Hello All,
There's a listmember (a new-addition I
think) that needs some help with his '57 Desoto. He's having trouble with
the gas filler and I was wondering if any of you '57 DeSoto guys out there
could help him. His name is David Salter and his e-mail is dsalter@xxxxxxxxxxx . Here's his original
mail and my response . Please correct me if I'm
wrong.....
Hi Frank,
I found your post concerning gas tank installation on the
Looking Forward Archives. I hope you don't mind me emailing you directly.
My son just bought a 57 Desoto. The previous owner had the gas tank cleaned
but he had no know idea how the reinstall the filler neck. When we got it the
filler neck to tank connect was coated with about a 1/2 inch of silicone and
leak badly. No rubber O -ring or clamp. Under the silicone is a metal collar
that is glue to the filler neck. Even with the glue it is a bit loose and
leaky. It appears the metal collar might take an o-ring but the groove is
facing away from the tank.So we don't know if the metal collar is installed
the right way or even if it is suppose to be there at all. Perhaps the metal
collar is all that is left of what might have been the right seal.The manual say
the should be an O-ring and a clamp. We have no clamp. If you are familiar
with this connection I would really appreciate any help you can provide.
Hello
Dave,
I don't mind at all. That's what the list was designed for and that's what we're
all here for. I'm taking it that your son's car is not a station wagon. If this
is true then you should have a one piece filler neck. It should fit very snugly
into the tank with no seal around it (though I have sealed mine for safety). Now
this is what a '59 Plymouth Service manual shows. I know this is also true
on a '59 Chrysler as I've dropped the tanks on both. '57's maybe a little
different. If it were me, I would try to get a filler neck from a '59 Chrysler
or DeSoto (these are the only two that interchange in my parts book) that is of
the one piece design and eliminate the two piece deal all together. As far as I
know DeSoto and Chrysler quarter panels really didn't change from '57-'59. All I
noticed is that the taillights change a little. You should be able to change it
over with out any problems. My thoughts would be that Mopar got rid of that
design because it probably rusted and leaked alot. I think the previous
owner found that out when he took the tank out and it broke up on him. That's
probably why he had such a hard time and didn't notice it. If you get the '59
filler and notice it's too long, it can be easily cut to size, though I don't
see why it would be. If you have sources for parts, contact them. If not, I can
send you a couple of phones numbers to call. Let me know how it goes. Talk with
you later. Take Care, Frank
|