Ok so I decided that a fuel pump sending unit was the culprit of my two gages not working, so on with it.

Dropping the tank was not in the cards for me. I opted for the path of least resistance so I cut a door in the cargo area big enough to get the job done.
"Why not just drop the tank like everyone else" you ask? Well I'm not everyone else. As well I have done the whole tank thing only to find out that the unit I bought would turn out to be a dud and have to go all through that mess again.

The great thing about the access panel in the cargo area is just that, better access again and again without dropping the tank.
The steel is fairly soft and easy to chew through with a cutoff wheel and a hand drill. I very seriously doubt that this hole will compromise the Jeeps structural integrity.
I took a couple of measurements, drilled a half inch hole so I could shine a light into to see if I hit the mark, drew my lines and proceeded to cut being very careful not to go to deep and cut the fuel lines.

The first pic shows the carnage. I cannot stress enough that you must take a file and smooth the razor like edges of what you've cut. I learned that the hard way on the last car I did this to. STITCHES!!

The second pic shows the new pump installed and a support bar that I made to keep the flap from collapsing down when I load the cargo area.

Third pic shows the flap closed and screwed down tight along with the sealer I intend to use to close the wounds.

Fourth pic show the project done. Some of the bigger holes required me to cut small pieces of clear flat packaging plastic and seal them over the gaps.

All in all this project went fine and I intend to do it this way from now on with all of my vehicles and to thumb my nose at the engineers who put an electric pump in the gas tank of all places and making it harder for average folk such as myself to do their own repair.

 

Hmmm very intresting,ive come to the conclusion my fuel pumps shot on my grand cherokee and i dont fancy dropping the tank either especially has it has all the lpg pipes there as well,i was considering fitting an external fuel pump but im not sure it would work,but now ive seen what you have done im tempted to do the same very good idea and im glad you shared it.

 

Sharing info and ideas is what these forums are all about. Hope my post can help.

 

I'm not a huge fan of cutting the floor to get at the pump, but it does work. If this was a 90's Camaro, I would cut the trunk floor in a heart beat.

 

I did this same job on my 87' Conquest TSI and made a nice little form fitted plastic lid and it looked stock. This is how I am going to do this from now on. I can't really think of any cons about doing it.

 

It would be nice if the engineers thought of including a trapdoor for the fuel pump like a lot of import fwd cars have under the back seat.

 

All of the first gen Z cars have a "trap door" in the hatch to get to the float assembly. The pump was mounted near the right rear and made it easy to replace. I miss my Z.

 

Just make sure it's sealed, not so much for water as for exhaust gasses. I knew a man who died by sleeping in a CJ with a torn shift boot! He was out deer hunting, went back to the jeep to get warm and fell asleep with the engine running. His friends found him about 2 hrs later.

 

Taken care of, but thanks for the heads up.

 

Thanks for the pics, looks easier than dropping my receiver hitch, skidplate and dropping the tank. I think I'll make an actual plate to cover the hole though. Make sure it seals well, as I camp in my Jeep frequently.

 

I have a trailer hitch as well and I didn't even think about having to take that off. I saved myself more work than I thought.

 

Excellent idea.... Ill most likely do the exact same thing when my 194k fuel pump finally takes a dump!

 

I feel I must repeat.........I cannot stress enough that you must take a file and smooth the razor like edges of what you've cut. I learned that the hard way on the last car I did this to. STITCHES!!