What color should a fuel tank for a 53 buick special be painted, I don't know if it is primer color gray or black? Thanks for your help.

It is actually supposed to be galvanized. If you are restoring a car to be judged I don't know if they would deduct points for having it painted or not. I do remember hearing a person who was getting very loud at a local judged meet because he was docked points for having a painted tank. Personally I believe it is a bit much to expect a gas tank to be re-galvanized. I would just come as close as I could with paint. I would have to add too that I haven't had much luck myself with so called metal finish paints. And then how about when you take a gas tank in for cleaning or repairs such as what is termed "renu"? The tank is coated with a black coating when it is done. Obviously, even though spending lots of money to get a quality job it still isn't really going to be correct.

Most of the "radiator" shops that also do fuel tanks usually don't recoat them, if they were coated or painted anything other than "natural galvanize". At one time, there were internal coatings and such, but not specifically for the outside (that I'm aware of).

Seems like Eastwood has some "cold galvanize" coating . . . Unless there is some sort of natural coating on the metal, or it's "pickled" correctly before use, the tank will rust internally. I suspect this "coating" is what many of the hobby people had to do with their earlier vintage tanks, which also raised the concerns about the "new fangled" fuels attacking those coatings.

Remember that most fuel tanks will not have any external coatings, unless they were not galvanized from the factory. Fuel tanks most probably were attached to the undercarriage (or body) after all of the paintwork on the bodies was completed. Only "extra" thing might be some overspray from the possible undercoating activities on the assembly line. Saving $25 cents of paint on each fuel tank used results in a huge savings in the end, especially if galvanized metal is the "spec" material for the tank anyway.

It was pointed out several years ago, that "silver" fuel tanks were appropriate as they would reflect any reflected heat from the roadway, there lessening heat-related fuel expansion in the earlier tanks (which did not have expansion chambers internally, as may "evaporative emissions" control tanks might) and the related "overflow" from the vent tube in hotter weather.

It might be a "lost cause" but researching "unmolested" or "unrestored" similar vehicles might be the best "indicator", but you could do a lot worse ( judging wise ) than to leave it "natural galvanize" or a freshened version thereof. Under-vehicle tanks would be different, exterior finish wise, than a tank that was a prominent body topside -- and exposed from the top side -- fuel tank.

Just some thoughts,
NTX5467