VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1912-1928 Winter storage

I know this is a topic no one wants to think of, but I am off in a week and want to do the great garage winter switch over. So what do you guys do,

Drain the gas and run dry
or
fuel stabilizer and let it sit
or
fuel stabilizer and drain and run dry, just in case.

My 30 72 and 78 are not driven a lot, I try to drive enough to fill with gas twice and when I put them away for the winter in mid September I fill the tank and unhook the battery and cover them. Never had a fuel problem. I do not start them during the winter because I not going to drive to full warm up. I drop the insurance except for comp when I put away for the winter.

Hey ShawnG
I would use a fuel stablizer in your tank if your going to store for the winter, if you leave lots of gas in the tank.


Keeping vintage Chevy alive.

Ya, well that's the issue, the gas in the tank is stale and needs to go. With the repairs and the crappy weather this summer, I filled the tank in June and have not filled it since. That and having it in a hot garage has made the gas stale. So I need to get rid of it, hence the leaning towards draining it and running it dry. The car will not move for the winter. And at some point in time, before next spring, i need to drop the tank and fix the cap on the right where the gauge would go because it has begun to leak a bit. I suspect the cap is actually a jar cap and not the right one, sigh.

Shawng I would drain old gas and put some new gas in with the stablizer, and run for 10 min to get the solution into the system, this stuff is made for storage.
There is nothing worse than trying to prime a dry system in the spring + the stablizer also help's against corrosion.
Can you send me a pic of your cap? I may have what you need.
Do you still have my email address??


Keeping vintage Chevy alive.

I have removed the "jar lid" and the gas gage without having to drop the tank when I replaced the glass lense and the cork gasket. Be patient and use lots of PB Blaster!

The jar lid is below the rear pan and I cannot even get a thumbnail around it. Considering the wild things I have seen on this car, I suspect this is incorrect as well.

If your going to drain the gas for the winter, this would be a good time to drop the tank and fix this problem with the jar lid.

That is the plan if time permits. If not, then before the next driving season.

Shawng
I used gas stabilizer last winter (start Nov) on both of my cars did not start them until april. no problems at all will do same this year. disconnect battery. cover them. no heat.

any comments on no heat?

Ken 45145

I believe that warmer temps encourages stale gas. Here at the museum, I drain the tanks and run the carbs dry for storage, never know how long it will be. You must remember that here it is a controlled environment at 65 -70 degrees year around with in-floor heat so I am not concerned with condensation from temp changes. If storing in cold storage, that is a different situation.

I do a fresh oil change, fresh gas with stabilizer and make sure the tank is super full. I fog or squirt some oil in the cylinders depending on the engine/number of cylinders.

I've been doing this on several cars, motorcycles, boat motors and lawn equipment for over 20 years and have yet to rebuild a carb or have trouble starting in the spring. I have followed this process with one car for over 20 years and it starts and runs great and I've never opened the carb or fuel system.

What do you use to FOG an engine by going into the spark plug holes. I have not looked into fogging but have heard of it.

With the gas today that has 10% ethenol it is imperative to add a additive such as sta/bil. Ethenol is terribile to engines and gas tanks as it attracts moisture. West Marine sells a product to fog engines for storage. What ever you do DO NOT use WD 40 because it will attract moisture.

I have never added Sta-bil to my gas. We have had the 10% ethanol here for over 15 years and I have never had a problem.
I do add a small can of 2 cycle oil to the gas and drive around a bit to get it up into the system.. At one time I added Marvel Mystery oil but discoverd it was a solvent and contained very little oil . Now I do dump some MMO throught the carburetor air horn with the engine running though at the very last....This does get some oil to the valve seats (which fogging can not do) and the exhaust system and never restart the engines until I am ready to drive the cars, sometimes it is May or June before some run again.
Also never fill the gas tank as I don't want a tank full of last years gas....usually have a 1/4 of a tank full. If you are afraid of collecting condensation in the tank remove the cap (its vented) and tape the filler opening shut.(air tight)
My goal is to never allow the gas to get more than a year old and try not to get gas after October as that is when the wnter formulation comes along.

Do you use the Stabil brand stabilizer?
How much Stabil do you use to a 10 gallon tank of gasoline?
Does it hurt the engine or fuel system if you use too much Stabil?

Note that Stabil even has a one year shelf life

I do plan on doing an oil change before she is put to bed, but I can't fog because the spark plug side will be against a wall. I have to pull the car in to the garage real tight and get out the passenger side door. Since the gas is stale, I think I will drain and run dry.

I've used Stabil brand as well as store brands. I mix the amount recommended on the bottle for 2 year storage. Some bottles only show one year life, others show both a 1 and 2 year mixing amount.

"fogging" is simply done by spraying into the carb with the throttle plate open a bit and then shutting it down before the oil can burn off. You can buy fogging or storage sprays at motorcycle/snowmobile shops as well as some automotive parts places.

I've thought about stretching a latex glove over the gas filler to seal it like Gene suggests so that you don't need a full tank but I do worry about the tank rusting inside where it's not covered with gas.

One more question, jackstands or leave her on the floor?

If your tires are nylon biasply, I would use stands.