I pulled the bed,pretty easy.

 

I changed the fuel pump on mine and didn't take the front strap off.Get the gas out,take everything loose, then take the rear strap completely off and start to loosen the front strap but, don't take the bolt allthe way out.It will drop down enough to change the pump out.

 

So do you need the jack the vehicle up or can you do it at stock height on a 4 wheel drive?

 

Stock height and a level concrete work area. The jack aids in dropping the tank when there is some fuel in it.

 

Really the easiest way to get the fuel tank, full or not is the remove the bed, like 8 bolts, the taillights and a ground strap and you are good to go. You will just need some of your buddys help to lift the bed off. Also doing it this way you wont have to drop the tank again if the fuel pump isn't the problem.

 

Motorcycle/ATV jack works well.



[IMG]local://upfiles/29187/6460BE7F74BA41CC9DCFFDA7E890F796.jpg[/IMG]

 

guys, dropping the tank was a snap... 30~40 minutes max, no buddies needed (empty), 1 jack with a 2x4 to balance it. just do what you can to empty it as much as you can before you drop it. if you cant, then get at least 1 other person to help balance it while you drop it.

 

Since I made that first post WELL over a year ago I have tried the pulling the bed method on a '99 Silverado Shortbox. First of all, I would NEVER recommend doing the bed method on a long box. And if you don't have a LARGE engine hoist, I wouldn't recommend doing it on a short box either. I did it by myslef with a hoist, and it was real quick. 8 bolts, the filler neck, and 2 plugs (which GM put on a connection block right in the open) and the bed lifted right off. It wasn more than a 1 person job getting everything lined up again though.

I had to run the hoist all the way out to get enough reach though, and even then it still wasn't as much as I would've liked. Plus it wasn't my truck, so I had to be extra careful not to ding or scratch anything. It's not fun getting it over the wheels either, especially if you have large tires (the silverado had 265s).

If I had to do another one (and I'm sure I will), I would stick to the tank method. Much quicker!

Pics from the Silverado:



[IMG]local://upfiles/16690/8564435B09A045DFA1052204CECA39F8.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/16690/8DF071D55623403EBCBB801CABE47B33.jpg[/IMG]

 

Your garage looks so much nicer, organized, and bigger than mine back home, I'm jealous.

 

Yeah those atv/bike jacks would be perfect for the job

I put my 96 on stands & lowered the tank with my jack. Used a 3' length of 2x10 and balanced it. Pretty easy though I did curse at the little red fuel line clip.