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Some crimp connectors are melt-able. I have a set of eyelets at home with the heat-shrink insulation on them.

that locking ring was a bitch to get out of my car as well, rusted in place, im not a small guy so I couldnt get into the trunk to get any force behind my attempts, had to call a friend who fit in the trunk, he was wacking the hell out of it with a hammer and screwdriver, I cringed at every wack..

I had his pant leg in case I had to yank him out of the trunk if it caught fire..

some people have no fear.
Beers were on me after Thanks Ant,

00Beast wrote:Some crimp connectors are melt-able. I have a set of eyelets at home with the heat-shrink insulation on them.

I suppose all plastic will melt with enough heat.

However, after just doing this very same thing I can assure the connectors that were with mine were not meant to be heat shrunk.

I assume it worked and the car runs now??

I had a hell of a time with that *dang* ring too. I had it so mangled up that it never really sealed well when it was reinstalled, and about six gallons of gas spilled out the top the first time I filled up at the gas pump. I got looked at as if I was a suicide bomber by everyone around me.

Oh man, I should probably make sure it's sealed! I may also have a tank full of gas, as I just filled up from just under half way and put over 10 gallons in before it stopped.

When all is said and done, we should all "thank the Manufacturer" that we didn't have to remove any gas tanks for this job. That'd have been a $700 deal-breaker for this novice.

On that youtube video Hans did for the fuel gauge fix, how many hours do you think elapsed from part one, ring completely on, to part two, one tap away from removing the ring? Maybe he could give us some handy tips for getting that bugger off (assuming he didn't deceive us on the video )

The handiest tip for getting the ring off is to slightly pry the tabs up that hold the ring in place. This makes the ring easier to remove. A few taps on each of the tabs to snug them down after your done is far easier than beating on that ring for an hour.

dpnewfie wrote:The handiest tip for getting the ring off is to slightly pry the tabs up that hold the ring in place. This makes the ring easier to remove. A few taps on each of the tabs to snug them down after your done is far easier than beating on that ring for an hour.

Interesting idea... Mine were so corroded, however, that I'd be afraid of snapping one of them off.

I too had a horrible time getting that heavily-corroded ring off, until someone here at the club suggested getting a bigger hammer (aka "BFH"). Went to Home Depot and got a 2.5-pounder and a 5" chisel. That did the trick. I didn't actually chisel with the chisel -- just used it as a sturdy striking point for the hammer. I also learned not to hit the ring's arms, but rather to hit a little notch that was in-between the arms and was much more solid.

As far as being too big to climb into the trunk; I'm 6'2", 340 pounds, and I was able to do it several times.

You can buy a replacement aftermarket ring at most auto parts stores -- might be a good thing to have if you mangled your old one while getting it off. Price was just under $10 last time I looked.

Ken_W

I hated that ring when I had to fix my fuel gauge I mangled the tabs (by prying them up) and the ring was not in any better shape either. I ran into several problems of the tank not sealing and getting a gas cap code. So I figured i would use some black RTV silicone that turned into an absolute nightmare. It turns out the RTV that was on the inside of gas never cured and dripped in to the gas tank and went into the fuel pump sock and clogged it. Not only the outside pick up sock but the sock on the inside of the pump. I had to buy 2 new socks put it all back together and then as the rest of the silicone gathered around it again I had to do it again 2 months later. (LEARN from my Stupidity)

thought you guys would get a kick out of this story.



Something I thought that might be helpful to this original post

I was experiencing the same issues is that that following winter on the coldest day of the year the fuel pump started acting up again. I thought it was the same silicone clogging issue turned out it was the connecting wire harness had a loose connection. I had to solder the wire for the connection to hold the voltage. I would suggest checking the voltage at the wire harness connector to make sure there is no breaks in the power supply.

bc21 wrote:I hated that ring when I had to fix my fuel gauge I mangled the tabs (by prying them up) and the ring was not in any better shape either. I ran into several problems of the tank not sealing and getting a gas cap code. So I figured i would use some black RTV silicone that turned into an absolute nightmare. It turns out the RTV that was on the inside of gas never cured and dripped in to the gas tank and went into the fuel pump sock and clogged it. Not only the outside pick up sock but the sock on the inside of the pump. I had to buy 2 new socks put it all back together and then as the rest of the silicone gathered around it again I had to do it again 2 months later. (LEARN from my Stupidity)

OMG. I have a terrible temper when it comes to things not going right-- I wouldn't have a tool one left after I pitched and punted them all across the neighborhood in a fit of rage if that happened to me. I hate climbing in and out of that *dang* trunk and I'm only 6'2 / 190.