Crap Gas

[Mitch//pa]

This is what You get when todays modern fuel sits to long..... it ate right through the metal pump and destroyed everything else... not to mention the smell on the hands that never comes off...

[SeaSlugs]

how long did it sit? I've seen regular gas do some awful things after years of sitting...
not to mentioned it looks like its stained red so ag use gas in a standard vehicle is a huge no no...

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

This is why Mitch cautioned his Old Dad, whose 2004 Dakota was only driven a bit, for over a YEAR.
Fortunately, the gas smelled OK & I let my Home Help Gal, Perla, drive it for a week, to get rid of it & fill it with NEW fuel. Had John dump in a quart of ATF, just to feel "GOOD"---
Dad Bill W.

[700rpm]

Mitch, you should send those pix to your Comgresspeople, along with a letter explaining why we need regular old type gas again, and get rid of this corn givaway.

[40 Deluxe]

Originally Posted by 700rpm

Mitch, you should send those pix to your Comgresspeople, along with a letter explaining why we need regular old type gas again, and get rid of this corn givaway.

Send it to him for a paperweight. Should make his office smell real nice!

[C26Pinelake]

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It is my opinion that Ethynol was not totally responsible for that entire damage. I believe it is a bad product but not that bad. Wayne

[tbirdtbird]

bbbbbbut but but Mitch there are those on here that say there is no problem with gasahol........ how can this be.....

imagine the downstream side of the fuel system. You have your work cut out for you

In the old days the pure gas could sit in the tank for literally years and not cause trouble

[GPierce]

That's picture shows why my Model A and yard equipment run non-adulterated gas. i.e. No corn crap.

[tbirdtbird]

if you can get it......

[Mitch//pa]

We dropped a tank recently on a car that had sat since the early 80's... the fuel was still useable..
Our junk man threw that fuel in his hooptie truck and burned rubber out of the lot.. he was one happy camper... i think it was the old pink sunoco 94
I would have put it in the A but i didnt want to snap an axle

[Rich in Tucson]

Just pulled and replaced one resembling yours from a 1988 Pontiac Fiero GT with 4-5 year old gas in it. What was left of the fuel pump strainer crumbled to dust when touched. The old fuel, ~5 gal, and diluted with 5 gal fresh gas will burn fine in my Model A after particulate filtration.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Yep, I've had the metal screens in my gas cans destroyed by crap gas also. Years ago I learned first hand just how bad crap gas is and how quickly it goes bad. I had some stored in a jug for about 6 months and put it in my motorbike. The next day I had to remove the head and spray the exhaust valve with Kroil, then use a hammer to drive the valve down several times until it final freed up again.

[mshmodela]

Ethanol and metal don't play well together, now if your Model A has plastic fuel tank, fuel lines, you'll be fine

[C26Pinelake]

Originally Posted by tbirdtbird

bbbbbbut but but Mitch there are those on here that say there is no problem with gasahol........ how can this be.....

imagine the downstream side of the fuel system. You have your work cut out for you

In the old days the pure gas could sit in the tank for literally years and not cause trouble

Yes but maybe in the old days the pump was a better quality. Wayne

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

At Lamberts' Wrecking Yard, the LAST rites for a car were to BURN it & cut it up for SCRAP.
I'd remove the gas tank, strain the gas through a CHAMOIS & burn it in my '26 Chev 2 door!
Bill Cheap

[gweilbaker]

There's the reason I store with drained then fogged tanks and bowls for everything! I had the stuff destroy a tank and pump on my sandrail back in the 70s.

[Rex_A_Lott]

"Ran when Parked" Letting any piece of machinery sit idle is the worst thing you can do to it. If you have any thing you value, its best to use it it once a week or so , if you can. I cringe every time I read an ad about a Model A that " has 300 miles on rebuilt engine...from 10 years ago".
I "sort of" understand why you wouldnt want to run a high points show car, but anything else and you're letting your time and money go to waste, you're definitely not "saving it for later".
I've read all the comments from the California guys about the gas and how they have no trouble with it, but lately I've learned people in California dont think the way I do anyway.
Now, time to get off my ass and follow some of my own advice, its going to be a fine day to take a drive here today.

[Dino's A]

Jay leno is trying to sway the leaders in California to end the use of ethanol. Not having much luck.

[ed thibodeau]

Maybe theres different ethanol in different parts of the country. I have used nothing but ethanol since it came out, in my A's, garden tractor, chainsaw, and my 8n tractor. The A's set from Nov. to Apr., the 8n gets used once a year to grade the drive way and the chainsaw very rarely. I never had a problem with any starting or running and some of the gas in the 8n has been in it for at least 5 years.?? don't know! I am in southeast Mi.

[C26Pinelake]

Originally Posted by Dino's A

Jay leno is trying to sway the leaders in California to end the use of ethanol. Not having much luck.

