Gas Tank Replacement

[clovett]

Ok so I've had to work on other projects and just got back to the 86 325e so far I've replaced

gas tank
both gas pumps
all fuel line
timing belt and water pump
starter rebuilt
alternator rebuilt
replaced all radiator hoses
filler assembly
washers under oil tube
pulled and cleaned the intake
cleaned the injectors
changed the oil
filled the cooling system with water (it's in a garage and I will replace with 50/50 after it runs)
new battery
Marvel Mystery oil in the cylinders
new spark plugs

So I'm ready to put gas in it and see if it starts when checking to make sure all gas lines are secure I see the two small lines that go over the in tank pump. I didn't know what they were until I started checking. So now that I know it has a gas expansion tank here are my questions.

Since the gas tank was a huge disaster of rancid 18 year old gas and rust I'm guessing the expansion tank is also in a bad condition?

Regardless as long as the car is not moving gas should not go into the expansion tank should it? I really want to start the car but I don't want to suck trash from the expansion tank and ruin my good work either.

Thoughts?

[Stück]

The expansion tank doesn't generally have liquid gasoline in it, its more a vapor storage tank that may find itself with some liquid in it if you overfill the tank or if thermal expansion were to occur.

I've parted out and worked on many E30's and never seen one of those tanks dirty inside.

[clovett]

The expansion tank doesn't generally have liquid gasoline in it, its more a vapor storage tank that may find itself with some liquid in it if you overfill the tank or if thermal expansion were to occur.

I've parted out and worked on many E30's and never seen one of those tanks dirty inside.

Thanks. I was just confused because some people call it an expansion tank and some call it an overflow tank. I thought it might have been metal and corroded. I pulled the wheel and panel last night and inspected it.

Put 6 gallons of gas in it today and while it won't idle it fired right up and will hold at about 1500 rpm. No smoke and runs smooth so for a car that sat for 18 years I'm happy. Now I just gotta get it to idle and I'll be moving on to getting the clutch/pressure plate, transmission and rear axle seals done.