Guys, ive been doing a ton of thinking, And wanted to know how safe is it to have the gas tank behind the seat, ive never liked the ideal... I was thinking of placing a gastank someplace in the frame of the truck... Id like to hear feedback on this...
And how much work would it take to place a tank on the frame and run a line to the pump...
Cody

 

Well, if you get hard enough to break open the gas tank in the cab, you're probably dead anyways. I haven't heard of anything about them being a problem. I plan on moving mine to under the bed but for the room behind the seat.

If I remember right the 67-70 Mustang gas tanks (the 69 and 70 being a little taller and bigger) fit right between the frame rails. Then you would just need to run an extension to the back. Fairly easy but I don't know if anyone sells kits or if it's a custom job.

The fuel gauge is another thing to think of, I'm not sure what the stock one's range runs off of, but worse case you just need to convert it.

 

look in the stickies at top of the page . many articles there about everything from seats to tanks to geewhiz whatchacallits that can be swapped into our trucks . i personally after owning several 70's era trucks with them in the cab would not keep it there .... i have been in a car fire second and third degree burns to the left side of my body top to bottom , and would not want that big of container of liquid pain in the cab with me !!!!! if you have ever had severe burns you will know why i call it that too . i keep looking myself for some one who can tell me where to find a few old ups trucks { the older style } in a boneyard . someone on here got hold of one of the fuel tanks from one . it was 34 gallon , and fit between the rear rails !!! and with the mileage i got 34 gallons would be nice !!

 

I'm definitely moving mine....I don't have a personal history like 55 does but I feel exactly how he does about it. There's a reason gas tankers have to display hazmat placards....the stuff is a wee bit dangerous and I don't want it ridin' in the cab with me.

On a side note, a friend of mine told me the other day that another reason he doesn't like 'em is the sloshing noise back and forth on turns that you can hear occasionally.

 

Not to belittle the opinions of others but I don't see a reason to relocate the tank. Ford had the tanks mount in the cabs of their trucks since the beginning, at least the Model As had them in the cowls. Then they were mounted under the seats and then from '48 until '73, I think, they were mounted behind the seat. I've never heard of any problem with them bursting into flames in an accident. If you look at the location the tank is located in probably the safest place in the vehicle, high and in the middle of the vehicle. You'd really have to get clobbered really hard for anything to get to it.

The major problem I can see is if you have a leaky tank, you could get sick on the fumes and it there is a source of ignition then you have a real problem. Most likely the leak would be from the sending unit gasket. It's all about proper maintenance, if you smell something check it out and repair it.

My F-2's tank is in the stock location and I've never had a problem with it. I'm also not a small guy, Kevin can attest to that. I'm 6'2" and mumble, mumble pounds and can easily get behind the wheel of my truck and drive it comfortably although my steering wheel tends to swell a little more every year.

 

Tank behind the seat is just fine. Remember.... when these truck were on the road (48s thru '78s) Better than 50% of society smoked. I don't recall hearing anyone blowing up from smoking in once of these trucks. As long as the tankis in good shape (no visable wetness or smell) and all your connections and sender gasket are good you'll be just fine. I've had several 67-72 trucks with in-cab tanks and haven't witnessed any problems. My '69 I've had driving it on and off for almost 15 years and never had an issue with it.

About the only reason I'd ever more an in-cab tank is just to gain more space in the cab. The sloshing noise (only really noticably heard at 1/2 tank or less) is kinda funny as when you start hearing it, it reminds you to keep an eye on that fuel gauge!

 

I drove my '56 as a daily driver for more than 10 years and I was a smoker. Never had any probs and never smelled a whiff of gas.

The sloshing? Heh! Some un-named brat put a marble in the gas tank and it's never been worth the trouble to pull the tank and shake the blasted marble out. In fact, for a number of years, I never bothered to fix the sending unit on the gas gauge so the BONK-BONK-BONK-CLONG! when I turned a corner was a sure-fire way to tell how much fuel was in there.

Got to love it!

 

The tank in the cab is no more dangerous than under the cab if the tank is in good shape, but I can understand where 55 is coming from, but IMHO under the bed is safer (assuming a good solid rear bumper) but removes the possibility of a spare under there. The stock location of the tank with a panel is a rectangular tank centered inside the left frame rail. AFAIK no one makes a repro panel tank but if you can find one it would be a possibility. Someone once told me about a temporary rectangular tank used for transporting new stripped chassis to custom body manufacturers such as RV builders that are often removed and discarded during the conversion that worked well for mounting like the panel tank. If someone lives near a custom truck body manufacturer and could check it out I would mind getting one a little larger than my stock tank that fits the same area.

