1940 Cadillac 62 coupe gas tank vs 1941 or other manufacturers

[Percy]

Hi All,

I need help replacing my 1940 Cadillac series 62 gas tank. I searched the forum and there were a few topics on this but no resolution. There was a suggestion that a 1941 series 62 tank would fit but the measurements posted online don't match what I have or are even close so I think this is a false statement for the series 62. My tank measures 36.5" x 23.5" x 7.5". The 1941 Cad/Buick tanks I see for sale measure 31.5" x 27.5" x 7.5". The difference between the 23.5" and 27.5" makes it seems like the 1941 tank would not come close to fitting between the rear cross member and the cross member over the differential. That said you can make anything work but it seems like another tank closer in dimension would be easier to fit. Has anyone found a solution or is a custom tank/installation the only hope?

Thanks for your help,
Percy 

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

As I have suggested yesterday. your searches would be much easier if you had the correct books. In a couple of minutes, I found out that your 1940-62 has the same gas tanks as 1939 LaSalle and Cadillac /61. Also 1940 LaSalle Series 50 except hearses. Also 1940 LaSalle 52 and 1940 Cadillac 62. 1941 is not the same. Glad to help, but your having the books to hand will save you frustration and $$$/. They can be found on eBay under 1941-1947 Cadillac Chassis Parts Catalog/1941-1947 Cadillac Body Parts Catalog. Good luck.

[Percy]

Thanks Barry,

I’m aware of all the crosses but all these are unavailable. There was a post a few years ago saying a 1941 tank would work with slight modification but no follow up so I thought I’d bring it back up. It just seems odd to me since the 1940 and 1941 coupes are the same gm c-body yet the tanks are so different besides the obvious neck.  I guess I’ll look into welding up a tank with the correct dimensions.

Thanks,
Percy

[39LaSalleDriver]

your 1940-62 has the same gas tanks as 1939 LaSalle and Cadillac /61. Also 1940 LaSalle Series 50 except hearses. Also 1940 LaSalle 52 and 1940 Cadillac 62.

This being the case, I might be of some small service as I recently went through this same issue with my 39 LaSalle Series 50.

Since there are no reproduction LaSalle tanks made, I followed advice from this board and installed one from a 1953 Chevy. One from Tanks Inc., their model 53-CGX to be exact. (keep in mind I'm not working on a points car). I did this because I wanted a reliable, brand new tank with as much capacity as possible. The tank I had was leaking, and wasn't original to the car anyway, so why not start new?

What I found was that I was very impressed with the build quality and materials, and it fit right in with no issues whatsoever. The down side I have to it is that I have had issues with capacity. They advertise the CG model to have a 16 gallon capacity, and the CGX model to have an 18 gallon capacity. But I'll be dogged if I can seem to get more than 14-15 gallons in my CGX. I don't know if they sent me the wrong tank, their figuring or my figuring is off, configuration I have leaves gas in the tank even when I run out of gas or what, but that's the most I can get out of it. I've not been able to get the fuel sender unit and/or the dash gauge working right so that doesn't tell me anything. Basically, I keep a two gallon can of gas in the trunk and run it until I run out of gas and then use my reserve and head for the nearest station.

[Percy]

Thanks Jon,

That’s exactly what I needed! I must have missed that post in my search. My Cadillac is not a points car. It was too far gone to enjoy that life but I’m bringing it back the best I can. I’ll look into the Chevy tank.

Thanks,
Percy

[39LaSalleDriver]

Glad to help. I don't know if it makes any difference or not, but I should point out that mine is a four door sedan not a coupe. I also didn't mention price. I was able to shop around and get mine for $200 shipped...not bad at all.

This was the post that turned me on to these:

http://forums.cadillaclasalleclub.org/index.php?topic=147833.msg379088#msg379088