Long time lurker here, (member since 2013) I've owned several 80's models over the years. I purchased this 300D from the original owner in April of last year and my son and I have enjoyed bringing it back to life after long term storage. It was ordered through a dealership in Fort Worth, Texas where it has spent all it's life. I bought it with 83K miles and have added about 2K more.

However, due to long-term storage it needs the fuel tank replaced. Probably because I have never posted before, the classified section wouldn't allow me to post my request for a used tank. I'm in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and willing to travel some and/or ship if anyone has any leads. Thanks!



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I have one from a 240D that had a 300 swap, so I'm not sure how many gallons it is. If you have some measurements I could compare. Free in Wichita.

Thank you resto for the offer! However, I believe the 240D is 17.2 gallons and my car is 21.13 gallons. I could definitely be wrong on that.

Beautiful car.

Nice car. Is the tank rusted thru?

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Jim

Thank you! It was always stored in a climate controlled garage and the paint proves it. The gentleman that owned it was particular about service and maintained it well until he wasn't driving much anymore and it began to sit for long periods of time.

Thank you! It isn't rusted through but the filler neck shows rust and I have to keep the main and pre-filter changed or it won't run properly. I pulled the sending unit and it was also rusty.

My car sat for 20 years and the fuel tank was all crudded up with biological growth, rust and would plug the prefilter fast.

I took the tank out which is easy to do, took apart & cleaned the sending unit following online tips.

For the tank I rinsed it out with acetone then went to a car wash & used the pressure wand to blast around inside through the sending unit hole. Poured in 2 gallons of muriatic acid, sealed all holes and rotated the tank to coat the inside. After 15 minutes of sloshing poured out the acid, rinsed well with water then poured in drain opener (potassium hydroxide – lye) to neutralize the acid. Rinsed well again then poured in Ospho Metal Treatment (Phosphoric acid) to give the interior a protective coating. Rinsed and drained again and finally poured in 2 gallons of denatured alcohol to absorb the left over water. Poured that out and the hot sun dried the tank fast,

The inside of the tank is now perfectly clean everywhere.
A days work gathering all the products and doing the job. Odds are even a used tank you get will need a good clean out.

RUST may be collecting in the filter, but odds are good it is fungus...
It can look like rust.
Get a bottle of startron and pull the prefilter, install a LARGE fuel filter from northern tool or tractor supply, and drive around.
I would drain the tank out, install the startron, and put in 10 gallons of fresh fuel, drive it like you stole it, until the tank is empty, then put another treatment in and fill it up.
See if the tank is clear after that.

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Alex,

Thank you for the thorough explanation of your cleaning process. I will definitely give this a try. I've pulled the sending unit and tried giving it a good cleaning as well while being careful with the wires but it had little effect for me.

Forgive my ignorance here but would fungus clog up the tank screen? I ask because I pulled the tank screen and it was completely clear. I could see it being both and trying the startron first before trying a used tank makes sense especially since I know Alex is right that a used tank will need to be cleaned as well.

Fungus may or may not clog the tank strainer, but it will clog the pre filter and spin in filter under the hood.

That beautiful car is in marvelous shape! I miss my '82 300D. I did have OEM Bosch E-code headlights on it.

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RRGrassi


70's Southern Pacific #5608 Fairmont A-4 MOW car

06 VW Jetta TDI 156K miles-replaced the other '06 that quit after 300k miles. (did not catch the bad cam in time)

91 W124 300D Turbo replaced, Pressure W/G actuator installed. 210K

90 Dodge D250 5.9 Cummins/5 speed. 400K

very nice...

Thank you! We feel really fortunate to be the next caretakers of it.

Thanks!