Thanks to KOG and John Wood for their comments. I may be a glutton for punishment, but I always remove the fuel tank for a pump replacement because I like to clean it, inside and out, and work comfortably on the bench (comfort is important at my age). I usually have no trouble supporting and dropping the tank with a trolley jack and rolling it away from the car. The fuel filler pipe is connected to the tank through a 6" rubber hose attached with screw clamps at each end. The hose connects to a snout that's an integral part of the plastic tank, so there aren't any bolts to remove. For some reason, the manual says that it's very important to remove the upper screw clamp when dropping the tank so that the tank comes out with the hose still attached - can't figure that one out. On my 2002, it seems that just dropping the pump side of the tank would be difficult due to the large muffler heat shield that extends downward next to the tank, and the short rubber hose connecting it to the filler pipe. Both of these would limit the distance the right side of the tank could pivot downward. Also, it looks like it would be difficult (i.e. impossible) to remove the hose, due to it's short length, without dropping the tank.