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What's inside the gas tank??

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David_Doan

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I've been trying to find an intermittent rattle coming from the back of my Bugeye. There's nothing in the back, I've thoroughly vacuumed and blown it out. Sometimes when cornering, I can hear something metal sliding left or right. It sounds like a small metal part is sliding across the back of the boot, but there's nothing in there.

Am I hearing the fuel pickup in the gas tank? I've searched around to find what kind of pick-up is in the Bugeye tank, but I haven't found anything. My car has the original tank.
 
Golf ball in the tank? Ball bearing? One of my co-workers bought a new Ford Ranger, about 1989, small white pickup. One day it started spewing white smoke from the tailpipe. He then took in for service and Ford found a bad vacuum line, but called him and said there was a rattle in the door and they wanted to keep it a couple of days to find it, he said fine, call him when it is done. A week later they called and told him it was a hard ratttle to find. He thanked them and took his truck home, thorougly cleaned, vacuumed and waxed. All do to the ball bearing he slipped into the door before taking it in.
 
Not anything that should be moving around. Maybe Larry's ball bearing!:smile-new:
 
It wasn't the gas tank...

So I figured out that the noise I was chasing was not in the gas tank. I thought it was coming from stuff in the rear quarter-panels. I bought a wireless endoscope to help find the stuff. I found this stuff in the quarter-panels and in the space between the door frame and the rear fender well:

IMG_0615.jpg

A 9/16 socket, a quarter, two nickels, two rocks, and two nuts. I know I probably dropped the nuts while installing the aluminum trim, the rest of the stuff had been in there for a long time. The change has epoxy on it, I guess one of the previous owners tried to glue them behind rust holes. Here's a few pics from the endoscope:

endo-1.jpg endo-2.jpg

The first one shows a nickel still stuck to the sheet metal. The second pic shows me extracting one of the rocks with a piece of hose attached to the endoscope. The other end of the hose was attached to my shop-vac.

Getting this stuff out fixed the sounds of stuff moving when braking or cornering, It did not fix the clunk from the passenger side when driving over bumps. I checked and tightened everything in the back, snugged up a bumperette and one of the gas tank bolts. The clunk was still there. The I started tapping on everything in the back with a rubber mallet. It was all solid except for the right leaf spring. It rattled a little around the tail end where the main leaf wraps around the end and returns. I added a piece of gasket cork and the noise stopped. Here's a pic:

IMG_0612.jpg

Now that I'm looking at the pic, maybe I should have just tightened the u-bolt on the left side of the pic?
 
well done and good sleuthing! I got an endoscope for Christmas - haven't used it in anger yet but, looking forward to it!
 
Quite the archeological "dig" you have there. :cool: Way to go.
 
I remember back in the day whenever you bought a clapped out old car you would find a few coins, a ball point pen, and a book of matches, not necessarily bouncing around or used to fix rust holes, but most always in there.
 
... or, going all organic, finding mushrooms growing on floor-boards (from leaks).
 
Re: It wasn't the gas tank...

David_Doan said:
So I figured out that the noise I was chasing was not in the gas tank. I thought it was coming from stuff in the rear quarter-panels. I bought a wireless endoscope to help find the stuff. I found this stuff in the quarter-panels and in the space between the door frame and the rear fender well:

View attachment 64738

A 9/16 socket, a quarter, two nickels, two rocks, and two nuts. I know I probably dropped the nuts while installing the aluminum trim, the rest of the stuff had been in there for a long time. The change has epoxy on it, I guess one of the previous owners tried to glue them behind rust holes. Here's a few pics from the endoscope:

View attachment 64739 View attachment 64740

The first one shows a nickel still stuck to the sheet metal. The second pic shows me extracting one of the rocks with a piece of hose attached to the endoscope. The other end of the hose was attached to my shop-vac.

Getting this stuff out fixed the sounds of stuff moving when braking or cornering, It did not fix the clunk from the passenger side when driving over bumps. I checked and tightened everything in the back, snugged up a bumperette and one of the gas tank bolts. The clunk was still there. The I started tapping on everything in the back with a rubber mallet. It was all solid except for the right leaf spring. It rattled a little around the tail end where the main leaf wraps around the end and returns. I added a piece of gasket cork and the noise stopped. Here's a pic:

View attachment 64741

Now that I'm looking at the pic, maybe I should have just tightened the u-bolt on the left side of the pic?
Click to expand...


See - there is money in these old cars.
 
glemon said:
I remember back in the day whenever you bought a clapped out old car you would find a few coins, a ball point pen, and a book of matches, not necessarily bouncing around or used to fix rust holes, but most always in there.
Click to expand...

Many years ago I was pulling an exhaust manifold in a wrecking yard in Saskatchewan (remember when we could still do that?) a few cars down the row an employee was cutting something with a torch and set the carpeting on fire. someone had dropped a box of (likely) .22 bullets on the floor. Needless to say we stood at a respectful distance.
 
Yep rear ubolt needs further tighting and front ubollt not a bole needs moved forward just a bit I think.
 
I did a job in Miami for 6months.
i was living in Minneapolis and had MN. Tags my car was broken into 3 times.
guess they thought tourist,
ā€˜had so much broken glass in the door it was horrible .took forever to get it all out.
 
I went to Pick & Pull ( Auto scrap yard ) to help a friend find a used part. There is a fee to get in and he started going through cars not the make of his. So what is up ? He tells me I getting the coins to get my entry fee back. There is an old saying: Gold is where you find it and I guess under the car carpets also.. Madflyer
 
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