I see 2 hard lines that come off the fill cap that attach to hoses right at the frame. I think that is what you are calling a fill tube. The big one has lost its hose clamp already. The small one has the clamp. I think I can loosen it. Do I need to pry those loose before I start to lower the tank? Those are the only 2 lines that look like they HAVE TO BE taken apart before I drop the tank as they are looped over the frame - unless there is some coiled up hose that I cannot see.

It looks like others have spun the flange loose with a hammer and chisel/punch. I can get a helper to come at it from 2 sides.

My biggest hassle is all the dirt, grit, rocks blasted up into the underside. I chipped away at it for an hour the other night. I just hate working in that environment. Had to do it with brake pads, caliper replacements, bearing replacements, etc. Gets old ;-)

Any thoughts on what pump to buy? MC is $300, Bosch $150. I'm good with $300 if I can expect 2x the life. I'm at 213K miles now. If I get that from a new MC pump, I'd be a happy camper.

 

The two hard lines are the fuel lines to and from the fuel pressure regulator. The fill tube is the 2" tube that goes to the rear quarter panel and attaches to the fill spout in the body.

 

By hard I meant the fill line from the gas cap over to the frame. Then a hose is clamped to it. One is about 2", the other 3/4" or so.

Suggestions on which brand pump to buy?

 

Never used a Bosch, last time I had to replace a pump I got a MC one for my F250. That was about 12 years ago now.

Something I found handy when I dropped both tanks on the F250 solo was using my motorcycle jack on the tanks. Came in handy on my in laws Silverado trans too.


https://www.harborfreight.com/1500-l...ift-60536.html

A few options, but those designs are the same style as mine, and it has come in handy on several occasions.

 

Also to test the pump you can check for a plug on the undercarriage (no idea if there is one have not had to mess with that system on the Excursions yet), or pull the relay and use a jumper wire to power it at that spot.

My F250 has a plug in the undercarriage wiring.

 

I replaced the fuel pump assembly with Oreilly Precision brand. Started right up. Also replaced fuel filter even though it was a year old.

I'm slow. It took me probably 8 hours. Half of that was disconnecting and reconnecting the filler hoses to the metal filler tubes. I used a low profile floor jack to keep the tank in-place and to raise and lower it.

The 1/2" air impact popped the 4 bolts right loose. I cleaned up the threads, lubed them, and used them to experiment with dropping the tank before I was sure about letting it all the way down.

The 1.5" filler hose is about 10" long, and the 3/4" hose is longer. Those connect right at the outside of the frame to the metal filler tubes. I tried for hours to get those loose. I ended up disconnecting the filler tube from the body, and then while lowering the tank twisting that 180 degrees and up through the frame where I could finally grab onto it and yank off the hoses. The hose is a very rubbery material and really grabs onto the metal. The nipple on the metal is large enough that the hose does not want to come off. The hose spins around easily, but won't slip over the nipple. All that and lots of time clearing packed in dirt and gravel, being careful not to contaminate hoses or the tank, accounted for 80% of the time. As I got hoses off, I plugged openings with a wad of paper towels. It took awhile to pound off the lock ring. Two of us with hammer and screwdriver backing the ring off a couple of turns at least. I sprayed it with silicone to reassemble, but even then we drove it back tight with hammer and screwdriver.

The various lines are long enough that I could lower it, but not drop the tank to the ground. I had the Excursion back axle on jack stands with the tires about 2" off the ground, and the driver's side tire off.

The empty tank was pretty easy to lift and maneuver. We had siphoned it almost empty. I spent some time figuring out the center of gravity before I finally lowered it with my low profile jack. The jack has a 4" dia. lift point and the tank balanced fairly well. I was able to drop it alone. When I put it back, I had help to balance it on the jack, lift a bit, attach 2 fuel lines, wiring, and the evap hose.

Putting the filler hoses back on was easier than taking them off, but it still required maneuvering in tight spaces. I did not want to damage the hose nor any fittings, but in hindsight it would be easier to cut the hose off and replace them. Oreilly did not stock that hose and I have to assume it's a special material. At 214K miles I wish I had replaced those hoses.

In my opinion the original pump part looked higher quality. Time will tell.

 

When I did mine I wound up replacing the filler hoses. Tore the larger one getting the tank out so I had no choice. O'Reilly has a semi-flexible hose that worked fine.