In a message dated 98-07-18 02:53:40 EDT, austins@IX.NETCOM.COM writes:

<< It's time to get close & personal with your fuel tank!!  LOTS of fun,
 schedule an afternoon to do the job right.

 Get _every_ piece of rubber (~7?) that goes into the tank from your local
 VW dealer before you start, especially the crossover tube assembly (don't
 neglect the humongous rubber donut for the filler tube).

 Drop the tank (as close to empty as possible), clean it carefully (look for
 rust-through - you're SOL if it's there); replace the rubber inserts,
 pre-position the crossover tube ass'y, re-raise the tank replacing hoses as
 you can.  >>

Although I don't know much about this service yet, I would think that if you
can leave the van off the road for a couple of days, NOW would be the best
time to take the tank to one of the tank-fixer folks that scrub out the tank
and coat it with epoxy (or some other durable material).

The tank placement and design is absolutely perfect, if your goal is having
the top of the tank rust through. If you can't leave the van off the road, or
live in the boonies, away from tank-fixing folks, I'd at least scrub the top
of the tank thoughoughly with Scotchbrite pads, and paint with a two-part
epoxy paint. Remember, NO WIRE BRUSHING on fuel tanks, unless the vanagon list
is in your will. :)

gmbulley
cary, nc