1998-2003 gas tank location ... why?

Found this interesting info while looking for a Ram Van part.

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Nelda Sue Butler and Donald W. Butler v. DaimlerChrysler, et al., Superior Court of Colquitt County, Georgia (11/14/00)

Product Liability / Auto / Post-Collision Fire
Cash Settlement

Defective 1997 Dodge Ram Van with a 35-gallon plastic fuel tank mounted approximately five inches from the rear bumper and hanging down into the impact zone below the rear bumper. Plaintiff, a 41-year-old woman, brought suit against Chrysler after she was severely burned when the Dodge Ram Van she was driving was rear-ended by another vehicle while the van was stopped at a highway construction site, causing explosion upon impact due to the failure of the vulnerable, bumper-mounted tank of the Dodge Van.

Plaintiffs proved that, as far back as 1978, Chrysler knew the rear-mounted tank was vulnerable and needed to be moved for safety but that Chrysler delayed moving the tank for almost twenty years, until the 1998 model year. At the time of Plaintiff's wreck, Chrysler was already selling a redesigned '98 model with the tank having been moved to a mid-ship's location, which Chrysler's own documents admitted was a move to a "protected" location. The amount of settlement is confidential at Defendant's request.

http://www.butlerwooten.com/CM/Verdi...tlements25.asp

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I'm glad that the Van isn't a Ford Pinto.

Interesting, I feel very safe now.

I'm felling safe too... I was actually wondering about safety issues of being rear-ended while I had the tank down to replace the fuel pump this past weekend... I thought it looked awful close to the bumper. The mounted receiving hitch was somewhat in the way...

I wonder if there are retro kits to move the fuel tank to the mid section of the Ram Van just like the 1998 and above are?

Years ago Ford put a metal bar/plate between the bumper and the gas tank on the Pinto.

Hmmmmm that's the first I've ever heard of a fire from a rear end collision in a Dodge van. It certainly didn't have the same attention that the Ford Pinto had back in the 70's.

Oh well my '94 has the big 36 gallon tank hanging down there and so does my '77.

I don't recall seeing any in boneyards all burned up.
It is nice to have it mounted further forward as they now have the spare under the rear.

On my '96 B-250 I experienced a small leak at the filler neck inlet - the doughnut gasket about 1/3 of the way up from the bottom of the tank is the only thing sealing the tank to the inlet pipe.

I replaced the gasket - Dodge must have had problems in this area, the Dodge dealership in West Houston had several gaskets on hand.

The problem is, the new gasket is leaking also - started leaking at the very first fillup after replacing the old gasket.

Should I have used some sealer or lubricant between the plastic tank/doughnut gasket/filler tube?

Does the filler tube need to be cleaned to a bright finish for the gasket to seal properly?

The assembly is not real hard to get to, it's just that with three dollar gas and finding an opportunity to work on it when the tank is almost empty I really only wanted to replace the gasket one time - now that I am going in with pull number two I want to get it doubly correct.

Thanks

I'm not sure but didn't the factory gas tank hang lower than the bumper?
I removed the rear bumper because it was hidious. I've never worried about an explosion. I've considered what would happen in a wreck though. The rear of the van minus the bumper is still very strong. I am replacing my gas tank with a 22gallon fuel cell. I am doing this because I have airride and when the rear is laid out, it will be sitting on the stock gas tank.

This is interesting . I didn't know the gas tank had been moved forward. If some rear ends my van they will have to go through a class 3 tow hitch first.
In the junkyard I have seen only 1 van burned in the rear, and at least a dozen with engine fires.
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B300,

I hear you about the engine fires, however, the ones I've seen were most Chevy full size vans.

On older Chevys it would be the coil melting down and causing the fire. This causes the fuel line to catch fire too and since it is in close proximity to the heater box, it goes into the interior.
Coils in distributors against the firewall are not a good idea.
I have seen lots of Chevy trucks and cars that have had that happen to them.
Any fuel leaks are trouble too.

Huh...I drove a '68 Mustang for years and never gave a second thought to having the gas tank located way back there.

Then again, I'm not the most safety oriented guy ever...

Very Interesting. I installed a class 3 trailer hitch for this reason to protect the tank from rear ender which is the most common accident. Also my van is lowered which I think should minimize a car going under on impact. Also a good shock to prevent nose dive and rear lift should help. Hope I never have anyone to test it.

Don't you think on a handling point of view the Vans with the tank in back and the engine set back will shift weight to the rear wheels for better cornering and braking. Under very hard cornering like a s turn my van will slide evenly with very little over steer. You can control the handling with more or less gas for ballast.

I've drove both Ram Van types with the fuel tanks in either place. My parents 1992 and my 2001. The only noticable item is on the 1998+ tanks in the mid section of the van. While under hard braking with a 1/2~3/4 tank of fuel, the fuel sloshes like it's humping over a curb and feels like it wants to bounce the van forward.

Here's an illustrated demo of what I mean: http://www.ansys.com/assets/media/cf...de-post-4.mpeg

Of course is this shows how fuel is filled into these newer tanks of today, but pay attension to how the fuel runs over those half walls in the tank.

As for driving at various speeds with either tank design, I can't really tell a difference while cornering nor any affects on steering. Maybe this is due to the ven's center of gravity point is closer to the 1998+ tanks in the mid section of the van.

I wish my 94 rear tank had a partition as I have gone through a few gage sending units. I think the sloshing due to my high spirited style of driving seems to wear the arm pivot. Think about the weight of 30 gals changing direction in a hurry. I have thought about inserting a rolled up sheet plastic thru the sending unit hole and a few bolts at each end of the tank to create a wall in the center. But I will wait till the next sender fails.

By the way can you believe the first time I pulled the tank I found the conversion company put 2 3" deck screws through the floor and into the top of the tank. This made it a little difficult to remove the tank. a soldering iron worked well to weld the hole after removing fumes.