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Thu Jun 26, 2025 4:38 am

When I receive a new Fuel Tank, i clean and rough up the paint with Scotch-Brite and sandpaper. Then, after further prepping, I give it a couple of coats of paint.

Below are pics of the tank I installed about 11 years go. I had it out last summer and gave it another coat of paint after prepping. It was the first tank that I installed without prepping before painting, You can see the "before" photo that it held up pretty good. Also, a peek inside never showed any rust. The photos were taken outside so you are seeing some shading/lighting affects.

Mon Jul 07, 2025 9:23 pm

Thanks for sharing that. What are you painting it with, spray cans or a better setup?

Where did you buy that tank / who made it?

Tue Jul 08, 2025 6:20 am

MFerioli wrote: Thanks for sharing that. What are you painting it with, spray cans or a better setup?

Where did you buy that tank / who made it?

I used paint from Tractor Supply. It was something over $7 or $8 per can.

The tank come from eBay ...... likely China made.

Tue Jul 08, 2025 7:20 am

MFerioli wrote: Thanks for that info about getting a tank on amazon. It's pretty hard to discern if a more expensive tank is actually better, or if it's just being marked up. I believe some tanks are built with better materials or thicker materials, have better coatings, and less install issues. But figuring out if you are actually getting one of those tanks seems hard to tell by looking at price alone. I'm not too worried about getting a really bad or unusable tank, I'm more concerned about overpaying for no good reason.

i had to take a break from all this van stuff, but hopefully I'll pick a tank soon. In the meantime, I'm installing the SS coolant pipes that I bought on sale a while back. Plus some other coolant bits while the system is empty.

I am pretty sure you can get a really bad or unusable tank for very little money. And since you are not concerned as such about really bad or unusable tanks, just go for the lowest price. :wink:

Tue Jul 08, 2025 7:22 am

AndyBees wrote: When I receive a new Fuel Tank, i clean and rough up the paint with Scotch-Brite and sandpaper. Then, after further prepping, I give it a couple of coats of paint.

Below are pics of the tank I installed about 11 years go. I had it out last summer and gave it another coat of paint after prepping. It was the first tank that I installed without prepping before painting, You can see the "before" photo that it held up pretty good. Also, a peek inside never showed any rust. The photos were taken outside so you are seeing some shading/lighting affects.

The lack of rust showing where the paint is removed indicates that the steel tanks have a corrosion protective layer, like galvinizing. Id not sand on that, as sanding can remove it.

Tue Jul 08, 2025 8:01 am

zerotofifty wrote: ...just go for the lowest price. :wink:

That's what I did the last time I got a Vanagon tank, and it has worked perfectly for the last 12 years or so.

Tue Jul 08, 2025 9:29 am

ha! I guess I worded that poorly.

waldo's experience is what I was thinking about. Seems like even the cheap tanks are fine or are basically the same as the pricey tanks in terms of performance and longevity. I feel like it's very difficult to know if the tank you are getting is truly better or just marked up.

Tue Jul 08, 2025 10:27 am

zerotofifty wrote: The lack of rust showing where the paint is removed indicates that the steel tanks have a corrosion protective layer, like galvinizing. Id not sand on that, as sanding can remove it.

Although I said in the other post that I used sandpaper, I never sanded deeply or to make it slick. If I remember correctly, I also used soap, water and Scotch-brite to remove anything oily that might be on it. That first paint job was straight out of the box and is likely why the paint came off here and there.

But, I do agree, it appeared to have some sort of coating.

I've told the story a few times and I'll make it short here. I wrestled with the OE tank in my 83 Air-cool back in 1992. It was rusty inside. I prepped it internally and coated it using fuel tank coat. Little did I know there were screens inside. But, fortunately, the coating worked out okay. I would never do that again because it was way too much work. Buy a new tank and move on.

Wed Jul 09, 2025 3:23 pm

I ended up going with a spectra tank. I based that on not being able to determine if I am really getting meaningfully better quality from a more expensive tank that I would have to pay to ship. Plus, I got 15% back through capitol one.

If I had unlimited resources, then maybe I would support a smaller business and buy from a VW specific vendor. Which I do for most other van parts.

I'll post about the visible quality when I get it.

Wed Jul 16, 2025 8:07 am

I got the tank. I'm concerned about the location of these dents. I'm afraid the grommets won't seal well. I haven't dry fit anything yet though. Of course, my dents had to be in that spot. ugh

Wed Jul 16, 2025 8:20 am

Aside from the shipping dents, the tank looks good. Made in Taiwan.

Wed Jul 16, 2025 8:58 am

if you got time for it to sort out - what's the replacement/return policy for your seller?

Wed Jul 16, 2025 9:48 am

Pop them out with a slide hammer and some hardware. 10x faster than a return which will come ship damaged again,anyway.

Wed Jul 16, 2025 10:47 am

return wouldn't be an issue. dent roulette all over again though.

I don't have slide hammer experience, maybe I can rent one and give it a try? I was thinking a tool used for paintless dent repair, something curved to get up in there and massage it could work.

I wish I just got the bent tabs. Ha!

Wed Jul 16, 2025 11:22 am

well, I put the new grommets in there and they seem to seal nice and tight. I think I'll just roll with it as is. I don't think working out the dent will really make any difference in the seal as it sits now. Hopefully I can be putting this in soon.

The tank paint looks good and the steel feels plenty thick. So far, I don't see any obvious issues with this manufacturer. $182.90 to my door from shitty walmart. Plus some cash back through capital one shopping and capital one CC miles. I don't feel great about it, but it was the best deal I could find on a brand tank that I'd seen at other sellers and mentioned here.

Thanks for the thoughts.

Wed Jul 16, 2025 3:17 pm

MFerioli wrote: well, I put the new grommets in there and they seem to seal nice and tight. I think I'll just roll with it as is. I don't think working out the dent will really make any difference in the seal as it sits now. Hopefully I can be putting this in soon.

The tank paint looks good and the steel feels plenty thick. So far, I don't see any obvious issues with this manufacturer. $182.90 to my door from shitty walmart. Plus some cash back through capital one shopping and capital one CC miles. I don't feel great about it, but it was the best deal I could find on a brand tank that I'd seen at other sellers and mentioned here.

Thanks for the thoughts.

I have found Walmart to be pretty fucking good. Great prices on many things.

Wed Jul 16, 2025 5:07 pm

fuck that

get a new tank. that won't ever work out well enough to use long term imho

Wed Jul 16, 2025 7:31 pm

The seals will be just fine!

Install it and move on! :wink:

Thu Jul 17, 2025 7:34 am

if you haven't installed the dented tank yet, i would apply Permatex Motoseal to the rubber grommets. in addition to sealing well and gasoline resistant, it also secures the grommets from accidentally being pushed in while wrassling the vent tubes.

https://www.permatex.com/products/gasketing/specia...ey-2-7-oz/

Thu Jul 17, 2025 9:38 am

I bought a Cip 1 tank. Seems fine to me. I dont think theres a significant amount of engineering that goes into a gas tank. The point of failure seems to be in the aftermarket fuel level sensors and the rubber gromets that will eventually fail. I opted to weld bungs on a new gas tank and fabricated a ring with nut rivets for the fuel sending units. The wet spots are from soapy water after I pushed compressed air into the tank to detect leaks. Proud to say it hasn't leaked.