So I am someone with very little experience in restoring cars. Actually the car gene skipped my family entirely, but with help I am going to do my best to restore a 1970 Cougar convertible that my wife inherited. Not to original condition, but a good attempt to make it run and look very nice. This past weekend I removed the gas tank which had been sitting for many years with fuel ( or at least what I would assume was fuel) in it. I have decided to replace it rather than try to clean it and when I search for a replacement online I keep getting directed to a ford mustang tank. I’m told that cougars and mustangs of that era did have parts that could be used in either one and so my big question is will a gas tank from a 1970 mustang fit into my cougar? Measurements appear to be right on, I’m just not sure if the holes will line up or anything else.
I thank you for any guidance and I am pretty sure that I’ll be back again.
Yes it will. You do need to know if your Cougar has the California evaporative emissions on the tank. That is an easy thing to tell. If your tank had a plastic attachment on the top going to the left hand side of the trunk with more Black Plastic aporatis then it is a California tank and you can not get a new one. Otherwise it is an easy job. I recommend you have the sender unit rebuilt by Bill Basore, the reproductions aRe not that good. If you do have a cali car all is not lost. You can use a 49 state tank, but you must get a filler neck for a 70 Cougar W/O emissions.
Good luck and post pictures…
Since you now have the car, did you get a locksmith to make a key or did you do something else to transport it?
The correct replacement tank is the 22 gallon with out a drain plug.
Where in NH are you? I am in Merrimack.
Try here for tanks. Great prices & same ones everybody carries/sells
I’ve heard you can put the 1970 tank into the 68, but with some modifications.
Just curious.
It drops in but you lose about three inches of trunk depth. (the '70 tank is taller). You also need the '70 sender to show the top 6 gallons of gas. If you have an XR7 the '70 low fuel sender has a different pin out so you need to change the plug and rewire accordingly.
I have the base model and I don’t think that a low level light was ever installed in mine.
I already figured that the tank and sender go together. What about the filler neck? Does that also have to be a 1970 or will the stock 1968 work?
If it’s 3 inches higher, it probably had to be shortened by 3 inches unless the one on the tank is different.
I only get 13 miles per gallon, runs great but I never pass a gas station!!
The couple people that I know who put the 70 tank in an earlier Cougar(67/68/69) used the 70 filler neck. I would like to know how the 67/68 filler neck looks in place. My thought is that you could cut it down.