TC fuel tank strap change questions, discussion (They are the same on GM & CV)

[jaywish]

The right side strap on my fuel tank is broke, rusted & busted.

IDK was thinking of OEM vs Aftermarket straps.
Also there is a nutted stud on the forward side of the tank that releases the strap. The stud is held by a clip/locknut part. W710823-S441

The ford straps about $58, Spectra $25, Dorman $30 & Garage Pro $40. Any experience here?

Also the clip/locknuts are $26 + shipping from Tasca. The question here is do these last or do I need to spend the $35 or more for these before I take the thing apart?

Jay

[massacre]

You might not know what you are in for until you get it apart? How did the strap break?

[VicCrownVic]

That clip/locknut part will likely work for Grand1's '79 MGM. He put new tank straps on last year (don't recall if the tank was also replaced.)

One clip we reused but the other one somehow got lost. We fished around in the support where it resides but couldn't seem to find where it went. Which reminds me I think we have some temporary "fix" on that one that works but should probably be corrected with W710823-S441.

Agreed that you don't really know for sure if you need those clips until you get it apart and assess the old ones. I would gamble on the old ones being reusable, but I also often recommend people don't do what I do.

Now that I think if it, dad re-hung my fuel tank when I first got The Ice Car and he reused those clips (ran out of time that I had taken as vacation to get the car on the road.)

To be fair, Grand1's '79 sat for many years in a barn and The Ice Car started life in Florida, so YMMV on those clips. They are quite a way up there so maybe don't get punished too bad by salt.

[jaywish]

The strap is very rusted. It just let go in the middle. There is no apparent rock or other impact damage. I imagine some spirited driving gave it the final straw. I have no idea how long it was like that before I noticed it. The tank seems firmly in place with the left strap but I guess I am getting conservative in my old age so want to fix it anyway. I guess I could use the good duck tape instead.

[VicCrownVic]

LMR has tank strap J-nuts that look like the same thing only missing the little side arms. https://lmr.com/item/LRS-802060K/mus...-j-nut-50resto
The ones on LMR are listed as a pack of 2 while every W710823-S441 seems to be listed as the price of 1 (unless quantity 1 means 1 pack.)

[jaywish]

I believe from ford it is per piece but likely it would not kill me to check. Only seeing that line drawing that ford offers I can't tell if it not actually a"J"nut but uses those apparent tabs and body slots as a lock instead of a "J"

[jaywish]

I Bought the Ford straps. I have no idea if they are better in any way. They were made in Canada so perhaps they were made by Spectra?

I also gave them a light scuff, primed them with rust-oleum primer, I guess zinc based as it had that pukeish green color. Then finished in a coat of Rust-Oleum high gloss enamel. Just managed to squeeze out the dregs of a can so the finish is pretty rough but really does not matter here. Going to post pics so if anyone buys a set of Specta they can see if the details are the same.

I have started that and the other maintenance needs on the TC by putting it in the garage and turning off the air suspension switch. So far so good. Will see how slow/fast I get to the stuff. Front caliper, pads & hoses. The E-Brake cable has not functioned since I added the posi carrier as I did not hook it to the mechanism before putting the axle back in. I tried a couple of times but just could not get it to latch on properly. So I am going to pull the axle, change the axle seal, possibly 2 seals if I need to change the pads I will pull the other axle as well. Need to replace a gasket between the cats and the muffler pipe on the right side, the small leak has been bothering me for a year. Just loud enough to ruin the quiet V8 sound of the Town Car dual exhaust. Will wash the rims in & out plus do all the little things, fluids, air, lube, maybe change the wipers.

[jaywish]

Did a little. Car up, Tank strap nuts hit with FreeAll a few times. Rear wheels, rear calipers and ABS sensors off. One rotor off and dang the shoes are shot. Guess I will replace the pads as well though they were only about 50% used after 24K miles. I don't know why the shoes are pretty worn but last time I looked at them it was 11 yrs ago so maybe I was lazy.

Props to Vinny Bendix for his brake shoe designs but his company also pioneered disk brakes in America as well. I don't like brake shoes.

[jaywish]

Got a little done tonight. Other rotor came of nbd.

1st a pic of busted rusted strap in situ. How about that weird box that holds the looped end of the strap. The strap and a pin that goes through the loop is free floating in the box and gets pulled tight when you bolt in the other end of the strap. To get the pin & thus the strap out you push the strap to align the pin with the hole. see next photo.

[jaywish]

I soaked the nut which holds the other end of the strap several times over a day to loosen it. There is a J clip which has a 10.5mm stud threaded into it and it could very well be the same as the mustang ones VicCrrownvic mentioned at LMR. Anyway the un-soaked end of he stud stud spun out with the nut still in place leaving the J clip in place. Could not start the stud to install the strap due to too much strap tension so I needed to use the hot wrench to get the nut off the stud. I believe I can start the stud in the clip then start to thread the nut. Will find out next time.

[jaywish]

Well the first strap went in fine and the second came out the same way as the first. It was just about ready to let go in the same spot. I needed to heat the nut to get it off the stud. That one spun in the vise damaging the threads. I have thread reforming dies and taps so I could properly clean and repair the threads in both studs and clean the nut. On the nut it would have been fine to use a regular tap. I used blue thread locker on the stud.

I likely would have bought new studs and nuts if I had known in advance. The J-nuts were fine.
tank strap 9W7Z-9092A
Stud N808978-S439
Nut N800627-S444. Which is called a Windshield Wiper nut.
You could probably find aftermarket hardware
stud thread length is 48mm and loa is 52.5mm 10X1.5
The nut is a captive rotating shoulder nut

[jaywish]

Drained the gear oil and that is as far as I got. Next pull the axles, clean the dif cover and pumpkin etc.
Found this new thing though. Looks like it might be convenient.

[Arquemann]

Those capri-sun bottles are handy, used them on the Caprice. Though on my MGM there was enough space for a regular bottle even without drooping the axle.

[friskyfrankie]

Love that container of gear oil. wonder how long that idea has been around?

[kishy]

Could not start the stud to install the strap due to too much strap tension]

Yeah, been there. It's like the tanks get bigger when you mess with them.

I've done stupid things like put a socket with extensions on the stud+nut assembly, then use a floor jack to try to force it up high enough. But you can't really turn it into the threads like that. A carefully placed floor jack pushing on the strap at the bottom of the tank can get you close, but the strap must be pulled tight forwards first, and this gets to be a handful when the tank keeps wanting to rest on your chest.

The answer does seem to be having the nut and stud separate. Thread the stud in a few threads. Get the strap onto the stud. Thread the nut on, then crank it down.

FYI, a stud remover tool (or very careful application of very good locking pliers) can recover the hardware for future use. I put about a dollar's worth of anti-seize on these fasteners when they go back in.