Fuel How To Replace Fuel Filler Tube Gasket *pics*

replacing mustang fuel filler neck gasket

Followed your pics to remove fuel filler gasket, everything worked great! However, it is easier on the '01 Mustang to remove tank straps and lower tank just enough to be able to move tank to left side just a little bit after clearing spare tire well. Then the filler neck comes out easily!

Thanks again!
 
  • Sponsors (?)


Great write up man. I had this very problem. Only thing I thought my gas tank was busted so I took it down. Only to find out that the gasket was split. If I would have surfed, I would have found this write up and saved myself a lot of hassle. Even though I did end up changing the fuel pump since I had the tank down. Good stuff!!!! :nice:
 
I used this to replace mine on my '98. This was very helpful except for a few minor differences. Some of the steps involve the removal of less screws than that of a '97. There is also an extra hose attached to the fillerneck which must be detached to move the filler neck properly. Also, my car is a V6...I'm not sure if this matters (probably not) but if it does, now you know. Only mentioned that because all the parts stores ask for the engine no matter what part you need. Yes, I am a little new to this.

Another thing I did notice was that there was no plastic end-piece on my filler neck. Nothing was broken off to my knowledge. The only plastic piece I saw was the little flap at the end. I don't think it was entirely necessary to drop the tank, although I did remove one bolt on the strap closest to the filler neck.

Another major thing I would like to point out. Many may know this already, but I was unaware. Before ordering replacement parts (i.e. filler neck grommet), check the manufacturer's sticker on the inside of the door area (checking this applies to those who own '98's). If the date on there 06/1998 or later (mine was 08/1998), you will likely have to order a grommet for a 1999 Mustang rather than a 1998. I found this out the hard way. When I received my replacement part that all the parts stores recommended I get, the diameter was 3/5" too large. The replacement grommets for the 94-97's are 3.1" in diameter, while the one I needed was 2.5"....luckily the guy at AutoZone had that trick up his sleeve. Mine was $20.13 (including tax) at AutoZone. (Probably cheaper at Napa as it was when I ordered my last one, which was the wrong one as I mentioned)

Another thing, do not be alarmed if the opening in the new grommet where the fillerneck goes through is larger than the original grommet's hole. Mine was, and the oil we applied to the filler neck to get it in caused it to slide EXTREMELY easy and gave us the feeling that it would not seal properly. However, this was not the case and it has not leaked any fuel. The hole's diameter was still smaller than the diameter of the fillerneck by quite a bit (I didn't measure exact diameter other than putting them up to one another to check); it does seal properly.

Hope this addition helps anyone...sorry I didn't take any pics during the process
 
I also joined the forum just to thank davis3 for this... and to add my own experience to the mix.

First off, 1994 Cobra... not one I've seen mentioned so far.

I did have to pull the bolts on the passenger side of the tank. That dropped the tank far enough that the filler tube could slide in and it freely.

I also had to pull the rear passenger tire... no room to work with it there.

My existing grommet was so badly torn that I actually had to take a very small slotted screwdriver and push it off the end of the tube into the tank. Until I did that it was acting like a doorstop and I could NOT pull the tube out of the tank. I get to fish that thing out of the take tomorrow.

The biggest difference was around the top of the tube, though. The top of the filler tube is located inside a box created out of the body panels... it is not accessible from under the car. I had to loosen the liner inside the trunk (two t nuts on the rear panel, one one the passenger side panel) and pull them away from their mountings to get to the plastic housing around the top of the tube. I did NOT have to remove them entirely.

Once I did that I found the breather and so on, but because of how things are situated I was able to separate the top of the tube from the housing without having to remove the breather.

Oh, and on the 94 Cobra the anti-siphon attachment inside the filler tube is a rubber hose that protrudes from the end of the filler tube by about 2.5".

I took things apart tonight, have the part reserved thru NAPA to pick up tomorrow. Will let you know how reassembly goes after its all back together.

THANK THANK THANK YOU FOR THIS WRITEUP. It was enough to let me get started without worrying about where to start!

I do have picks of the trunk liner and filler housing that I will post when I'm back to my computer.
 
I also joined the forum just to thank davis3 for this... and to add my own experience to the mix.

First off, 1994 Cobra... not one I've seen mentioned so far.

I did have to pull the bolts on the passenger side of the tank. That dropped the tank far enough that the filler tube could slide in and it freely.

I also had to pull the rear passenger tire... no room to work with it there.

