QuestionI have an old yellow convertible that I love (Dodge Dart '68) that my husband's father bought when he retired (a romantic gesture) and that he gave us four years later. For the last 20 years I have been using it only in the summer on the unpaved back roads of our town. In the last five years it has been stalling a lot, and the wonderful mechanic I use, whom I trust a lot, says it's the gas, which evaporates a bit as it is stored in the winter and then clogs up the works. He also says there's a lot of glop in the bottom of the gas tank and that I should top it off frequently. He also says I should drive it fast on the main road to clean it out every week or so. (Unfortunately this isn't feasible in practice.) He cleaned it all out recently and it drove wonderfully for about two weeks, but now it's back to stalling. Is there anything I can do? Can I siphon off the gas at the beginning of the summer and put new gas in? If so, how do I dispose of the old gas? Is there any way of getting the glop out of the bottom of the gas tank? Please help. I want so badly to be able to drive my loved car again.
AnswerAll of us with old cars face some version of this problem. The modern low polution gas formula contains compounds that are not as stable as gas used to be, so you cannot leave gas sit in a tank for more than a few months before it begins to cause problems. Leaving the tank absolutely full helps somewhat, because there is less air in the tank to react with the gas, but the only way to really cure the problem is to buy and use gas stabilizer. This is sold by various vendors to the old car hobby - if you subscribe to any of the old car magazines, you'll see the ads. If you do not, contact Bill Hirsch in New Jersey at http://www.hirschauto.com/ or call them at 800 828 2061 and ask for their gasoline stabilizer - I think they call it "Stabil". This additive will keep your gas fresh for up to a year.
In the mean time, you are going to have to clean out your fuel system again - perhaps the mechanic didn't get it all out last time, or perhaps your gas filter is plugged up. There is a process called "gas tank renewal" that will get all the goop out of the tank, or you can have the tank cleaned out at most radiator shops.
You can't leave the car without gas in it for any long period, because condensation will cause rust to form in the tank and you'll be even worse off. So park it with a full tank when you are going to store it, and use the stabilizer, and you should be able to get from one year to the next that way.
You do need to drive it enough to use up the old gas each time you get it out, however, so find another place to drive it!
These are great cars, fully capable of being used in modern traffic, so just get it out and use it as a daily driver for a few days every month or so, and you'll have no more trouble with the gas going stale.
Dick
