Interest in Bigger Gas Tank for '97+ XJ
- Thread starter DaJudge
- Start date
over2land
Observer
My '97 parts XJ is there right now.
Along with its gas tank.
Gen Right is using it to prototype the following:
Corner guards (rear quarter armor)
Possible rear quarter window add-on armor
Rear bumper/tire carrier
Gas Tank
Possible rocker guards.
It is basically a gutted '97 shell at this point.
We were talking about the gas tank. The stock tank is rather balloonish looking, so there is some added fuel to be gotten there. However, 1-2 gallons what the guestimate. After that, it would have to grow taller, which, obviously, would destroy departure angles.
Also, the company has many parts needed to make this fairly simply. The filler and vent attachments are parts already spun up, ready to go for YJ and TJ tanks. The fuel pump mounting design is the same as the TJ tanks they already have in production. The vent, also similar (likely the same as) the TJ parts they already stock.
Mounting looks interesting. Last leading idea was going to be to either attach the tank ala stock, with straps, and then the skid bolts to the same nutserts that the stock trailer hitch bolts to, or the tank gets strapped to the skid, like the YJ/TJ tanks, and then bolted to those 8 bolts... maybe more, by picking up the rear crossmember.
Anyway, the estimated 1-2 gallons from squaring off the corners is a no-brainer, but the increasing the depth of the tank, thus decreasing ground clearance was something neither of us thought that the off-road community would support. I know I've done it in CJ's and I hated the tanks for it.
I am not affiliated with Gen-Right... I am just the squeaky wheel... and I have a ton of Jeeps on two of which they are prototyping parts.
Along with its gas tank.
Gen Right is using it to prototype the following:
Corner guards (rear quarter armor)
Possible rear quarter window add-on armor
Rear bumper/tire carrier
Gas Tank
Possible rocker guards.
It is basically a gutted '97 shell at this point.
We were talking about the gas tank. The stock tank is rather balloonish looking, so there is some added fuel to be gotten there. However, 1-2 gallons what the guestimate. After that, it would have to grow taller, which, obviously, would destroy departure angles.
Also, the company has many parts needed to make this fairly simply. The filler and vent attachments are parts already spun up, ready to go for YJ and TJ tanks. The fuel pump mounting design is the same as the TJ tanks they already have in production. The vent, also similar (likely the same as) the TJ parts they already stock.
Mounting looks interesting. Last leading idea was going to be to either attach the tank ala stock, with straps, and then the skid bolts to the same nutserts that the stock trailer hitch bolts to, or the tank gets strapped to the skid, like the YJ/TJ tanks, and then bolted to those 8 bolts... maybe more, by picking up the rear crossmember.
Anyway, the estimated 1-2 gallons from squaring off the corners is a no-brainer, but the increasing the depth of the tank, thus decreasing ground clearance was something neither of us thought that the off-road community would support. I know I've done it in CJ's and I hated the tanks for it.
I am not affiliated with Gen-Right... I am just the squeaky wheel... and I have a ton of Jeeps on two of which they are prototyping parts.
ExpoMike
Well-known member
I think if they can keep the current slop at the back of the tank and only add no more then a couple of inches to the lower part, it should not effect departure angle nor ground clearence for the most part. Biggest thing would be having a matching skid plate that would fit it as none of the current ones would.
My .02 worth.:26_7_2:
My .02 worth.:26_7_2:
ExpoMike
Well-known member
From a post in the Tacoma forum, this site was talked about. They are in OZ but they list a tank for '97+, no mods, uses factory sender and is 130 liters, which is about 34 gallons. I am trying to get some info about them but here is the link.
http://www.oppositelock.com.au/redesign/department/productDetails.aspx?deptID=6&catID=47&itemID=FTJ43
Man it seems like other places then the US gets some cool stuff.
http://www.oppositelock.com.au/redesign/department/productDetails.aspx?deptID=6&catID=47&itemID=FTJ43
Man it seems like other places then the US gets some cool stuff.
So as I read this post I got kinda happy to hear that Im not the only one that would like to see this on a jeep. altho as I read I did see that the problem was finding one for the new XJ? I own a 1990, is thr already a bigger tank for the older XJ that iv just never heard of?
over2land
Observer
Dang, I completely forgot about this thread.
Working with Gen-Right, I got a tank in my XJ before taking it to Easter Jeep Safari in Moab. It is about 25 gallons... although I've not run the Jeep out of gas completely, I've done 50 miles a couple of times with the needle full on E and the tank takes just under 25 gallons at that point.
It is an aluminum tank with a 3/16 inch steel skidplate. This one is a prototype, we are trying to figure out what the XJ community wants more- clearance or capacity.
It is the same height as the stock tank as you can see, but it gets spaced about 1/2 inch off the floor of the XJ, and the 3/16 skid with the 1/8 inch foam between the aluminum and the steel means it hangs about an inch lower.
Tony from Gen Right figures we could make it have about 2 inches more clearance (from bottom of tank to ground) than stock and still get the stock capacity, thanks to the squared off corners its got. Right now I've got enough space to move my axle back 3 or 4 inches if I wanted (about like stock). Tony also figures we could go forward (make front of tank grow towards axle) with the tank another inch or two, which would gain from 3-5 gallons more and still have about two inches of axle clearance.
