Actually it's coming from the fuel tank I believe. Anyway it's a '74 coupe and when I swerve or go around a corner it sounds like a softball rolling back and forth in the trunk. It seems like it might be the fuel gauge sender float, but the gauge works properly and isn't erratic or anything so...any ideas?


Corey

hey corey,
it could be any number of things,but i would start with a passenger in the trunk and see if they can narrow down the area it's coming from.if that doesn't work,push/shake the car from side to side when parked to see if you can replicate the noise.(keep in mind that sound transfers differently inside the cabin than outside,so get a buddy to rock the car while you sit in the driver's seat).try shaking exhaust pipes/mufflers and check to see if a shock absorber has gone kaputt......failing all these options,it' probably something in the fuel tank.i don't think the float would make that sound,but if the pick-up sock became dislodged from the pick-up tube,it might sound like that.it may also be something somebody purposely put into the tank as a prank or maliciously.either way the tank will have to come out if you think that's where the sound is coming from.
good luck,
leftcoast carl

At times of high stress when organized labor perceives their jobs and benefits are on the line they have been known to leave coke bottles or other souvenirs inside of a vehicle while being assembled as a means of getting back at "the man" (apparently forgetting that consumer dissatisfaction with the product has a greater impact on their job security than an economic down turn). As I type this the news reports that the AFL/CIO and UAW are in talks with their rank and file to cut benefits and hours to keep GM afloat.

I agree though that it most likely a suspension or exhaust part that is loose (because the car was built over thirty five years ago and somebody would have been curious about that noise by now).

Big Dave

Well, While laying on the ground behind and under the car while rocking it side to side, It really sounds like something metallic in the tank. Any possibility of baffles broken loose? I like the angry union guy idea better!

There were two large baffle plates that were spot welded to the bottom and sides of the tank to prevent sloshing. If broken loose they usually show up as a gas gauge that wanders up and down on hard braking or acceleration.

Big Dave

I also have the same problem, my car is a 74 sedan. you can hit the bottom of the tank with your hand and hear it bounce. I would really believe the UAW theory cause my gauge works fine. It just seems like some kind of foreign object in there.

Sounds like you guys need to just pull the tank and dump it out:thumbsup:

maybe it's Jimmy Hoffa :eek:

Golf balls fit nicely down the fill pipe.

I caught my son, 3 years old at the time, dropping rocks into a the tank of a truck I used to have, he said he like the sound of them rolling down the pipe. He is 28 now, maybe I should..............................no that wouldn't work cause I would be the one fixing it.

I was thinking a golf ball too. Might be the neighborhood kids trying to mess with you. We drove a guy crazy with putting rocks in his hubcaps. :D

Minuete rice does wonders in radiators :):):)

I could only imagine what rice in a radiator would do. as menace kids we would jam potatoes up tail pipes of old cranky guys that would spoil our fun while playing. Although, we never stuck around to see the results of our prank.... i feel bad for doing it now, but it seemed necessary at the time...

i bought (then sold) a '65 wagon... i pulled the gas tank to inspect the sender when i was updating the suspension etc and found the tank had a few surprises for me...

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y258/64Flyer/IMAG00042-2.jpg

i didn't see the hole in the tank 'til it was dropped... after dropping it i heard the rolling noises and when dumped... i found a couple dozen peach pits :( needless to say i replaced the tank & sender ;)

I could only imagine what rice in a radiator would do. as menace kids we would jam potatoes up tail pipes of old cranky guys that would spoil our fun while playing. Although, we never stuck around to see the results of our prank.... i feel bad for doing it now, but it seemed necessary at the time...

we all have done stupid things as young lads that we probably regret now, but seemed very necessary at the time.

Minuet rice jams the raditor tubes up, but generally only after heating the rice up to expand. So the vehicles is more than likely already down the road.

I wonder if maybe the stainer filter on the end of the pickup tube line inside the tank has fallen off. This filter keeps the large things from clogging the fuel line inside the tank and I think it is just a push on fit onto the pickup tube.

Jim