Why is commitment so hard...

[barno68]

Hey All!

After two half-hearted restoration attempts I have finally committed... My '71 Camaro is now nothing but body and jackstands, of course, the side of my house looks like a Camaro grave yard :-)

Currenlty I am cleaning up the 30+ years of dirt and oil off the underside and getting ready to paint and undercoat. The suspension was done a few years ago so I just need to finish cleaning up the subframe and rear differential for painting.

My big delima, which seems to be pretty common, is solving the fuel tank/pump issue that rears its ugly head on TPI conversions without breaking into my 401k!

Can anyone recommend some good body shops in the Phoenix area? So far all the shops I have talked to just want to do collision repair or have qouted a hefty price for what I see as a fairly straight forward project. Thanks.

[derekf]

Hey, welcome to the site.

You didn't specify your name so it's hard to welcome you by name though.

As for the fuel tank issue - I know with the A-bodies, you can retrofit a later tank and use the stock GM in-tank pump that goes with those; is there something similar that could be done for yours?

[Ralph LoGrasso]

Welcome to the site.

[barno68]

If I remember right the A-body has a longer tank (26" compared to the F-body 20") and that allows for a caprice tank swap. I have heard that a cadillac tank will fit in a '74-80 camaro because they have their trunk pan humped, but I have not seen one installed.

Brent

[Johnny Blaze]

What about runnign an external pump, such as an Areomotive?

[Bill Howell]

Welcome Brent,
I don't know what you consider "breaking the bank", but one of our sponsors here, Ricks Hot Rods does a killer job on custom stainless tanks/ fuel pumps. I know because I have one in my car. Great fit in the factory location, with an internal fuel pump included that met the specs I needed. Absolutely great folks to deal with and they help with any questions you may have. While you might save a buck or two retrofitting a differant year or model tank, the time you spend may not be worth it. Of course I was dealing with a early A-body, so that complicated things a bit.Here is their weblink.
http://www.rickshotrodshop.com/

Either way, your project sounds interesting, and we look forward to some pictures.

[Jim Nilsen]

The dilema you have encountered has a new solution that may work for you. Race Pumps makes an external fuel pump that is mechanical and has enough output for efi. If you can put a pump in the standard location on your block like the old days you can solve your problem with some work and creativity.

You can get a racepumps fuel pump for around $250 from Allstar Performance or other distributors and it will keep up with over 2000 hp or more. You also get the benefit of it being lighter,quieter,and most of all safer.

Chech them out here http://www.racepumps.com

Goodluck on your car and hopefully this may solve your dilema.

Jim Nilsen

[barno68]

Thanks all for the fuel pump advice. A mechanical EFI pump, if nothing else it will be interesting to read about!

[Rick@Rick's Hot Rod Shop]

Brent,

We make a tank to fit your application. For your convience it is avalible through Jegs, and im about 99.9% sure its in stock with Free Shiping.