Story time:
Last time I parked my '75 2.0 to restore the front suspension, it was running relatively fine.
As usual, a simple task estimated to take a few weeks turned into months, due to lack of time & budget. A few months go by and I notice the interior is flooded in gas, thankfully the car had no carpets and nothing caught fire.

I did my research and diagnosed the leak came from the plastic fuel lines that go through the tunnel; simple enough, I'll replace them with SS lines.
I go ahead and clear the interior of any remaining fuel; drain the rest of the gas tank, only to notice the horrible condition it's in; chunks of rust coming out of it.
Now I not only have to replace the fuel lines but I also have to either restore the tank or replace it (dansk tank $230 plus SS line $170).

My goal with this car is to turn it into a baja inspired 914; and since I don't really care about "originality", I wondered: what if I replaced it with a universal fuel tank used by dune buggies/prerunners (Jaz, RCI, etc) and placed it in the rear trunk?
They seem to be easy to find secondhand and not so expensive.

I started looking into it and noticed obviously 914 racecars have "fuel cells" but they all kept them in the front.

This is a list of pros & cons I came up with, and since it hasn't been done before I assume that it'll be a very unpopular inion, so please go ahead and talk me out of it since I'm biased and can only think of reasons to actually do it.

Pros:
No fuel lines running through tunnel = simpler system & shorter lines.
Less or just as expensive for a unique or "custom" look, since I've never seen it done before.
Shifts weight to the rear, which is better for my application

Cons:
Safety? Rear suspension is being reinforced so the tank could be protected by the cage I'll build around it in case of a rear end accident, but the fact that it's closer to the engine and hot temperatures might be a bigger issue.

Anything else I might not be considering?
Has someone seen it done before?
If so, please share pictures/info.

Picture of how it sits right now with UTV tires, for reference:
Click to view attachment

Picture of what I'm thinking of maybe doing:
Click to view attachmentClick to view attachment

That is an absolutely terrible idea. The rear trunk is a crumple zone, and you would be putting the gas tank in harms way. Believe me, I know.

And putting the gas tank above the hot engine/transmission is a really bad idea too.


Leave it where it was put originally. If the tank is bad, there are new ones available, or people on here have good used ones to sell.

w/ Clay

He's an expert in this area (ask him how he knows)

Don't relocate the fuel tank.

Oscar

That trunk gets super warm. I would do the front as well.

Think Ford Pinto, rear end collision

BTW: she looks nasty with the off road skins

I would leave in up front as well, but since you asked....someone has done it. Not me. If you look through the pics in this link, you'll see this guy's install:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1972-porsche-914-28/

With the fuel storage in the stock location, less balance upset as the fuel weight decreases? How much fuel do you plan on carrying? The engine will work plenty hard spinning those meats.

Sticking it in the rear is bad.

open up the hood and put a aluminum cylinder tank in the original spot and show case your baha idea plus ,fill up fast!

Also, if you put the tank in the back, you won't have any place to keep the pizza warm on your way home.

Baja 914's are cool, but proper weight distribution is just as important in an off-road vehicle. Maybe even more than a street or track car.

Adding more mass in the ass isn't a good idea... besides the pendulum polar moment imagine how it would affect suspension compliance.

Spend more effort on chassis stiffness and suspension travel instead.

This is how I know.

Click to view attachment

I was sitting still at a light. The car that hit me was doing close to 100mph. I was pushed forward about 50 feet. The hit was hard enough to pop the ash tray and radio out of the dash.

The crumple zone in the back saved my life. And you want to put a gas tank there? If you do, please let me know your name and address so I can take out a life insurance policy on you.

Clay

Clay, I have to wonder about the bag of kitty litter in the back. Was it in the rear trunk when the car was hit, or was that the work of an emergency responder?

Clay, if there was ever a thread that warranted posting "those" pictures, this is it.

Compared to Clay's crash, mine was a minor dent.

Besides the crash factor, I would think the heat from the engine, transmission and exhaust would not be good for a fuel tank in the trunk. Also there's very little vertical clearance in the trunk.

Click to view attachment

There were two bags of cat litter in the trunk. We had not unloaded them after a trip to the pet store.

Needless to say, we had to go get more litter.

Clay

@Mendivil26

What size wheels and tires are you running on there?

I've been thinking about going the Baja route since we're planning to retire down in the islands.

