Bill,

You should be fine with the tank swap. It's a PIA, but not all that
complicated.

The biggest pain on mine was getting the front of the bus high enough off
the ground to allow the gas tank support straps to unhook. As I recall they bolt
 up in the front and then have to swing dow--and down far enough to allow the
 hooks on the back end to be clear enough to remove them. I may have the
bolting  backwards. They may bolt in the back and unhook from the front. But
either way  height is a key factor in getting them off.

Having said that it's not that the bus needs to be six feet off the ground.
It's just it needs to be high enough to make it a pain. Higher than your floor
 jack wants to lift it.

All the hoses up top are fairly straight forward. Depending on your
climate--I was in hot Burbank desert for a few years--you might want to consider  what
hose you use up top. the standard hose from VW lasted about 15 years  from VW
factory on my tank then started to weep and smell of fuel. So replaced  it
with the same style hose--regular fabric coated fuel line.

If I had it all to do over again--and it turns out I do--I'd try using fuel
injection hose. The idea is the fuel injection hose might last longer in the
desert climate I'm in now. However if daily high temperatures and dryness are
not an issue then the regular hose should be fine. Like I said, back in the
east  in the humid summers the breakdown of the hose didn't seem as qucik as
the  breakdown in the desert.

I replaced the T fittings in the top of the tank and the seals and the
crossover plastic pipe. For the $60 or so it costs I'd rather do it while you  haev
the tank out instead of having to do it in a year. And it's old, so a bit  of
preventative maintainance may save you, or arguably will save you, dropping
the tank again.

I think I got new seals for the Ts as well. The seal went in first while  the
tank was out from under the bus. The crossover hose gets strug up where  it
belongs under the bus. Lift the tank up to the T crossover and plug in  the Ts
to the new seals or grommets you might call them. Then list the tank the  rest
fo the way and bolt it up. A little lube on the seals will help pop the  Ts
into the seals. But whatever it is use it sparingly and use something  that
won't muck up your fule supply because more than likely a bit will get in  the
tank.

A helper can make the job easier as the tank is kind of bulky and you're on
your back under the bus. So installation and removal could use the aid of a
helper.

I would run the tank as close to empty as you can get it to make it lighter
and less possibility of  a mess. You can drain the remaining gasoline by
disconnecting the hose that comes off the tank toward the fuel pump.

I dont think I've left too much out. Two floor jacks, even if one is  small
might make lifiting the tank into place easier. I can't recall exactly how  I
lifted the tank. But like I said, all in all, it's not terribly  difficult.

Best,
Jeff
83.5 Westy
LA,CA

In a message dated 7/13/2005 9:50:06 AM Pacific Standard Time,
Bill.MacLachlan@CITY.BURNABY.BC.CA writes:

but I  have an uneasy feeling...the "what couldpossibly go  wrong?"
feeling....