50+ gallon aftermarket fuel tanks... ground clearance?

[Hardtop]

Didn't want to hijack another member's thread with an unrelated subject. Searched, but nothing came up. Serious Dumb Question for all of you with these larger aftermarket tanks.... do you worry about less ground clearance? Even S&B's site says it is 2.4 inches lower than the stock 32 gallon tank. Granted, these are trucks, not rock crawlers, but the first time I wiggled under my '22 3500 short bed I was amazed at that plastic tank waiting to get hit by road debris.

I see the advantage of a larger tank for towing range, and am giving it some serious thought. But having some pretty rugged skid plates for my modified jeep (DIY full oil pan/front wrap-around exhaust skid, DIY beefier t-case skid, aftermarket gas tank with skid) would make me want to create something to provide that larger fuel tank with some protection.

Again, not casting doubts on these products, just curious.

 

[flan]

Didn't want to hijack another member's thread with an unrelated subject. Searched, but nothing came up. Serious Dumb Question for all of you with these larger aftermarket tanks.... do you worry about less ground clearance? Even S&B's site says it is 2.4 inches lower than the stock 32 gallon tank. Granted, these are trucks, not rock crawlers, but the first time I wiggled under my '22 3500 short bed I was amazed at that plastic tank waiting to get hit by road debris.

I see the advantage of a larger tank for towing range, and am giving it some serious thought. But having some pretty rugged skid plates for my modified jeep (DIY full oil pan/front wrap-around exhaust skid, DIY beefier t-case skid, aftermarket gas tank with skid) would make me want to create something to provide that larger fuel tank with some protection.

Again, not casting doubts on these products, just curious.

Good question, I usually use my truck for towing our camper but when we reach our destination we go exploring and sometimes that takes us into some pretty sketch roads. Added capacity is a plus, sometimes with pluses comes negatives. I’ll be following along for sure!

 

[cj8rockcrawler]

I've wondered the same. My 22 already seems to be quite a bit lower to the ground than my 04.

 

[elephantrider]

the titan is something like 3" lower. s&b is a tad shallower.

 

[dogbreath650]

Armor it, lift it or be damn careful on sketchy roads. I'm with you as I'm used to driving a modified LJ on the trails. When I pull my travel trailer the Jeep needs to stay home. When I park the camper and go exploring with the truck the unknown trails just call to me, it's hard resisting. I have been towing with a LB dually which limited my exploring but my new truck is a SRW std bed. I was looking at the S&B for the range but that lower drop has me worried. I don't want to lift the truck and don't have the fab skills to come with a gas tank skid so I'm not sure if I'll go with the larger tank or not, still mulling it over. If you do come up with a skid plate for it, please post up some pictures!

 

[MooneyFWD]

I have 15.5" of ground clearance in the parking lot with my Titan tank. 3.25" Carli Pintop lift with 37's.

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

If ground clearance is an issue for you id just get a small aux tank in the bed

 

[Hardtop]

Called S&B just for info, they don't offer a fuel tank skid, nor do they know of another company making one to fit their tank. Titan's web site claims their tank is tough as heck, with a life time warranty (even if in a car wreck, per company video). Good to know.

Yeah, an aux tank is an option for fuel capacity. Gunna depend on bed space once we decide of a trailer type and hitch (leaning 5th wheel, with an auto slide hitch). I only ask because I crawled under the week-old truck and installed the t-case skid I ordered (dealer-found truck, it didn't come with the T-case skid). There is 15-1/4" ground clearance under the fuel tank while in my driveway, stock suspension and tires. So MooneyFWd is just about the same after all is said and done.

Guess I'm used to my old Jeep YJ -- spring over suspension, 2" lift leafs, 37" rubber.... about 23" to the t-case skid. But it's a different animal with a different purpose.