If a man with that influence is not successful, we don't stand a chance! Let it go. Wayne

[mshmodela]

The corn lobby has bushels of green.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

I can't even afford CORN TORTILLAS, anymore!
Bill W.

[C26Pinelake]

Originally Posted by mshmodela

The corn lobby has bushels of green.

Are you suggesting that is bad? Why not help the farmers? Wayne.

[SeaSlugs]

Originally Posted by ed thibodeau

Maybe theres different ethanol in different parts of the country. I have used nothing but ethanol since it came out, in my A's, garden tractor, chainsaw, and my 8n tractor. The A's set from Nov. to Apr., the 8n gets used once a year to grade the drive way and the chainsaw very rarely. I never had a problem with any starting or running and some of the gas in the 8n has been in it for at least 5 years.?? don't know! I am in southeast Mi.

same here, used in everything from outboard 2 cycle, riding mowers, push mowers that sit outside under our boat with snow on them all winter, cars that maybe go through 3 tanks a year and sit all winter (30+ year mech fuel pump just fine) I've never had fuel problems or stuck valves or any of this... In tank pump in my s10 is factory from 95 with 226k miles on it...weve had ethonal since the early 80s...

I really do wonder if there are different types out there...

[JtownJoe]

I bought a 51 Chevy in 1975 that had sat for over 8 years and with a new battery fired right up with the old gas in it. Never happen with our New and Improved gas!

[40 Deluxe]

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Originally Posted by ian Simpson

Any left over methanol went in the tank of my daily rider bike. It would be all gone within a week. Never had a problem.

"all gone within a week" This is why you didn't have a problem. The problems come after the alcohol has had a chance to absorb moisture from the atmosphere. Why didn't you store your race bike with the methanol still in the tank?!

[todd3131]

I was slow to agree with the thought about ethanol so I did some testtwith my 08 Honda and 2010 f150 both have onboard computers. What I found was by burning the cheap gas and then switching to high octane non alcohol gas is my milage picked up by ten to fifteen percent and ran better. The point t to alcohol was to make a cleaner burning fuel but we end up burning even more.
I just too a trip from now to the gulf coast and if found that the gas in the south where I was at least didn't have ethanol and it was better quality and I had better performance and economy.

I heard recently that the car companies are asking the refineries to make better gas so they can hit their emissions goals. If someone has an article or any information about that I would like to see it I have only been told and search on the web has turned up anything.

[Tinbasher]

Whats the percentage of Ethanol in the US? Up here it's 10% and I think it's a bad idea for the damage it does. I know it will destroy white metal and rubber parts. Glad that Model A's have cast Iron carbs, brass and steel fittings and lines.

John Poole

[holdover]

I believe that ethanol blend is not required in all states, but in many. As to destruction to fuel system parts, I had the same thing happen to my 65 Mustang FB, put a new tank and fuel gauge in it in Oct '15 put about 10 gal of gas in in it drove it a bit, put it on top on my storage 4 post with stabil in the tank, went to start it in April no fuel drained the tank, gas looked terrible, pulled the fuel gauge and it looked like the one in the pic, pulled the tank, and it was destroyed as well, near 200.00 to replace the parts. Thankful that I have ethanol free gas avail close.

[steve s]

This is turning out to be quite an interesting puzzle--kind of reminds me of the vapor lock controversy. Some people have a tremendous problem, while others not at all. Hopefully, the discussion will remain civil.

This time, I'm in the camp that just parks their cars in the fall, with no special treatment, and then starts them up in the spring with no problem. But, Mitch's pictures are pretty compelling.

[Mitch//pa]

Originally Posted by steve s

This is turning out to be quite an interesting puzzle--kind of reminds me of the vapor lock controversy. Some people have a tremendous problem, while others not at all. Hopefully, the discussion will remain civil.

This time, I'm in the camp that just parks their cars in the fall, with no special treatment, and then starts them up in the spring with no problem. But, Mitch's pictures are pretty compelling.

I do the same thing for that period of time fall to spring with no additives.. 6 mths to a year or more i would definitely take precautions

[Greg Jones]

I speculate relative humidity might be a big determinant as to whether you have a big issue with the crap gas. Here in South Carolina humidity is like a sauna and yes gasahol goes bad after a few months. Maybe in arid parts of the country it is not as big a problem. Ethanol is hygroscopic meaning it attracts water.

[3.6rs]

At the moment we have 5% ethanol in Belgium
From january 1, 2017 this will be 10%. The so called E10.

[ian Simpson]

We are lucky here as most premium gas is ethanol free. That is what we use in our collector vehicles.

I used to run some drag racing motorcycles on pure methanol back in the bad old days. I saw what happened to the fuel system if it was not drained and purged right after race day. Ethanol is a close cousin, so I am not surprised at the damage Mitch discovered.