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stock bronco and 23 gallon tank picture

chuck1022

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My Bronco is stock height, no body lift, I need to put a bigger tank in. Is the 23 gallon tank that everyone installs going to drag on the ground?? anyone have a pic of theirs installed on a stocker.
 
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thegreatjustino

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The old school 23gallon tanks sat at the same level regardless of the lift on the Bronco. The front portion sat under the rear cross member on the frame. There are tanks now that are adjustable and slide up into the space created by a body lift.

Of course that does you no good with no lift at all. The tank hangs down to about the mid point of the rear differential.
 

surfer-b

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The 23 gallon WH tank with the unistruts work just fine, here is a pic of my GF's 68 I just finished, no suspension or body lift. Not the best pic but if you look close you can see it, it does stick down a little more than stock but its not that bad
 

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chuck1022

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The 23 gallon WH tank with the unistruts work just fine, here is a pic of my GF's 68 I just finished, no suspension or body lift. Not the best pic but if you look close you can see it, it does stick down a little more than stock but its not that bad

That does not hang too low. What kind of rims and tires are on that rig...
 

broncodriver99

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stock wheels, 31x10.50 tires

Nice. Any issues with the wide tire on the narrow rim? I just picked up a set of late '70's OEM Ford slot mags and they are only 6" wide. Hearing a lot of negatives about running a 10.50" on them(it may all be BS?). Are the stock steelies 5.5"?
 

Lawndart

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35347725054_65d3d2586f_c_d.jpg

Older style 23 gallon tank (installed before I purchased).
Stock height
30x9.5 tires
 
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chuck1022

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But that Bronco in the photo looks like it has a 1" body lift.
That same tank would hang down about 1" lower on your unlifted car.

i do not offroad, so as long as it does not drag on the ground, I should be good. (I did pull off the side of the road on the dirt shoulder once)
 

surfer-b

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Nice. Any issues with the wide tire on the narrow rim? I just picked up a set of late '70's OEM Ford slot mags and they are only 6" wide. Hearing a lot of negatives about running a 10.50" on them(it may all be BS?). Are the stock steelies 5.5"?

Yes those are the stock 5.5, no issues at all, only slight rub on radius arms when turn full lock. I also have a set of factory slots that are 6" wide, have had a set of 33x10.5 on for couple yrs with no probs
 

surfer-b

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But that Bronco in the photo looks like it has a 1" body lift.
That same tank would hang down about 1" lower on your unlifted car.

no body lift at all, its all stock height, bushings and suspension
 

DirtDonk

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Agree with the others that it should not be a problem. Go with which tank you like or that makes the most sense to you.
Long before suspension lifts were the rage, larger than stock tanks were commonplace. Lots of companies made custom tanks for many trucks for adventurers, rock hounds, campers that liked to get farther away, miners, ranchers, etc.
Height should not be a problem on the street with any of the common Bronco versions.

I forget what the difference from stock is, but the difference between the least and the most height change from the aftermarket tanks is about 1.5-2 inches. Not a lot, but enough to accommodate their mounting design differences.
For the least loss, the best route would be a custom tank still with more capacity than stock, but less than the mainstream aftermarket tanks. Say, 16-18 gallons.
There used to be a body-lift version of the Sunset Metal Fab (the old NWMP) tank that's 20 gallons, but that hangs down the same as the 23 gallon version. Just loses the extra capacity from the forward bump-out. I don't think it's available any longer, but would not have had any real advantage for your application anyway.

Good luck. Should be easy enough to get that added capacity you need Chuck.

Paul
 

67RT

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Jan 17, 2014
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What if someone with a lower car/slanted nose rear ends you? It will be like the old Pinto. Poof.
I have stock height and tank and took my hitch off but did not like how much of the tank was exposed so I put the hitch back on to provide some protection.
 

DirtDonk

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It's a valid point RT, but you're talking about making modifications in a different direction. And to make any EB safer you'd even have to change the stock tank's location, shape and protection factors. After all, they designed these even before the Pinto and it's not like they're protected in any way other than being shaped with more of a taper in the back. Not sure if that was for safety, or departure angle, or aesthetics.
Otherwise it's as much, or more exposed than the Pinto ever was. Even in stock form.
I think the cars had better bumpers, but less robust materials.

Yes, adding fuel to the fire (literally) would not necessarily be a good thing, but a stock tank is just as likely to be a problem. So might as well enjoy the added capacity and range, and hope for the best with regard to accidents.:-[
Rear-enders are the least controllable by the rearendee though, so it's hard to account for.

You've got a point, and it's something we've discussed before and all have to take into account. Personally I decided long ago that the extra range and not having to be "that guy" that stops at the gas stations the first, is worth it.
Might not say that if I'm rear-ended hard I suppose. But hopefully under the circumstances I can still jump out and run pretty quick!

I've actually been rear-ended twice in my Bronco Not hard enough to do damage to my truck, but hard enough to destroy the cars that hit me. Both had to be towed, but not hard enough to harm the truck.
And that was before my Hanson bumper.

My '68 has a nice receiver hitch in that area beneath the bumper. Looks like it will protect the tank up to a point, so hoping that will help a little more as well.

Paul
 

edmedlin

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Sep 26, 2014
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Republic Missouri
This is a 23 gallon made for a 1" or less body lift. I have about a 1" suspension lift. There is very little difference than the stock tank. I do have a hitch brace that protects it somewhat.
 

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