What Gas tank pad

[65Vart]

I'm just about to order a new gas tank pad from DMT.
They have two available; .250" Foam Rubber or .070 Felt paper (OEM)
Which one should I buy ? to me the foam makes more sense.

 

[g413]

The photo shows an edge view of the original vs the foam replacement, which I bought. It probably does not make a lot of difference. They both prevent movement of the tank against the underside of the trunk floor.

 

[rustycowll69]

I'm just about to order a new gas tank pad from DMT.
They have two available; .250" Foam Rubber or .070 Felt paper (OEM)
Which one should I buy ? to me the foam makes more sense.

if the foam rubber can absorb water, that would be a very bad idea. I had a 76 w200 with the optional sliding rear window. If it rained hard, the window channel would weep a teeny bit. It was such a small amount, and the floor hardly ever got even damp, so I didn't worry about it. Years passed, and I started to smell gas fumes in the cab when I filled the extra tank, occasionally. I emptied the tank, and stopped filling the tank. The fumes stopped. Eventually, I found time to remove the auxiliary tank mounted to the rear of the cab.The tank was installed at the factory with a foam rubber strip, probably to quiet the tank or keep it from rubbing against the rear cab wall. Anyway, when I removed the foam rubber, there was a thousand teeny pin holes in the tank where the foam rubber held the water against the bare steel of the tank.

 

[69_340_GTS]

It would have to rain pretty hard or be a flood of some kind to have the pad, which is above the tank, to absorb and retain much water. I don't think you have much to worry about. If the foam is "closed-cell" foam rubber, even better.

 

[kiss]

There's a member here who makes them and sells them. Can't recall who it was. Great price and looks like a quality product. I got one from him a few months ago and will be installing it along with my new tank next month.

 

[TrailBeast]

The foam will retain water if it's open cell like rustycowl mentioned.
Even in a small rain there is a TON of mist off tires that goes EVERYWHERE.