My fuel tank cradle is completely rusted through. Has anybody replaced one and are there any guides on how to do it?

Same here but I haven't managed to source a new one yet. I think the prop shaft and the exhaust have to come off but I wonder if the tank and all it's pipes and wires stays in place and you just drop the cradle or if the whole lot has to come out. Interesting that Evoque ones seem to be available so maybe if we wait long enough some aftermarket items will appear. Meanwhile I've coated mine in Waxoyl and lanoguard. No doubt the rust is munching away at it from the other side

It seems quite common, looking at the guides it doesn't seem too big a job, probably rear exhaust section off, one end of prop and a few bolts to release the guard.

The tank cradle on my RR has also started to rust, mostly around the drain holes and it seems there is a water trap here where the cradle and tank meet.

At some point I want to drop the cradle out and have it blasted and then galvanised and then painted with a good under seal and that should stop the problem reoccurring.

I am also trying to understand if the cradle physically supports the tank or if it is a separate piece that just acts as a guard to protect the tank.

I believe that the cradle supports the tank which makes me wonder if the tank stays in place, making sure it's almost empty of course, or if it has to be dropped out. I think other models have straps to keep it in place but not the L405.

Main agent quoted me £990 all in incl Vat to replace this on another L405 2021 L405 Vogue SE 4.4 V8 DIESEL ~ #17

Yes, the cradle holds the tank in place

As Mikey says the fuel tank shares bolts with the cradle, I had mine off when I dropped the rear subframe to change the ACE pipes, I couldn't find a replacement so the old one went back.... If the bottom rusted through it will still hold the tank in place and under "normal" driving you won't be using the guard so you will be OK for a considerable time...

Exhaust and prop off to replace it, I don't think you could do it just dropping one end of the prop, I don't think there would be enough room... The bolts holding it are steel into the alloy body so you have the chance of the bolts galling and corrosion around them, all mine came out OK and got treated etc

Pretty sure you would have to disconnect the tank from it's fill and supply lines and drop the cradle and tank as one piece then change the cradle....

Not a massive job but the props can be very very tight and difficult to remove if doing it on the drive...  Pete

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2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

Tha is for the info Pete. Nothing beats hearing it from someone who has actually done the job.

I replaced mine in position without disconnecting any of the fuel tank itself or lines. The same bolts hold the cradle in place as hold the tank up, but when you undo the cradle, you can put some cable ties through the plastic holes in the tank and tie the tank up in position.

1. Remove exhaust and propshaft.

2. Loosen but do not remove main bolts holding cradle to body.

3. Fully remove the two cradle bolts that go through the plastic mounting tabs that are molded into the fuel tank. You should now be able to shimmy the plastic tank away from the cradle, and free up space between the cradle and fuel tank plastic tabs.

4. Use strong cable ties and place 3 in each of the 2 plastic holes the are in the fuel tank mounting tabs, connecting the cable ties in different radial locations to the body to spread the load (see below pics).

5. Remove remaining cradle bolts. Cradle should lift away relatively easily with fuel tank remaining in position.

6. Reassemble with replacement cradle.

Top tip: I would only attempt this with a relatively low level of fuel in the tank. I did mine with about 1/3-1/4 fuel level, and it was OK. It would've been easier though to manipulate the tank free and support it had I had even less fuel in the tank.

Pics of where I mounted my cable ties:

Click image to enlarge

Word of warning to anyone like me that sees some surface rust underneath the cradle and thinks they should be able to wire brush, treat, and paint it. These cradles rot from the inside. As soon as I put a stiff wire brush on it to remove what I thought was surface rust, the brush went through the cradle before I was able to find any solid metal to the tank, and the cradle disintegrated into a pile of rotten metal on my garage floor.

To be honest, this failure is quite shocking. Especially as this is not actually a fuel tank guard alone, it is actually the cradle and only part that through mounts and secures the tank to the body, and as such is a critical part in securing the tank in the event of an accident, etc..

Also absolutely shocking that Land Rover haven’t independently acted to resolve this as it is clearly safety related issue, and even more so as I could not purchase a new service part as, although safety related, they were “no longer available”.

After unsuccessfully looking at 3 different salvage vehicles in Michigan to source a tank cradle in decent condition, I was able to source one from a salvage yard in a southern USA state - clearly had never seen salt. When I received it, I gave it a good rust prep treatment, painting, and wax before assembling back on the vehicle.

Good luck in the hunt 👍 I paid $300 including shipping for a used one, I have seen some on eBay now for almost double that. The word is out on how rare and sought after good used cradles are.


The rotted through right hand side looked like the left hand side before I tried to clean it up:


Didn’t take long for this pile to form on my garage floor…cradle crumbled like a Cadbury’s chocolate flake…

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Many thanks lads. This thread will be invaluable to those of us planning to do the job in the future........just hope I can fathom out how to save it.
Thanks again

NoHandSignals

Cheers for that....  Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

Thanks, Pete. Glad to contribute for once instead of just asking questions

Many thanks Nohands! As this one is on my list too  2013 L405 3.0 TdV6 Autobiography Barolo Black
2004 L322 3.0 Td6 Vogue Cairns Blue (gone)
2000 P38 2.5 DSE (gone)