[Pecosbill]

We just replaced the sending unit in our 64 Lemans about 4 months ago. Shell Oil had a problem with too much sulphur getting into a batch of their gasoline, which we unfortunately must have gotten in our tank. The bad gas ate up the contacts on the sending unit, making the gauge needle peg all the way on full. What a pain in the butt!

The good news is that if you have to replace the sending unit, you can do so without dropping the gas tank. We filled up the tank and then drove the car about 300 miles to where we felt pretty sure that it was low on fuel. Then we jacked up the front end of the car, which made the remaining fuel run to the backof the tank. We then removed the sending unit without so much as a drop of gas coming out of the tank.

If you're experiencing problems with so many of the electrical components in the rear of the car, I would check out the ribbon harness from the fusebox back to where it plugs in under the rear seat. Take the rear seat out, get another harness and plug it into both connectors and see if things improve. Check the contact points in the harness and see if they are corroded or have a greenish buildup on them.

Also make sure you have the two grounding straps running between the motor and firewall and the one from the passenger side fender well to the frame. Your battery ground is connected to the motor, so it is imperative that your motor to firewall ground be a good one. You wouldn't believe the number of motorswappers who just leave these straps off inadvertantly and then wonder why they're having electrical problems.