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alright 30+ year old gas!!!

67 coronet

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i just got a 60 ford ranchero(i know,thats like swearing on here)for a quick flip.the car has been sitting since 1982.pulled the fuel lines and nice fuel poured out.i thought the lines were gonne be solid with varnish,but no,even the tank was clean.todays gas gums crap up after about a year.they really did make much better fuel back then.
 
I'd be really surprised to see fuel that old that has not turned to varnish and it would be questionable even it was treated with something like Sta-Bil even fuels back then. Are you sure it's gas?
 
isnt that crazy....had a similar experience recently with a parts car...needed the fuel tank for my 74 and pull it down with a 1/4 tank of gas still sloshing and clean inside..tags say MI SEP '87'.....insane how junky our fuel is today, not to mention all the internally corroded fuel lines I am getting at the shop on the older fuel injection vehicles that have sat for a minute...I have no doubt Bud or Cranky will fill in the gaps but I believe it to be the high content of water and alcohol in our modern fuel. ie sugar
 
I'd be really surprised to see fuel that old that has not turned to varnish and it would be questionable even it was treated with something like Sta-Bil even fuels back then. Are you sure it's gas?
ya,i am sure cranky.i got the car from an old friend and his brother parked the car in that spot after there father passed away.smells like old fuel,but it still lights on fire.i was as just as surprised as you are skeptical.carb was dry,but fuel pump and lines were full.
 
I Hope you don't run the car on it, just use it to start fires or something/anything else... I kind of had a situation like that too, I got a 78 Trailduster for my sisters Ranch, she needed a kick around cheap 4x4, I found it only a few miles away, that had sat for 20+ years, in some ol' guys garage... I was pleasantly surprised/shocked more like... when I pulled the carb, filter, checked the lines & fuel tank, found almost nothing varnished at all, very little sediments either, just some powdery residue in the carb, blew out the lines, drained the tank & flushed it out, put new filters on it, one before the pump & one after the fuel pump before the carb just in case... I put a light down in the tank, I couldn't see any signs of varnish or corrosion even... It had almost a full tank too, smelled like rotten vinegar kind of... It was up in the Northern Ca., Red Bluff area, with dry & hot summers, with mild winters too... I cleared/cleaned the carb out, put new gaskets, in all new fluids in it, new seals & rubber everywhere in the fuel system, hoses, belts etc., changed the oil {it was like nasty a$$ sludge} & it fired right up, after I primed the carb, not even sure why the person parked it, it ran & still runs great, nearly 10 years latter now...
 
dont worry was not even thinking of trying to start the car on it.just couldnt believe it was not gummed up,just liquid.you could be onto something with the dry hot theory.it is dry and hot here in vegas for sure.
 
Any alcohol fuel is corrosive and attracts moisture too. Methanol, which is produced mainly from natural gas lasts much longer than Ethanol which is mostly produced from bio material. While it's said that there is no difference between biologically produced and chemically produced alcohols, I have a tendency to believe one 'rots' faster than the other. I have a 5 gallon jug of methanol that's about 4 years old now and it still smells the same as the day I got it.
 
Here are 2 things I have done in the past:

If the motor runs and the car is roadworthy and the tank has less than 1/3 of the old **** slopping around, I'd fill the tank the rest of the way with fresh gas then drive it until it's empty (preferably like in a few days time).

Or I have drained this old stuff into an open pan away from the house and let it vaporize over time. Works well in the desert where rain is rare and the humidity is low. The tree-huggers will not approve of that one. It is also a fire hazard.
 
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