So I had to leave my car in a storage unit for a year and a half while I took an assignment in Turkey. Im back now and going to pick up my car soon. I can winch it up onto my trailer when I pick it up, but when I get to my house I will have to start it up to drive it into the garage. The way my driveway sits with a hill just doesn't allow any other option than starting and driving it in. Question is..... Should I be worried about starting the car with this year and a half old gas in it?

Background: It currently has 93 octane gas in it and about a half tank full. It was in a covered garage while in storage.

The car: 97 Civic; B18C, fully built bottom end, stock head, GT35R Turbo, 17 psi, 446 whp.

 

honestly I would drain it and fill it up with some fresh stuff. not worth running old gas in a good engine to "burn it out" That'll doore harm than good.

oh, just to drive it a short distance like that? yeah, that's fine, but dump it and put in fresh gas when you start actually driving it

 

Ive seen year old gas completely sludge and gel up, and also 3+ year old gas be completely fine...

At the very least I would try and pour a gallon of fresh gas in the tank

 

is it REAL gas or is it the stuff with ethanol in it? if it is real it might actually be ok. if it has any ethanol it is has undergone phase separation and has drawn water into it. With half a tank i would also be very concerned about rust in the tank as well, especially the pump...

 

I'm not sure if it is "real" gas or if it has ethanol in it. Its premium 93 octane, but I don't remember where i got it. If it did separate, wouldn't the 8 hour drive with it on the trailer mix it all back up? Also the Walbro fuel pump and the AEM fuel filter are almost brand new. Like less than 1000 miles.

 

Water wouldnt care how nex they were, rust real quick, both tank and pump.

Personally Id drain the tank and if you have the time its quite easy to take a peek inside the tank via fuel pump access hole, if it looks god, button it back up and drive

 

Whats the easiest way to drain the tank? Any links to an instructional? Never messed with the tank much. Thanks for the help guys.

 

theres a 17mm drain plug on the fuel tank. i believe its on the drivers side

 

Oh, if its that easy I might as well just drain it.

 

once ethanol has gone through phase separation i would always dump it. you end up with a gasoline layer and a layer of alcohol AND water as the ethanol absorbs the water in the air.

if you mix it back up now you have water contaminated fuel...

 

You know, the more I think about it I am about 99% sure I put Sta-Bil in the tank before it went into storage. Its just been so long ago I can't be sure. I think I am just going to try and start it and see what happens.

 

depends on which stabil you used, there is one that supposedly helps reduce phase separation. the one most people use is the storage stabil which is good for about twelve months according to them. If it was me i would NOT fire it up until i took the fuel line off the rail, and primed the system and caught the resulting fuel in a large glass cup and then let it sit for a day. if any layering occurs or it looks like lemonade its trash.