My existing grommet was so badly torn that I actually had to take a very small slotted screwdriver and push it off the end of the tube into the tank. Until I did that it was acting like a doorstop and I could NOT pull the tube out of the tank. I get to fish that thing out of the take tomorrow.

The biggest difference was around the top of the tube, though. The top of the filler tube is located inside a box created out of the body panels... it is not accessible from under the car. I had to loosen the liner inside the trunk (two t nuts on the rear panel, one one the passenger side panel) and pull them away from their mountings to get to the plastic housing around the top of the tube. I did NOT have to remove them entirely.

Once I did that I found the breather and so on, but because of how things are situated I was able to separate the top of the tube from the housing without having to remove the breather.

Oh, and on the 94 Cobra the anti-siphon attachment inside the filler tube is a rubber hose that protrudes from the end of the filler tube by about 2.5".

I took things apart tonight, have the part reserved thru NAPA to pick up tomorrow. Will let you know how reassembly goes after its all back together.

THANK THANK THANK YOU FOR THIS WRITEUP. It was enough to let me get started without worrying about where to start!

I do have picks of the trunk liner and filler housing that I will post when I'm back to my computer.

Yes, I did note as well that there are a few differences here and there between the years. I think that pulling back the interior of the trunk was needed for everyone (but never mentioned). Looking forward to seeing how it went
 
Yes, I did note as well that there are a few differences here and there between the years. I think that pulling back the interior of the trunk was needed for everyone (but never mentioned). Looking forward to seeing how it went

You know, I'm really glad you made that post, because I had completely spaced my reply.

OK, so... here's how things went:

As I mentioned in my first post, I had taken everything apart the day before... all I had to do was assembly. Well, not really.

When I got to actually trying to pull the filler tube out of the grommet I realized that there was only about a half-inch of rubber left intact around the filler tube. The rest of the grommet was already torn in half and what was left was acting a lot like a door stop. Every time I'd try to pull the filler tube out of the tank it would slide into the space between the tube and the tank and just jam things up. So I had to take a small screwdriver and deliberately push the inside half of the grommet off into the tank. {{insert sad face here}}

So my first step at reassembly time was actually to fish the back half of the grommet out of the tank. I'm 6'4". I have big hands. Getting it out with my fingers was not going to happen. So I picked up a small shop-mirror-on-a-stick and grabbed a coat hanger from the closet. Bent the coat hanger into a hook and used the mirror to (sort-of-kind-of-but-not-really) see the ring and fish it out. As luck would have it, I was working at the right time of day and the car was parked just so. The sun shone thru the hole where the filler housing had been, thru the body panels and into the gas tank. True story... it was the Harmonious Convergence all over again. All in all pulling that stupid chunk of rubber out of the tank took close to 90 minutes of curse-laden, sweet-talking, sweat-soaked agony.

But when I finally got it out... oh, the joy!

Anyway. From there, reassembly took about 30 minutes. I also went the lithium grease route, slipped the grommet into the tank, the filler tube slid right into the grommet, the tank bolted right back up into place (I did find that a 1/2" ratchet and a couple long extensions made this much easier than using the 3/8" equivalent), the housing slipped right into place at the top of the tube, the screws all went right back in the same holes. Everything was a dreamy dream.

The Entirely-Totally-Off-Topic Whine:

Then I went to return a 12v battery to Sears that hadn't fit in the car when I bought it. I had prearranged the fit test with the manager... and I'd had new keys made for the car earlier that day when I picked up the grommet at the dealership. Get to Sears, locked the car, did my business, got back to the car only to find out that the new keys weren't quite done right and don't work in the doors, just the ignition. Walk home, got a ride back to Sears from the wife. Fortunately Sears is only about a half mile from my house. Get back to the car with the right key, zoom zoom off I go... to the gas station. I start the tank filling and go to washing windows... had all the windows open, so I stuck the key in the ignition to roll them up. And, yes, forgot they were there. And subsequently locked the GOOD keys in the car.

Oh what a lovely day. It cost me $80 for a lockout... twice in one afternoon. Heck, twice in one freaking hour.

So I went for a NICE long joy ride after all that. At one point I punched it hard, I think I hit about 106 mph in a 60 mph zone... and about 90 seconds later a state trooper tails me into an off-ramp from one freeway to another. My heart stopped as my brain started calculating fines and trying to remember if 106 in a 60 was enough for an actual arrest or loss of license. Much to my relief, he never stopped, I moved over for him and he freaking FLEW past me. And I tried to keep the adrenaline from literally oozing out my pores.