I understand wanting to keep the front end light for offroad. The tank near the engine could make for a bad day. Maybe put your spare in back to add some weight, so on a launch the front end stays up. You may need to experiment with that...Aw shucks

Thank you all for the great responses!
I understand the crumple zone factor is a big one that I think could be potentially solved by caging it properly, but still.. we have the heat issues.
At this point it's too much of a risk for it to be worth a try; it's probably simpler to keep it in front and just replace with new stuff.

@SirAndy , Running 26-9-r14 in the front and 26-11-r14 in the rear. Wheels are 14in diameter X 7in wide.

I tried mounting the smallest BFG KO2s out there (215-75r15) but the front rubbed the inner fender real bad, no turning radius was left, the rears cleared relatively fine.

26.75in diameter is probably the largest diameter wheel you can have in the front without serious sheet metal massaging.

You know what surrounds most islands people would retire to?

Salt water.

In Hawaii, pretty much everything made of any kind of metal corrodes into uselessness in a few years. Even "stainless" steel, aluminum, brass...

Imagine the effect that salt spray would have on a 914.

--DD

Sure, but once i move there i'll have another what, 15 years max that i'll be able to drive the car. That should be just about enough to have some fun.

Not what your looking for but just a different look.Click to view attachment

15 years of driving is very optimistic, unless you live well up-hill away from the ocean. I feel like a 914 or other old European car would last about 5 years. Maybe 10 if you're careful and never take the car near the water.

--DD

THis is cool, any details on where that tank came from?
I like the fact that it leaves space for the cage to come from the inside through the vent holes without cutting additional holes. It also looks right and not just "universal".

Reproduction 356 fuel tank. $400-500.
It does look good in that spot.

Same problem as the rear though. That whole front trunk was desinged to crumble in a frontal impact. In fact, the spare tire was part of that design.

If you have ever seen pictures of a 914 that was in a frontal collision, you will agree that this is a terrible spot for a fuel tank, at least on a street driven car.

Yes it is a 356 tank, it was going to be a fuel cell for racing but I'm getting to old. If I stay with this I could make it so it would hold a fuel cell blatter. Also, I will install a space-saver spare for additional safety.

When I read this I remembered seeing just that setup recently. Found it in an eBay auction that's open right now: https://www.ebay.com/itm/195048466156?hash=...xYAAOSwuQlifUj~

It's a carb car which makes it a bit easier but it doesn't look all that bad -- if you're into fuel tank mods!

Ron

Click to view attachment

SirAndy I do understand where you are coming from, but just an observation that all earlier 911's up to I think 993s have the fuel tank that fare forward. I also like on mine that now I have two fire walls from the tank to the passenger compartment verses just one. Best, Mark

Thanks to everyone for your great advise.
I found an aluminum Sand Rail Gas tank on offerup for $30 that cleaned up nicely with a little elbow grease.
I decided to install it in the frunk like @mlindner and all the other people with fuel cells while I figure out the cage fabrication and suspension reinforcements. I'll need the original gas tank location to be clear so I can route the cage through the existing holes. Once that is done I'll try to bring it back to the original location if it fits; if not it'll remain there.
I'll also reinforce the frunk area so it becomes a bit stiffer and not much of a crumple zone.

That is the look I was thinking of , just section out the hood so the tank sits proud. easy fill up

I'm sorry I can't give you a link, but there is a picture of my race car in my build thread in the Paddock under AR-14. It's on page 2, and is a plastic off road tank that holds about 6 gallons. This tank comes in a 11 gallon tank also. Just a different idea.

Not to rain on any parades, but the frunk also serves as a crumple zone. I proved this when I collided on-track in my SCCA-PCA race car. The front end collapsed up against the front bulkhead. The stock tank in the stock location got a small dent but was otherwise intact. The impact was hard enough to put a kink in the floor pan, and break the mounting ears from the transaxle.

I would not put a gas tank, even a fuel cell, forward of the bulkhead.

Factory put the tank where they did for a reason. Unless you need the area the tank goes in for some other use, why not use the same location? Will be less modification required on your part.

I get the crumple zones BUT all the early 911 had the fuel tank in the front. Click to view attachment

That might have been a trade-off in the quest for weight balance. Some of those early cars also had cast iron weights in the front bumpers.

If you'll look carefully, you might notice that a 911 is not a 914... The front structure is built quite differently, and more than likely is designed to actually have the tank in front like that.

--DD