Prior to dropping the tank out completely, I hope you've exhuasted every other possibility as to a "fuel smell" issue. There are several other possibilities other than a cracked tank, however, I've personally had a few with (what I'll call, a typical problem area on top of tank cracking out) the cracked area on top of the tank as an issue, combined with other areas of concern. Leaky fuel drain issue (draining into the cubby hole in back), bad sender gasket, crappy seal on tank neck, metal cover seal, hoses under such, maybe even rear hatch seal issue allowing exhaust into cabin, and your engine is running very rich mixture at this time. Eliminate all these first, than remove tank. Its not that hard to do, but requires car up in air a fair amount, dropping tranny, and without all the "cute" tools and equiptment to do such, it can be a very trying experience. If your gonna drop the tank, do you have the ability to get car up in the air, tranny jack and such? I've done this more than a few times, and I do have lots of these tools and such.
Have you done the visual check, and see indications of a cracked tank? Gas leaking outta the tank will show up looking like softened/bubbled and darker (wet) colored areas on the tank's paint job/covering, and thats not counting the actual visual drips and spots on the ground.
Good luck!