BUT - the tank didn't leak and in the end that was all that mattered.

So, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. A few cliff notes don'ts:

  • Let the back half of the grommet fall into the tank.
  • Expect to do this without taking the trunk liner at least loose.
  • Plan on doing this without the distinct possibility of having to at least loosen the tank straps if not remove one or both of them.
  • Lock your keys in your car.
  • Twice.
  • Believe for a second that you'll ever get away with going over 100 mph in a 60 mph zone in front of a trooper again, in your entire life. Just... don't. And don't plan on buying any lottery tickets either. You used up all your luck on that one shot. ;)
Anyway, all in all, it's not that big of a deal but it does take some mechanical skill, the right tools, some time, sweat and a bit of blood. Without this original post, though? I'd probably have taken it to the shop. So a big big thanks to davis03.

Oh, and, as promised, here are the pics of the trunk liner I had to take loose to get the top of the tube apart:

IMG_2390.jpg


IMG_2391.jpg


IMG_2392.jpg


IMG_2393.jpg
 
Well, I've had my share of luck in my day, but nothing like that. Perhaps he misread the radar and didn't really pay attention to who was doing 106 and just thought it was another guy. But ya, luck was following you..or perhaps she was making up for the day's bad luck.

I can't afford to have a copy of my key made. It is complicated, but in essence; without a dealer, you need 2 keys (1 original and a copy that works already) in order to do it yourself. I only have 1 key and I'm fairly certain that it isn't original.
 
@RedWing44, yeah, my 04 Explorer has that same situation. We had 2 keys when we bought it, but we lost one (and had no idea what we had actually lost). So now it's $40 for the key and $140 shop fee to program the new key. After that we'd have 2, so I could program them myself.

With my 'Stang, though... it still has plain, old-fashioned mechanical keys/ignition cylinder. I can entirely replace the cylinder and rekey the ignition for under $100. Age does have it's perks. The new keys cost me something like $7... if only the guy had done them right... check the attached pic. He failed to follow the key all the way back by about 3/8". I was just going to file the corners down until I realized that there's that much missing. At least the dealership isn't all that far away.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_2431 - Version 2.JPG
    IMG_2431 - Version 2.JPG
    448.3 KB · Views: 259
This morning when gassing up for work I saw the puddle dripping underneath from the same spot. Guess I have this project to do this weekend. Would this leak also cause any sort of "missing" while driving? For a while now when under load or even mild acceleration one cylinder starts to miss. I replaced the plugs, but it's still there so was suspecting one of the coils going bad. But it seems to not act up as much when the tank is filled completely. The lower the tank, the more is misses. Is the tank under a vacuum that this leak could cause this? When full, less air, but as it drains more gets sucked in? I remember in the 80s my Dad had a Subaru that was stuttering soon after getting it. Turned out the gas cap didn't seal properly and the Dealership told him it was a vacuumed system and that leak caused the problem. Swapped the cap out and it was solved. Could that be my case here too?
 
I had some issues with rough running (while low in RPM's) and also low/high idling. Since they are still occuring and my gas issue is fixed, I am definitely sure that they are not related. Never had an issue with missing though so a filler-neck grommet is not going to be the cause of your issue.
 
Ok...I'm re-posting this from the other forum...RedWings44...what are your thoughts to my problem??

Couple years ago I tried to siphon the fuel out of my 97 SVT that had been sitting in storage for a while and the damn hose that had a plastic "thingy" on the end of it pull off the hose as I was removing it because I couldn't push the hose down into the tank far enough.

So instead decided to just stabil the fuel during storage which flows into the tank fine - no back up - as well as the can of Seafoam I put in after pulling it out of storage. Drove it a distance to burn-down the 1/4 tank of "old" fuel and when I went to fill the tank it took me over 20 minutes!!!!!!

The gas pump's auto-overfill shutout kept engaging...my hand got tired because I literally had to trickle the gas in...

Here's my question...it there a screen at the end of the fuel filler tube that's 4-bolted to the fuel tank that that "thinky" and possibly an old gas cap part is clogging the fuel filler tube???

Has anyone out there ever replaced their fuel tank that can offer some experienced eyes insight??
 
Are you sure it wasn't just the fuel pump?
Every once in a great while,I'll get a slow fill and its always a pump I've never used before.

When I pulled my filler tube,and others from mustangs I've parted out, there was nothing at the end of them, iirc.