what's the conventional wisdom as to when to use this stuff? i found some stuff related to the sta-bil site that said that gas doesn't start to break down until about the 60 day mark. my car goes down for storage this weekend, but usually i have my cars back on the road in early march. so < 70 days, presumably. but the tank is currently 3/4 or more and the last gas-up was probably 15-20 days ago. that suggests i should use it. but i thought i'd ask - anybody with a clue on this stuff? anything better to use than sta-bil? tia, doody.
I usually keep my tank very low if I plan to store for a while. I think the stabil is better than nothing. I will usually drain the tank if it sits for more than 60 to 90 days. Keeping less than five gallons makes it way easier and safer to drain it. Its kinda scary having gass running all over you and wondering if there is a spark laying around somewhere.
Doody, I use Sta-Bil a lot, and it appears to work. My advice is to burn off as much gas as is possible between now and when you put the car to sleep. Then fill it up with high test and top off with Sta-Bil before saying nitey nite. As far as the battery goes, just disconnect it. It will be fine in 70-90 days. Dale
I use Stabil in all my cars/bikes and have had great success. Glassman, it is my understanding that for long storage one should keep the tank full to keep water out - thoughts?
The idea (so I'm told) on keeping tanks full for storage is to prevent moisture from forming inside the gas tank which could lead to either (rust) particles getting in your fuel filter or engine or just moisture contaminating your fuel. This is obvioulsy important for cars like my older corvettes which have steel tanks... my 308 though has an alloy tank??? Either way (steel or alloy tank) I think it best to keep the tank full as to prevent moisture from getting into any part of the fuel system wether by rust or moisture mixing with the gasoline. I use stabil on just about everything I have. I've never had any problems using it.
Doody, Agree with others... about 20 miles or so before the storage facility put in sta-bil and fill her up. You want some of the gas/sta-bil to run through the engine bits. If you are really being careful, top it off again JUST before you get to the storage facility. Just my opinion.
Use it in my boat when winter comes (even in FL). It's more than just the fuel in the tank...gas lines store fuel also. After I put it in I run the engine for about 10 minutes to ensure it's in the entire system. Never had a problem with a re-start in the spring. I also make sure I have a full tank of gas to prevent condensation from forming in the empty space between the fuel level and top of the tank..
Doody, I have used it with no issues. Seems to be good stuff and you can run the engine with it in the fuel in the spring no problem. Ideally, drive to the gas station, put the Stabil in, fill up. The filling mixes it up a bit. Now drive to the storage place, and that gets it into the rest of the engine. Done! Always store a car with a full tank, as full as you can get it. Birdman
I haven't bothered w/Sta-Bil when storing something over the winter. Just made sure the tank is topped up so that the only air exposure is the small gas surface in the filler neck. Longer than over-the-winter storage, I use it: Have used Sta-Bil on my motorcycles & they started & ran fine after sitting up for a year or more. Started my 2-cycle sailboat engine after 3 years of storage, again w/sta-bil.
Stabil is great, after having some injector problems the car, it was stored with stabil over a winter and was miraclusly cured in the spring. The fuel with stored stabil while not bad seems to loose its oomph. I usualy drain tank as far as possible in spring, which on a boxer is about 1/2, use up the rest and then refill the car. During the summer I use stabil on occasion as motor runs smoother and cooler with it. Have found the same effects on my injected boat.
Due to the fact the gas probably has a high moisture content, the fuel would not be fit for a car or even a gas lawn mower, he most likely donates the fuel to a nonprofit, tree hugging, organization that finds it's still a viable accelerant to burn down newly constructed retirement homes on the east coast ? Disclaimer..... Arson is not funny, it is a crime and should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.
I agree and have always stored with as full a tank as possible with Stabil put in just before she sleeps for the winter. I also use a battery tender. Plug it in and leave it. Is this bad to just plug it in and for get it for about 75 days? I had Continental hook it up when I picked up the car and the wire just hangs out of the front. I figure plugging it in is better than reprograming everything in the spring. The tender is plugged into a surge protector. Any problems with doing this?
I do this with my auxilary house generator but more for over the summer months when I am not using it. It always starts right off when I use Sta-bil. If it is a true battery tender no problem at all. A simple trickle charger is okay for shorter periods of time but for 75 days a "smart" tender is recommended, one that adjusts it's amperage levels to nearly zero when the battery is fully charged. It is better to run a little charge through a battery than to let it sit for very long times disconnected. I use a battery disconnect switch on mine when parked. No battery tender either. I charge the battery once a month with a trickle charger through a remote hook-up or drive the car at least once a month until fully charged and the moisture is burned off from the various lubricants in the engine/transaxle..
Drive it as much as you can and you need not worry about that sort of thing. While I know it gets colder where you are than here in the Atlanta area where it is now 73 degrees, I know you do have several 35 degree + days between now and April when you could drive for a few miles.
Believe me, I do and when I do it is a minimum of 75 miles because I live out in the sticks, at least once a month during the winter. The average is 150 miles per drive. Currently the overnight tempuratures are 19f and the day time highs are 34f. I usually like to wait until the ice melts before driving because the chains for my 308 are a real b!t*h to put on. ...............otherwise I'm out in the rain. http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44020
they won't melt, gents here's sumthin' you don't see every day! of course she's safely tucked away under her cover until march, but.... doody! Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Any advise on the fuel injection system for my '83 308 GTSi for not starting? It is on a trickle charge so all elect. system are or seem to be good but just turns over, No fuel I presume. I have seen a couple of mentions about checking the fuel pump. Is this the next step? And unfortunately I did not store it with a fuel stabilizer. That won't happen next year.
non start is usually either no fuel or no spark. One old school trick to start trouble shooting the problem and narrowing down options is remove the flexible black hose from the intake plenum and to spray 3-4 seconds worth of starting fluid directly into the plenum.. Turn key and if engine starts you have spark and thus a fuel delivery problem somewhere along the line. BTW, one of the reasons to use a fuel stabilizer is to prevent it from evaporating and leaving a coat of varnish on either carb jets or FI injectors.
To those that drain their tanks: does that not promote rust? I always heard/practiced storing with a full tank with Sta-Bil.
With steel tanks, definitely store full. Alloy tanks used in Ferraris probably not such a big deal (rust/oxidation) but I still always go full in everything I store
Sta-Bil has a new longer lasting product called Sta-Bil 360. Have not tried it yet, but it sounds interesting.
+1 on Meister's suggestion. I had a starting problem with my '84 Mondial. A bit of starter fluid started it easily. Therefore spark and ignition were ruled out. Turned out that the fuel pump was clogged. I bought a new fuel pump but we cleaned and re-installed the old one and it's running fine.
I use stabil 360 because it supposed to deal with Ethanol too. These days i also leave the fuel tanks as close to empty as possible, because Ethanol absorbs a fair bit of water, and my indoor winter storage is really dry so condensation seems the lesser to two evils. Plus this way I start the season by putting fresh gas in the car, instead of having to burn off a tank of so so gas.
