Fuel tank removal and installation

The content of any article might be expanded / improved in the future - revisit it sometimes.
Seen a mistake? Know something that isn't written? Edit and change this article yourself!
Some images in the article (if present) can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Introduction

The purpose of this guide is explain the procedure to remove the fuel tank from a Jimny.

Note: Someone should add some neat pictures.

Precautions

Petrol (gasoline) is a highly flammable liquid. Even its vapors are still highly flammable and volatile. Therefore, it is dangerous to work around an empty petrol fuel tank, even if it had been flushed with water several times in the meantime.

You should have protective equipment on you (gloves and glasses as the minimum) and a big fire extinguisher ready nearby. You should also avoid drilling and grinding anywhere near an open petrol fuel tank, and especially not directly on it. If you need to drill or grind a petrol tank itself, special precautionary procedures are required which are not explained here. Smoking is also particularly bad for your health.

Diesel fuel is not nearly as flammable as petrol, so it is relatively safe to work around or even on (empty) diesel fuel tanks.

Keep the vehicle battery disconnected whenever you are working something with the fuel tank.

Removal procedure

Preparations

1. It is best and easiest to remove the fuel tank when it is nearly (but not completely) empty.
   • However, it is not possible to "siphon" the fuel out of the tank through the fuel filler hose, as there is a fuel anti-theft protection mechanism at the hose connection into the tank.
   • Therefore, the only way to empty the tank in place is to leave the engine running until it consumes almost all the fuel .
     • A complicated alternative is to lower the tank from the vehicle slightly, and then remove the top plate where the pump and filter arrangement is and extract fuel through that opening in the tank.
       • However, since the tank has to be significantly lowered to gain access to its top side, this puts the meaningfulness of this method into question.
2. Disconnect the vehicle battery and short both leads to the body to earth everything.
3. Have a foam or CO2 fire extinguisher nearby.
4. Become a non-smoker, at least temporarily.
5. At least a few hours before embarking on this job, spray all the bolts to be removed with WD-40 or similar thread penetrating lubricant for easier removal and reduced risk of shearing a bolt.
   • Those bolts are: On the rear propeller shaft, on fuel tank's fuel filling hose connection to vehicle's body, and the bolts holding the fuel tank and its guard to the vehicle chassis.

Removal steps

1. Remove the rear propeller shaft (between the transfer case and the rear differential).
   • Mark the exact mounting position of the shaft in correlation to the rear differential and to the transfer case, as you will need to put it back exactly as it was mounted.
     • This because propeller shafts are balanced for certain mounting positions in the factory.
   • Read the wiki article "Universal joint replacement" for more info on removing and installing propeller shafts.
2. Remove the small inner plastic wheel arch liner from the rear left wheel arch, which sits towards the fuel filler flap.
   • It is held by a few plastic clips, which can slowly be prised off with a flat screwdriver.
3. Release the clips on the two pipes which connect the fuel tank with the fuel filler cap and free the pipes from the vehicle body.
4. At this point you can either disconnect both hoses from the fuel tank, or unbolt the bolts which attach the hoses to the vehicle body inside the fuel filler flap housing.
   • It has been reported that (predominantly in older Jimnys) those bolts can become stuck and it is easy to snap the fuel filler hose head, creating a lot of unplanned hassle.
     • Therefore, it might be a safer option to remove the hoses from the tank and let the hoses hang from the vehicle body.
5. If you disconnect the hoses from the fuel tank, then stuff the openings in the fuel tank with some rags.
6. Undo all the bolts which hold the tank to the chassis, while simultaneously supporting the tank with something.
   • The tank is not heavy when empty, but if full is at least 45 kg.
   • A possible holder for the tank might be three or (better) four vehicle jacks topped of with a strong and wide wooden board.
     • Take extra steps to prevent the board or any of the bottle jacks from toppling over!
7. Slowly lower the tank enough to reach the small bolts on the top.
   • Blow over the tank with an airline to clear loose crap and debris.
8. Remove the small bolts.
9. The fuel pump/filter arrangement will remove all as one and is about 30cm long (the depth of the tank).
   • Pipes do not need to be disconnected as there is enough flex, but the wiring connector may need to be unplugged.
10. It is highly advisable to protect the filter setup with some clean plastic clingfilm or bags, and also to protect the hole at the top of the tank from dirt ingress.
11. Tank is now free to be taken out.

Recommended additional works

Underbody rust protection

While the fuel tank is removed from the vehicle, it is highly recommended to clean the exposed underbody of the vehicle which the fuel tank used to obstruct the access to, and then to properly rust proof it. Jimnys 3 are notorious for developing severe corrosion issues in the rear floor section and especially in the boot floor. This is a unique opportunity to remedy or to prevent that.

Read the wiki article "Rust protection" for more info.

Petrol fuel filter replacement

For petrol Jimnys 3 (and possibly Jimnys 4), also don't forget to check the condition of the petrol fuel filter (which is part of the fuel pump assembly which you had taken out from the tank). The factory specified replacement interval for that filter in Jimnys 3 is somewhere in the range of 200 000 km. The only opportunity to replace it is when the fuel tank is removed from the vehicle, so you might as well use this opportunity to do so even if the specified interval has not yet been achieved.

Read the wiki article "Regular maintenance intervals and consumables" for more info on part numbers and replacement intervals.

Installation of a heavy duty fuel tank protector

This is an ideal opportunity to install a heavy duty fuel tank protector (for harsh off road use) instead of the standard factory fuel tank protector.

LPG fuel tank installation

You might consider installing a special mini petrol fuel tank + an cylindrical LPG tank in the place of the original fuel tank.

This is explained in full detail in the wiki article "LPG fuel supply system".

Installation procedure

Refitting of the fuel tank is essentially the reverse procedure of the removal, except making even more sure everything is super clean.

It might be a good idea to grease all the bolts with copper grease before reinstalling them back in place, as this will reduce the risk of them seizing in the future.

If the bolts which connect the fuel filler hose to the vehicle body have sheared off during removal, life might still be worth living:

1. Just put your left hand up into the wheel arch to push it into place.
2. Then stick a rag into the filler hole.
3. Drill new holes next to the old holes through the body and the plate around the filler hose.
   • Don't drill too fast. The metal in that place is quite thin anyway, and if drilling slowly, no heat and no sparks should be generated.
4. Finally, just use automotive self tapping screws to hold the filler neck connected in place to vehicle's body next to the old bolts.

Problems after installation

The only problem which you might encounter after the completion of the installation is that the engine will not start. This usually means that the air is trapped somewhere in the fuel lines and needs to be purged out.

Someone needs to write some guidelines how to purge trapped air from fuel lines.

---

Page last edited on 8/07/2019 by user Bosanek