 

C5ZZ-9002-D .. 16 Gallon Fuel Tank / 1965/68 Mustang & 1967/68 Cougar.

C9ZZ-9002-A .. 20 Gallon Fuel Tank / 1969 Mustang/Cougar.

DOZZ-9002-A .. 22 Gallon Fuel Tank-Use w/o Evaporative Emisssion (Evap/Em) / 1970 Mustang/Cougar.

DOZZ-9002-B .. 20 Gallon Fuel Tank-Use with Evap/Em / 1970 Mustang/Cougar.

D1ZZ-9002-A .. 19.5 Gallon Fuel Tank / 1971/73 Mustang/Cougar.

The Evap/Em tank has a hole at the top of it for a fuel vapor valve. Evap/Em introduced in 1970, initially mandatory in sold new in CA 1970/72 Passenger Cars, E/F100's and Bronco's.

It could have been found in other state vehicles in 1970/72, but I'm unaware because I'm from LA LA Land. By the late 1970's, all state vehicles had Evap/Em.

 

I might be hallucinating, but I think some of the bigger F-250's, etc. had the tanks behind the seat for a little while longer. My dad had a 77 F-250, and I distinctly remember it had a tank behind the seat because I drove him nuts asking questions about it.

 

I have many thousands of miles in vehicles with the in cab tank. That said, I have the tank out of my '56 F-350 I have it clean and dried out but will not fill it upon re-installation. I have the saddle tank and plan to use it only. I will maintain the connectivity of the switch valve and could always put the in cab tank back into service.
Doc, you're correct.

 

Hey Cody,
Lot's of different opinions out there on this one. We moved our's out of the cab & put in a 22 gallon 1970 Mustang tank ($100 delivered) under the bed in back.

Pros:
o No More Smelly Gasoline in the cab. Even with a new sending unit
gasket we couldn't get it sealed perfectly - 1 drop of gasoline will stink
up your whole cab especially when you fill your tank & the air has to go
somewhere.
o You won't burn to death in your cab. Who knows what the percentage
chances are but if it's out of your cab under your bed protected a bit
by metal & your frame your chances have to be better.
o It gives you a little room in the cab but honestly not as much as you
would think.
o It's creepy to sit right next to sloshing gasoline - You can hear it & I
can tell you it's a new experience for girls & they don't like it.
o The 1970 Mustang tank is 22 gallons vs the stock tank's 16? gallon -
that's about 40% more range on a tank of gas.
Cons:
o You can't run Dual Exhaust. I've seen some members on here do it but
we couldn't find any muffler place that would run it out the back so we
have side exhaust which stinks up your garage more when working on
your truck & it's a bit louder.
o You will have to mount your spare tire in your bed or go without. We
carry a flat fixing kit & a little compressor that runs off the lighter.
o The mustang tank's filler comes off the top of the tank in your bed.
It's not an inconvenience 99% of the time - doesn't matter.

Summary:
If the stock tank is already in your cab & it doesn't smell or leak I'd leave it there. If it's causing problems - get the bigger tank & put it out back where you never have to smell it again.

Ben in Austin

 

I kept the tank in the cab on my 48 F-3 and never regretted it. I had no problem with fumes or sloshing noises. If it ain't broke...don't fix it! Too me, it's a lot more trouble to relocate it than leave it where it is...

 

Do you recall the exploding Pinto fuel tank FIASCO?

I do and I think peeps are nuts to install a Mustang fuel tank underneath, just behind the rear axle, you wanna know why?

The Pinto fuel tank was made from upper and lower sections that were spot welded together, forming a 3/4" seam that protruded from the tank.

When these cars were rear ended, the tank was pushed forward, the seam hit the center section of the rear axle, split open, fuel poured out and EXPLODED. 100's of peeps were trapped inside, burned to death.

1965/73 Mustang tanks are MADE THE VERY SAME WAY .. so the same thing could occur.

How many in-cab fuel tanks exploded? I don't know of any. They are mounted high up in the cab, surrounded by sheet metal.

Only an AC Mack Bulldog (or similar) could compromise an in-cab tank if it T-boned the truck.

 

This same topic came up at our house yesterday. There is no smell of gas, no visible leaks either in the F6. I drove my 1972 F250 Rocky Mountain Sportsman Special for 6 years (1980-86) and the fuel tank was behind the seat and it had an auxillary in back, never a problem. I'll go with others, it would take a heck of an accident to get to the tank where it's located. Plus I'm thinking of dual exhaust.