fuel tanks

[JCalvin]

I'm converting my 97 chevy 2500 gas to a cummins and I was wondering what type of fuel tank to use. If I could use the old one what I have to do. Any help would be great. Thanks Jake

 

[PWitteveen]

We had a fire truck on the department I'm on that they converted from gas to diesel. They used the old gas tank. You can't fill it above a trickle, otherwise it keeps foaming out of the fuel filler. I would get a diesel tank.

 

[Hoefler]

The tank it self is the same. I would change the fill neck and the fuel pump.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

Don't use a galvanized tank. Diesel fuel leaches the zinc into the fuel, and it is hard on the injection pump.

 

[Grey Wolf]

Take the sock off the pick up tube, they (Gas) are too fine for Diesel fuel. You should be able to get a course one to replace it from GM.....

 

[Nordby]

Sorry for what seems like a dumb question - how in the heck do you tell if your tank is galvanized or not? I know many of the aftermarket tanks availble are galvanized, but I'm using the stock tank in my 1978 F250 for my conversion. Try as I might I cannot figure out out to tell if it is galvanized on the inside or not. The filler tube appears galvanized, but I pulled the tank and painted it black and never noticed it being a galvanized exterior. This was prior to plans to convert to diesel so I didn't pay attention to what it was. This is a P7100 equiped 1997 engine in it - is that pump succeptable to the zinc leachings?



thanks for any ptrs,

jon.

 

[JDarby]

I have a 97 that I want to repower, Ihave ?'s,are you doing a auto or standard,what problems are you having mounting motor & transmission,what about electrical hookups.

thanks John

 

[Nordby]

Your 1997 has either a ZF5spd or an E40D auto. Both are excellent, and adapters available for both (Advance Adpaters could help, as could High Impact) to hook a cummins to them. Early E40D's had terrible torque converters and would grenade, but the late 1990's were good. If your 1997 is an F250, that IFS front end is really nothing to brag about, could be an issue. The leafs in the front of the F250's wouldn't hold the 460 and the tires would camber out - no way without an add-a-leaf to hold the 1100# cummins. If an F350, you are set with that nice straight axle, though you may have to beef up springs, not sure.



Your repower will be quite a bit different than mine - in a good way I think. To answer your questions: My is a 1978 Crew Cab 4x4 F250. I am doing a standard (put an NV4500 5spd/NP241DLD in). If the transfer case was not available, I would have adapted the NV4500 to the NP205 with an Advance Adapters setup like Scot did in his 1978 repower talked about in this forum.



Problems mounting the motor/transmission: In the old fords, the front crossmember had to be dropped 2-3" and a body lift installed to really do this and keep clearance around the nv4500 bell housing and tunnel near the firewall, and for the oil pan of the deep 6bt to clear that crossmember. I positioned the engine where I wanted it based off other posts here, so #6 would clear the firewall and the fan would clear the stock ford 4-core radiator. Then positioned the transmission from where the egine was. I built the perches/towers for the engine by keeping the dodge factory donuts/mounts and perches from the dodge truck frame, welding them to 1/4" plate, and bolted the plate through the ford frame holes. The transmission, once positioned, was much easier - adpated the ford crossmember to the nv4500/np241dld factory mount with steel plate as well, though retained the rubber isolator parts of the mount. You might only have to move your crossmember fowards or back depending on how the cummins clears in there. Driveshaft lengths will be off now - take them to a drivetrain shop. < $100 each if you can reuse all of your parts. My front was reusable. My rear was going to be too wimpy for the cummins, so having a 4" shaft, all spicer joints/yokes, all cummins rated sizes, built. That will be $300, but I don't need the headache throwing 700lbs of torque down to the rear wheels.



I used a 1997 cummins intercooler - big, and hard to position. One from a 1991. 5-1993, or from a 1997 powerstroke, might be a better option for you. I had my radiator inlet/outlet switched to match the cummins so I could use real hoses, worked great, and not expensive to have done.



Electrical. Doing that right now. The truck runs, but jump wired. Really depends on what you are repowering with - a 12v or 24v. The 12v is easier, the 24v I don't know enough to give an opinion but lots of folks doing these too. Biggest thing here is to understand the shutoff relay and solenoid - make sure you wire the pull-in (70amp relay, power only when starter engaged) and hold-in (powered with ignition on) correctly or you will fry that pricey shutoff-solenoid. Also, wiring the alternator from the cummins into the ford will require a regulator providing field in place of the dodge computer doing that. Wiring the grid-heaters to a toggle is the way to go here as well. All in all, 12v wiring really easy, and I was fortunate to have the engine harness/underhood stuff from the donor so that helped.

Use the ford A/C pump is what I hear is the way to go. Use the Dodge powersteering/vacuum pump. Have a hydraulic hose built to go from pump to steering box, and run a vacuum line to your brakes.



Some pictures of this, and more to come some day, in my "1978 F350 Crew" project, or see my readers rigs section for photos.



thanks, jon

 

[rfull]

I Wired Up My Pull In Off The Factory Ford Solenoid And It Works Great



Might Be A Way To Help You

 

[Nordby]

Great idea - thanks for the tip. That's what I shoulda done and saved the $$$'s. I already spent the $50 for the relays (pull-in/heater pair) and $150 for the shutoff solenoid I fried by powering the pull-in too long when starting it (gulp) from City Diesel. I have the harness with plugs, so I pulled this entire circuit out of the harness and it will wire up pretty clean this way and match the dodge wiring diagrams even. Nice, but I think for $50 I'd have rather done what you suggested!

If the dodge relay ever goes I'll switch it over to the ford starter relay.



thanks, jon.

 

[Scot]

Norby, I do not know if our tanks are galvanized or not. I don't *think* so.



Broncograveyard sells poly rear tanks and std cab side tanks. I have no clue how they are different from a SC or CC tank.



If it comes down to it, I am going to use the fuel tank sealer-liner "slosh" stuff from Eastwood. Right now I am trying to seal the aftermarket sender on the rear tank. :{

 

[DWiebe]

dodge fuel tank

Does anyone know if i can used the plastic dodge fuel cell on my 78 F250. It is equipped with return line outlets and all. If it fits?

 

[Nordby]

Check the depth of the dodge fuel cell for the area you want to install it. I tried the same thing on a 1978 F250, but it is a shortbed (crew cab), and there was no way to cleanly fit it in there. This is from memory, but on the 1997 Dodge donor, the depth of the frame from the bottom of the bed down to the bottom of the framerails was 2x more than the Ford. The tank will fit on the ford, but hang way, way down.



jon