Rear or mid fuel cells?

A lot of people I see with mid cell and a big trunk in the back never use the trunk for anything notable because there’s almost too much room for stuff to fly around. The rear storage boxes we did on my truck give me the same exact amount of space as if I had a rear trunk but they’re divided and should be easier to keep stuff compact in Imo. Maybe not a huge tank like a 30 gallon rear mounted with storage on top would be a middle ground
 
RW81 said:
A lot of people I see with mid cell and a big trunk in the back never use the trunk for anything notable because there’s almost too much room for stuff to fly around. The rear storage boxes we did on my truck give me the same exact amount of space as if I had a rear trunk but they’re divided and should be easier to keep stuff compact in Imo. Maybe not a huge tank like a 30 gallon rear mounted with storage on top would be a middle ground
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That’s a very valid point. I have quite a bit of storage with my rear cell. 2 small action packers against the cab with spare fluids and spare alternator, ps pump, fuel pump, wheel bearings, coil, plugs, etc.
then a tray for 2 big action packers directly over the axle. One gets packed with clothes, jackets etc and the other gets a soft cooler for food/drinks.
 
RW81 said:
A lot of people I see with mid cell and a big trunk in the back never use the trunk for anything notable because there’s almost too much room for stuff to fly around. The rear storage boxes we did on my truck give me the same exact amount of space as if I had a rear trunk but they’re divided and should be easier to keep stuff compact in Imo. Maybe not a huge tank like a 30 gallon rear mounted with storage on top would be a middle ground
Click to expand...

With Milwaukee packout boxes avaialble, there is no reason why people can't easily secure stuff down in a trunk space IMO
 
RW81 said:
A lot of people I see with mid cell and a big trunk in the back never use the trunk for anything notable because there’s almost too much room for stuff to fly around. The rear storage boxes we did on my truck give me the same exact amount of space as if I had a rear trunk but they’re divided and should be easier to keep stuff compact in Imo. Maybe not a huge tank like a 30 gallon rear mounted with storage on top would be a middle ground
Click to expand...

Yeah I used action packers and held them into their spots with a small bracket on each side to keep from sliding sideways then a single strap holding them down. Then tool bags and boxes in same way. Thin sheet metal "tray" with a strap on top. Securing tools and bags in a large storage area isn't difficult if you're not lazy and do it from the get go for dedicated holders in dedicated spots. I had 2 action packers mounted with nothing in them so I could fill as i see needed during trips.
 
Rear mounted cell will always be my vote. With the correct shock package, weight, and setup you can do amazing things to the ride quality of a truck! We went with a 70 gallon cell on our truck, from 3/4 full to empty the truck feels drives very similar, however the more fuel I carry the "smoother" the truck feels in the rear.
 
desert_steve said:
Ive always bounced the idea around to mount the fuel cell in the rear, and the spare tire (just 1 for my setup) as far forward as I could get it, even if that means finagling it between the down tubes coming off the cab. Then run some kind of storage/trunk for tools and as much gear as I could fit, with an upper area to strap a cooler (that shits going to get "SHOOK"!) and whatnot to. Not a conventional setup by any means, but I wouldnt be building a race truck either. I mean, how often are we accessing our spare tires? In all my years of doing this stuff, Ive only ever changed my tire 3 times - other than that, its always in the damn way to access other stuff (which is 99% of the time).
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at the rate you use your truck, you got a flat on each trip you have been on in the last 15 years.
BURN.....
 
I have had mid mount cell with lots of storage and rear mount fuel cell. I believe both have their place. For optimum performance a rear mount cell is a must. I will probably never build a truck with a mid mount cell. On my current f150 I have a 70 gallon rear cell with plenty of room for a storage box that can hold a decent amount of stuff. I haven't had time to build the storage but soon. Fuel cell placement depends on the build.

Race truck/ I like to go fast/ full tilt boogy- rear mount cell.

Pretender/ overland / point to point. Mid mount cell with lots of storage. Probably good and will work just fine.
 
From a performance perspective, rear cell 100% is the way to go. I’ve had my hands inside a LOT of trucks with every setup you can think of, and without a doubt the rear cells work better every time. Also, every single truck I’ve worked on with a big rear trunk and mid cell was carrying no more than a tool pouch, battery, floor jack, and sailboat fuel, meaning they are dead empty. Also, mid cells are limited on fuel size and shape due to upper link clearance and shock clearance. Everyone has grand plans of loading their big storage trunks up with spare parts and tools and smuckers sandwiches and water bottle and whatever else but only on the occasional long trip is there ever anything back there. Meanwhile you’ll need a full fuel tank for damn near every trip so may as well get the weight where you will benefit from it every trip.

Aside from that, we all want our trucks to be balanced and skip over rough holes and the best way to achieve that is via balance front to rear. In short, trucks are like teeter-totters pivoting fore-aft around the rear shock mounts and links. With more rear weight, it literally lightens the front end of the truck and helps it pop and stay up.
 
DialedShockPrep said:
From a performance perspective, rear cell 100% is the way to go. I’ve had my hands inside a LOT of trucks with every setup you can think of, and without a doubt the rear cells work better every time. Also, every single truck I’ve worked on with a big rear trunk and mid cell was carrying no more than a tool pouch, battery, floor jack, and sailboat fuel, meaning they are dead empty. Also, mid cells are limited on fuel size and shape due to upper link clearance and shock clearance. Everyone has grand plans of loading their big storage trunks up with spare parts and tools and smuckers sandwiches and water bottle and whatever else but only on the occasional long trip is there ever anything back there. Meanwhile you’ll need a full fuel tank for damn near every trip so may as well get the weight where you will benefit from it every trip.

Aside from that, we all want our trucks to be balanced and skip over rough holes and the best way to achieve that is via balance front to rear. In short, trucks are like teeter-totters pivoting fore-aft around the rear shock mounts and links. With more rear weight, it literally lightens the front end of the truck and helps it pop and stay up.
Click to expand...
well said dude! I think your spot on about the big rear storage ideaology, always the idea that its gonna get loaded with a bunch of stuff and almost always ends up being damn near empty!
 
Yes my Tacoma had a lot of rear storage area and I only carried 1 37" spare, a craftsman socket set, an action packers with fluids one and one with tools. I weighed my heavy tool action packer after my accident and it was 105 lbs and fluids was only 50. So big area with only around 200 lbs plus the spare. It worked well with 40 gal mid cell but I know a rear cell it could've worked better, which is why I'm doing rear cell on my current truck and why I did bronco tank behind rear axle on my f150.
 
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