transferred the fuel into a gas can and refilled the Jag tanks. I did this several times until I was happy that I got as much out as I could and then added filters before the changeover valve.

Lots of fumes, so best done outside.

 

I have actually pulled the bottom tank plug and filter, pull the taillight and sender, made scrubbers with a 5gal paint stick and scotchbrite zip tied on, flashlight, detergent and mineral spirits, and a water hose. Done this several times with my 86 until I got tired of the vicious circle with valves, fpr, pumps, evap canisters etc.
I'd save some valuable time and frustration and put in a new tank. I've successfully sealed many tanks of all kinds, but it's a LOT of work as preparation is paramount, so unless you need to save a rare tank and a replacement is NLA, I would certainly buy new. Also, the new asian replacements are galvanized inside and out and look to be pretty good quality. Dirty fuel will leave you stranded. A single dirty tank will contaminate a new clean tank via return, not to mention valves, pump and fpr. Clean and flush all lines and devices before ever turning on the ignition again.
Btw... you have to pull the tank and get very intimate with it to prep for sealer, you can't just pour something in there to seal it.

 

Aftermarket tanks are available and seem to be of good quality. If you do buy new ones shop around as there is a difference in price and shipping from various online venders and parts suppliers. You hope cleaning and adding filters before the switchover valve helps keep debris from getting into the pump and lines and injectors. I found if you have tanks in a car that have rusted from being off the road or one tank not working and now resurrecting it, the best course of action is new tanks, flush the pump and switchover valve. Flush all the lines, fuel pressure regulator, fuel rail and buy rebuilt or have your injectors rebuilt. If not, you could find yourself chasing small running issues, or fuel pumps not lasting long or a bad injector from being contaminated. Just my opinion.

 

I attempted to do just that. The plug seemed stuck so I put a longer rachet on it and tore the whole bottom of the tank off.
Sigh!