Draining the Gas Tank on the Citroen D Model…

Ready to drain the tank…

Now that you have the D Model safely up on jack stands and everything is stable it is time to proceed with draining the tank of the D Model. (I will first explain this for a sedan, and then come back with the few things that are different for the wagon)

With the Citroen up on its jack stands, you can remove the lug nuts on that right rear wheel the rest of the way, and remove and put the wheel out of the way, or slide it under the car for additional safety.

As you look at the inner fender with the wheel removed you will notice the route of the fuel filler neck as it travels down the inner fender liner/trunk wall on it’s way to the gas tank which is located under the rear passenger seat.

Don’t forget to get some good penetrant…

Find some good quality spray penetrant, and spray the 8mm nuts that attach the hold down straps for this fuel filler neck to the inner fender liner/trunk wall. These buggers are constantly being bathed in road grime splashing up from the wheel and can often be very rusty and prone to snap off when you attempt to remove them. We don’t want that to happen if at all possible.

You also want to spray the penetrant on the 8mm nuts that hold down what we call the “gravel shield” This is the sheet metal cover that you will see down in the corner of the fender liner covering the fuel filler neck as it goes into the unitized frame of the Citroen on it’s way to the fuel tank. Spray all of these nuts heavily, and we will get back to them in a bit after that penetrant has had a chance to soak in.

Take out the seat…

Next go around and open the rear door on the driver’s side of the D Model so that both rear doors are open. While you are over there reach down and put your hand under the front edge of the rear seat cushion and lift up. Go around to the other side of the Citroen and do the same thing, giving the seat cushion a lift up.

This will free the rear cushion off of the plastic plug type pins that hold it in place and you can then lift the front edge of the seat up and lift it out of the Citroen and put it in a safe place. Next you want to remove the rear back cushion. For this you will need to remove two bolts. One on each side. Feel your hand at the two bottom back corners and you should find two 8mm bolts with 11mm, or 12mm heads depending on the vintage of your D Model.

Take your open end wrench of the correct size and remove these two bolts. It’s tight under there and you will probably only be able to get a portion of a turn at a time, but be patient. (Here is where you will find out how many of the bolts found on Citroens are much longer then they need to be).

Once these bolts are out, you want to lift up on one corner, then go around to the other side and lift up on that corner. What you will find is that the top of the seat is held in place by two hooks on each side that hook the top of the seat to the rear window, or speaker ledge. Free the top of the seat from these two sockets and remove it from the D Model.

There’s the tank cover plate…

With the seat completely removed you can see into the trunk area. You will also notice a cover plate that was under the rear seat cushion and covers the fuel tank compartment. First, remove the seat belts if the car has them. A 5/8″, or 17mm should fit these. Once those are removed, remove the rest of the 11mm or 12mm headed bolts that hold this cover plate down.

Once these are removed pull up on the back side of the plate. You will notice that it is stuck down a bit, but it should hinge up toward the front. Once you do this carefully slide it out of its hinge and out of the car. You are now looking at the fuel tank!!! This can also be a favorite area in D Models for mice to make nests, so if you see any evidence of them put on a face mask so that you aren’t breathing in anything they may have left behind.

Now it is time to drain the gas tank. Hopefully there is not too much fuel in there, but we have to be prepared. Full, the tank holds a little over 15 gallons, so have enough cans and pans to accomidate this amount. Surprises are a pain when you are draining a gas tank and don’t have enough containers for everything.

You don’t need any surprizes…

If the tank is pretty full you will want to pump some out from the top first. In the center top of the tank toward the front you will notice a round gizmo with a triangular top that raises up on it and a wire that plugs into it. This is the fuel level sending unit and you want to remove it. Unplug the wire and put it to the side, out of the way.

You will notice two brass screws in the top of the unit, remove them. Now, carefully pull up on the unit. There is a float attached to it with a wire arm that travels off to the side, so be careful as you remove it so that you take this into consideration. You will have to give the unit a twist so that you can get the float out. Go slow, you will see what I am talking about.

Once removed you can look down into the tank with a flash light and see how full it is. This is where you can use that siphon if it has a good bit of fuel in it. Siphon the fuel into the empty fuel cans that you have.

Once you can’t siphon any more, look under the D Model. Here you should find two brass plugs. The one on the passenger side has a 21mm head and the one on the drivers side has a 12mm head.

Remember, they’re BRASS…

Remember, I said brass. They are soft and prone to rounding off so make sure you use a six point socket on them. Get a couple of large oil drain pans and put them under these drain plugs. Find some suitable rubber gloves for your hands and carefully start to remove the 12 mm one that is on the drivers side. Let it drain out and when it pretty much slows down to a trickle, come over to the passenger side.

Now this one has a very shallow head on it, so take care with that six point socket so that you stay square on the head and don’t round it off. Remove the plug and try not to let gas run up your arm to your arm pit, cause it’s not much fun. Finish draining the tank and put the fuel into the proper gas cans, seal them up, and store them in the proper manner.

Next time we will be removing the D Model Gas tank from the car so stay tuned…

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