Reply to "GAS TANK"

The engine must come out, or you remove the left quarter panel. And while the engine and transaxle is out, you can do the following (what I call 'winter projects'):
#1- clean out the area behind the gas tank. It accumulates sand & dirt which holds water and we all know what THAT leads to.... A good shot of Rustoleum or POR-15 after cleaning will preserve the area for a decade or more.
#2- flip the ZF upside down (after plugging the breather tube), remove the bottom plate and check for the presence of safety-wire on the ring gear bolts. There are 10; be sure all of yours are still intact. The vendors have kits to do this, with instructions. Torquing the bolts (to 65-70 ft-lbs) is done with a crows-foot socket from Sears- basically an open-end wrench thats a socket for a torque wrench. The wrench size will depend on who's bolts you get. If you go slow 'n easy, the bottom cover will come off with the gasket intact. There are shim-washers at each end of the two long bolts; keep track of them 'cause they must go back, or you could crack the iron axle-plates on the sides during re-tightening.
#3- replace the (probably rotted) foam rubber the gas tank sits on. This stuff soaks up water and then holds it against the tank. Most tanks were unpainted and some have rusted through from the outside-in. The hold-down strap has the same stuff glued to it. Replace both with sheet rubber- old inner tubes are better than whats there as-stock. Lots of guys epoxy-paint the tank before returning the components to their places.
#4- replace ALL visible rubber fuel hoses., even the mmetal-braid covered ones up on top. This stuff is getting old, brittle and will someday crack, siphoning all your gas onto the ground (if you're luck) or onto the hot headers (if you're not).
Then go drive your better-than-new Pantera!