We have a wrecking yard and exclusively do Subarus. They all pretty much have a saddle tank arrangement that mkes getting them out non viable. We use several methods of getting the fuel out.

We have a couple of electric fuel pumps set up with hoses and a filter as well as crockadile clips on the end of long leads to connect to a battery. We cut the feed hose , attach the pump hose and just let the pump empty the tank. Not fast but you set it up and go on doing something else keeping an eye out when to change the drum if the tanks hasa lot in it.

Other way is to lift the back seat, undo the cover on the top of the tank where the Fuel pump and gauge sender is and pump or syphon from there.

Some tanks have drain plugs. The thing will be on the hoist anyway so undo them and drain into a drum.

Last resort is Just bore a whole in the tank. On Subys they are all plastic so no chance of sparks. Yes, Often the cordless drill gets fuel on it and in 15 years we have yet to have anything catch fire yet.



A lot of people have a lot of very overly dramatic and misinformed ideas about what causes explosions and what will cause fuel to burn etc. They tend to forget that the fuel pumps on about every car made these days are located in the tank, running fuel through the brushes to cool the little motors. Without oxygen things can't burn let alone explode.

In my proclivity for making burners, I have also cut up a lot of Gas tanks. People will tell you crap like the gas goes in the metal and make out that there is no safe way to cut a tank without blowing yourself to kingdom come. They are ignorant to the facts. A fuel of any type has an ignition level/ concerntration range that must be present in order for combustion to take place. It varies from fuel to fuel ( liquid of gas type) But if you go too rich or too lean, burning of anysort WON'T happen.
The simple and easy way I make LPG tanks safe is to Fill them with compressed air 3 times and vent them. This makes the level of any remaining ( long shot) gas so low, an explosion is a Physical impossibility. I have also for fun Filled and vented them and then put a vac pump on them to remove any air. It's good fun to do when someone is around and you are cutting a tank.
The sucking sound when you pierce the tank can be a real shorts filler for the uninformed. :0)

A couple of tricks I use for drums which I cut up plenty of that have contained flameable materials is to simply vent them. I put a blower or reversed vac on the small bung and let the thing run a while. Again this loweres the concerntration of the vapors beyond the lower explosion level ( LEL) and you can cut, grind, oxy to your hearts content.
If I'm really wary of the drum, I'll vent it then Throw in a load of Baking powder and Vinegar. This reacts and makes CO2. Again this disperses the flameable vapors and oxygen and fills the drum with an inert gas again making and sort of combustion a Physical impossibility.

If a drum has something in it I can't get out, like say resin, another trick I learned from guys that repair fuel and oil tanks for service stations is to put dishwashing liquid in the tank or drum and put in water and hit it with a pressure washer. This makes the thing fill with Bubbles and forms a barrier to the flameable liquid on the bottom of the tank. It works like a flashback arrestor on an oxy. These guys weld inside tanks that still have petrol or fuel in them every day and if it works for them, it's sure good enough for me. In reality, all I do with the resin drums is Vent them with the hose from a blower or vac and leave it in there while I'm cutting. Once you have a bit of the lid cut, even if it did ignite all it's going to do is make a big woosh and that's it. For any sort of explosion to happen you have to have a pressure spike that exceeded the containing materials strength.
Friends and I have set off water heaters filled with flameable liquid vapors and with the normal inlet/ outlets open, all you get is a great whoomp and a lot of hissing. If the frum is old or rusted then it tends to be a bit of a fun spoiler and the metal opens up and vents the pressure much more easily. Not easy to get the right mixture and ignition in the first place though.

The people that are overly pedantic with these things should try looking at it another way.
Actually try to get a tank or drum to blow and see how hard it is. You have to get things just right and it shows how easy it can be to upset the paramaters required to ensure it doesn't happen.