You can see the skid in the background of one of the pictures. We used the stock mounts with nuts welded to strips to mount the front of the tank, while the rear of the tank is mounted to the rear "c" channel section with a bolt strip. The limit for expanding the tank forward would be the stock mounts that are being used.
I'm now getting about 350 miles out of tank, assuming no 4-low usage or rockcrawling. Heck, in Moab I was up to 9600 feet, with 40 or so miles in 4WD in the snow and still got over 300 out of a tank.
Here are a couple of sneak peeks of the prototype tank I'm now running. Like all the Gen Right tanks, it uses the stock fuel pump, the stock vents on the top of the tank, is 1/8 inch aluminum (IIRC), and has a beefy 3/16 inch skid.
For you pre-97 XJ guys, the plan is to nail down one single design for the XJ tank on my 98, or my 97 that is in Gen Right's possesion for prototyping (as they appear to be very similar in regards to unibody design and the way it affects the gas tank) and then apply that to the earlier XJ. Gen Right has all the parts for you early guys to reuse your fuel pump, but there really isn't any point in prototyping two tanks simultaneously.
BTW, I'm not affiliated with Gen Right... like so much else in this world its not what you know its who you know... and in this case, its needing a place to put a 97 XJ shell, and coincedentally knowing a company that wants to start making XJ stuff... LOL.
What do you guys think?
Working with Gen-Right, I got a tank in my XJ before taking it to Easter Jeep Safari in Moab. It is about 25 gallons... although I've not run the Jeep out of gas completely, I've done 50 miles a couple of times with the needle full on E and the tank takes just under 25 gallons at that point.
It is an aluminum tank with a 3/16 inch steel skidplate. This one is a prototype, we are trying to figure out what the XJ community wants more- clearance or capacity.
It is the same height as the stock tank as you can see, but it gets spaced about 1/2 inch off the floor of the XJ, and the 3/16 skid with the 1/8 inch foam between the aluminum and the steel means it hangs about an inch lower.
Tony from Gen Right figures we could make it have about 2 inches more clearance (from bottom of tank to ground) than stock and still get the stock capacity, thanks to the squared off corners its got. Right now I've got enough space to move my axle back 3 or 4 inches if I wanted (about like stock). Tony also figures we could go forward (make front of tank grow towards axle) with the tank another inch or two, which would gain from 3-5 gallons more and still have about two inches of axle clearance.
You can see the skid in the background of one of the pictures. We used the stock mounts with nuts welded to strips to mount the front of the tank, while the rear of the tank is mounted to the rear "c" channel section with a bolt strip. The limit for expanding the tank forward would be the stock mounts that are being used.
I'm now getting about 350 miles out of tank, assuming no 4-low usage or rockcrawling. Heck, in Moab I was up to 9600 feet, with 40 or so miles in 4WD in the snow and still got over 300 out of a tank.
Here are a couple of sneak peeks of the prototype tank I'm now running. Like all the Gen Right tanks, it uses the stock fuel pump, the stock vents on the top of the tank, is 1/8 inch aluminum (IIRC), and has a beefy 3/16 inch skid.
For you pre-97 XJ guys, the plan is to nail down one single design for the XJ tank on my 98, or my 97 that is in Gen Right's possesion for prototyping (as they appear to be very similar in regards to unibody design and the way it affects the gas tank) and then apply that to the earlier XJ. Gen Right has all the parts for you early guys to reuse your fuel pump, but there really isn't any point in prototyping two tanks simultaneously.
BTW, I'm not affiliated with Gen Right... like so much else in this world its not what you know its who you know... and in this case, its needing a place to put a 97 XJ shell, and coincedentally knowing a company that wants to start making XJ stuff... LOL.
What do you guys think?
Last edited:
ExpoMike
Well-known member
Based on your info, here is my input. Since it sounds like this tank is about the same clearance as the stock one, I would rather see the front of the tank expanded to add the extra 3-5 gallons over the added 4 gallons you have gained already. If I can add 7-9 gallons over my stock tank, then I can see the benefit to cost being worth it. It seems most aftermarket, fit in the stock location type tanks run $700-$1000, I have to see a real benefit to this.
Would having extra clearance be nice? Sure but not at the exspense of staying at the stock capacity. Since I do not do extreme rock crawling, I have not hit my stock tank so gaining extra clearance is pointless. As it is, I will hit my hitch (aftermarket) before the tank.
If they end up only building the tank as you currently have it, with about 4 extra gallons, for the cost the tank would run, I will stick to my extra fuel cans. If I can get 7-9 extra gallons, my fuel cans will most likely stay in the garage.
That's my .02 worth. Nice to see your new setup and hope this works out. :friday:
Would having extra clearance be nice? Sure but not at the exspense of staying at the stock capacity. Since I do not do extreme rock crawling, I have not hit my stock tank so gaining extra clearance is pointless. As it is, I will hit my hitch (aftermarket) before the tank.
If they end up only building the tank as you currently have it, with about 4 extra gallons, for the cost the tank would run, I will stick to my extra fuel cans. If I can get 7-9 extra gallons, my fuel cans will most likely stay in the garage.
That's my .02 worth. Nice to see your new setup and hope this works out. :friday: