Has anyone tried?? Fuel tank from a caprice/impala from the 90's?

Ive been doing some thinking (uh oh lol) but has anyone thought of putting in or at least attempted to put in a plastic tank from a 90s b body into a b body that had a steel tank? Ofcourse those are fuel injected, but i wonder how much of a weight savings it is, ive recently seen one installed in a late 60's A body, i think it was a Chevelle. Anyway chime in and let me and anyone else know what you think.
Im sort of on the hunt for weight saving things for these cars, yes our cars are heavy but in reality and people dont know this or consider this, but the gen 5 Camaros weigh more than our cars, i think the ZL1 weighs over 4100lbs curb, but since its not as long it must weigh less right? lol

Our cars are lighter than the 2nd Gen F-bodies too!  

You want to shed some pounds??  Caprices have more sound insulation than Impalas and it's HEAVY.  Get rid of all your under hood insulation.  Pitch the door liners and door insulation.  Pitch the insulation behind the rear seat back and side trim panels.  Pull out your carpet and pitch everything but the carpet it's self.  Better yet, pitch the carpet too and replace it with something lighter.  Replace the bench seat with lightweight buckets.  Speakers?  Gone.  Radio?  Gone.  (you want to hear the engine don't cha? )  Factory radios are heavy.  Empty the trunk.  Remove the trunk lid spring.  Vinyl top?  Get rid of it and paint the landau top on it.  AC?  Not any more... pitch it along with the condenser and hoses, blower motor and housing.  Windows are heavy.  Replace them with poly-carb.  Replace the copper Rad with an aluminum one from an 80s B-body.  Get lighter weight wheels and tires to reduce your unsprung weight.  Get rid of the heater core and hoses.  Just loop the hose back to the inlet nipple.  Ummm, that's all I can think of off the top of my head.  

For better weight transfer and better handling, move your battery to the trunk on the passenger side.

I've never done it myself but I've been told the plastic gas tanks are an easy swap and go right in.
IDK if they fit Boxes, but GM made plastic inner fenders for some of the Bubbles too.

At some point i need to remove all that insulation anyway, yes its heavy and mines pretty much crumbling and falling apart as im sure most others are too by now, isnt that an asphalt or something similar insulation? Last year when my heater box was leaking and filled the floors with water, i had to remove everything, but at that time it was still my daily driver, so i had to put the driver seat back in and drive it, had no carpet, no pass seat or back seat, it was quite the noisy ride, but it sure felt a tad quicker, but i bet that was all in my mind lol. Anyway ive been compiling a list of weight saving mods, nothing crazy like poly windows or all out drag car lol, but this is what i got to go along with your list, ofcourse aluminum radiator and water pump, im keeping heat so an aluminum heater core(probably really no difference there), brake master cylinder, either aftermarket aluminum or later 80's up w/plastic reservoir , remove ac and all the ac components from the heater box or just change to a non ac heater box, remove cruise, charcoal canister, spare tire, jack, fiberglass hood, after market bucket seats, on the engine: aluminum heads, intake, carb, headers, and thats about all i can think of off the top of my head.

Ive been thinking about a tank swap since ive been going to my local pull a part and getting under a few 90's b bodies, the only problem is they puncture all the tanks, and id really like to not have a patched up plastic tank.

Temptation! Shiny plastic light weight tank damn.


Actually I replaced my sister's tank in her 78 lesabre and it wasn't all that heavy I'd guess maybe 25lbs and it

was steel.

It's a little lighter, but not much. One thing I do know is that the sending unit lock ring is completely different. When I cut the floor out of the Roadmaster, it's plastic gas tank was in the trunk and I picked it up and held it. When I got home, I then picked up my steel tank again. Couldn't really tell much difference. I would have taken that plastic tank had it not had a split right down one of the side seams...

Yowsers!  $800 for a new one!!

http://www.classicindustries.com/product/impala/parts/g4086.html

There's a bunch of them around me, so I'm sure there's good used ones everywhere.  I would try a different salvage yard.

I could be wrong but for some reason I recall there being foam baffles in the 9C1 tanks.

OW! What makes it even more worse is this

http://www.rockauto.com/dbphp/x,catalog,734,partnum,FTK010178,d,PLATINUM_PRO_FTK010178.html

112+shipping includes lock ring and neck brand new, never heard of a split steel tank either rusty yes but split no way?


I'll save the plastic for the trim and zip ties.

I put a 96 Caprice lastic tank into my 78 caprice because I was installing a 96 LT4 engine it. The plastic tank is a true bolt in, but you will need to use the 96 straps, since they have one cross strap in addition to the two fore-aft straps. The fuel neck is different, and does require some modification to install. The steel tank has a steel neck that s soldered into the tank, and is self supporting. The plastic tank has a shorter steel neck with a section f rubber hose from the tank to the neck. I think this probably protects the tank from damage in a rear end collision since it can bend a lot with out leaking. You'll have to make 2 simple spacers to bolt the 96 fuel neck to the rear vertical wall in the trunk pan.

As for weight savings, not a lot, but if you're going with a factory FI system, this is an easy solution to the pump-in-tank issue.

Just wondering, If your gonna put a newer style tank in, why not just say fuck it, go all out and throw a fuel cell in. I mean eventually, everyone mods their cars, so you'll be ready when the time comes.

I did a LS1 swap in my 1987 Caprice. I knew I needed a tank for the fuel injection. I found a used tank 2 hours from me. $75 and included the fuel pump assembly and 4 gallons of fuel. Got the tank straps from a local junkyard $10. Ordered a Walbro 255. Swapped pumps. Put the tank in. Drove away. I don't have pictures but it fits. Rear chassis section is the same from 77-96. At least for sedans.

I dropped a plastic tank from a '94 buick roadmaster into my '79 last spring. Found one for $25 from a local wrecker, picked up the sending unit and filler neck from Pull A Part. To mount the filler neck to the tail panel, I took an old sway bar strap, bent it in a vice to match the curve of the sending unit, and bolted it to the tail panel. I don't have picture, but it worked great. Just make sure you grab the connector for the sending unit.

I would've gone the fuel cell route if I could afford it. Proper fuel cells are expensive and the cheap ones are..well..cheap.

hello,
me too I would like to change the steel tank for a plastic, not for weight but for use of e85.
not common to find one of this plastic tank in my country.
which model year is better?

1994-1996 Impala, Caprice, Cadillac Fleetwood, and Buick Roadmaster all have the plastic tank, but you will need the fuel tank sending unit to match. Sending units from the older cars won't fit or work. You will also need the filler neck that goes with the plastic tank, and the straps. Make sure you get one from a sedan and not a wagon, the wagon tanks are different.

I used one of these tanks for my 1959 Bel-Air 2 door hard top. Was a 1992 Caprice sedan tank.
Worked incredibly well! I did have to heat one side where it sits on the stock body/tank mount so that it would conform {you bet I drained, washed it and purged with exhaust first!!}
92 tank straps were used albeit modified.
Caprice filler tube fell into place on the Bel Air.
I am running a gen2 LT1 so literally this tank was MADE for this swap.

It was like GM had a magical meeting to determine the best way to make these work together with 50 years between dates of manufacturer!

I believe that this would absolutely work for full sized box sedans. The in tank pump assembly will support LS swaps {you may need a better/more pressure pump}, its baffled, vented, has sump and return line is there.
I have a 1988 Caprice Wagon and I'm looking to see if the 91-96 wagon tank will work for my application. I cannot see it being a problem.