bad gas

[baja1]

well chit! screwed up again. car has about a eighth of a tank and I added about a gallon of old gas from a generator, smelled like good gas anyway now it won't start.....drain it all (whats the easiest way to do this?) or fill her up with new gas out of cans?.....or? gracias folks!

 

[gamefreakgc]

Add a bottle of HEET, it will evaporate the water out of the gas. A couple more gallons of fuel won't hurt either to dilute the bad stuff.

 

[Riceye]

When I have to get rid of some past season's gas (even small quantities of two cycle mix) I take the jug to the gas station, add to the tank and then fill up the tank with fresh gas. Gas around here is all up to 10% ethanol and will disperse quite a bit of water by itself due to the methanol. Diluting a gallon or less into an 18 gallon tank has never given me any issue.

It sounds like you didn't dilute enough. I suggest you get a bottle of isopropyl alcohol (Iso Heet in the red bottle - not methanol in the yellow bottle), add to your tank and immediately fill up with fresh gas.

On the upside, gas is cheap right now!

 

[3bears]

I agree with all above help. Since you said it wont start, you may have to crank it for a few times. Might have to run some injector cleaner through it after all gets running again.

 

[plcfcng]

You could pull of the tube to the throttle body open the throttle plates and splash some fresh gas into the throttle body about 1/4 cup put the hose back on and try and start it if it runs and dies you might have to do this a few times. It should stumble and try to start getting better each time.:bolt:

 

[baja1]

thanks all! got her started and made it to the gas station for a fill up, runs fine now. I do try to keep 5 gallons on hand for emergency's......what do you figure is a safe time to keep it before it goes bad? here in mex we have no ethanol in our gas if that matters. thanks!

 

[Riceye]

Congrats on the restart!

If the gas can is full with very little air space above the fuel and sealed up tightly to minimise air exchange you should see very little degradation for six months or better. The oxidation takes place at the interface of the fuel and air, and is somewhat limited by the volume of air in the gas can.

Also, non-ethanol fuels are more resistant to oxidation.

 

[baja1]

awesome thank you, 6 months is a goodly time!

 

[pluton]

I keep a couple of metal 20L jerrycans with gas on hand. I aim to use them by 6 months, but that often that stretches to a full year.
So far, over several 1 year intervals, there's been no problem using the 1-year-old, "up to 10% ethanol" gas at one year old, from a very full metal can with a good seal.

 

[kstewguitar]

Could bad gas that's been sitting for a few months cause the VSC Trac and Slip lights to go off, or make the EVAP cannister go bad?

 

[UnderFire]

I can go out and fire one of my runners up that the gas is nearly 5 years old. It won't run perfectly, but there will be no lasting damage and it will fire right up. Gas that's a few months old is not a big deal.

Sent from my JSN-L23 using Tapatalk

 

[kstewguitar]

I can go out and fire one of my runners up that the gas is nearly 5 years old. It won't run perfectly, but there will be no lasting damage and it will fire right up. Gas that's a few months old is not a big deal.

Sent from my JSN-L23 using Tapatalk

Before I used the few months old gas, my 4runner was working fine, but after, I've had my VSC trac and slip and check engine lights go off. I bought an error code reader and I get error codes PO441 and 455... Replaced the gas cap, no dice. Firestone says I need a new EVAP cannister. Trying to get a 2nd opinion, because that's a pricey option. Also have tried fuel stabilizers and the premium gas on my 2 most recent fill ups to try and clear any leftover gunk.

 

[shadow247]

I would say that it doesn't "hurt" anything, but ethanol gas is AWFUL on rubber lines and seals. My motorcycle sat for about 18 months due to work, kids, money issues, and I forgot and left gas in the lines/carbs. NOw it's leaking like crazy from the fuel lines and overflow. Ethanol gas didn't even exist when these rigs were designed. I really want to get a 55 gallon drum and run Ethanol Free as much as possible. My dad runs E-Free in his dirtbikes that sit for months at at time and they always start right up.

 

[UnderFire]

Before I used the few months old gas, my 4runner was working fine, but after, I've had my VSC trac and slip and check engine lights go off. I bought an error code reader and I get error codes PO441 and 455... Replaced the gas cap, no dice. Firestone says I need a new EVAP cannister. Trying to get a 2nd opinion, because that's a pricey option. Also have tried fuel stabilizers and the premium gas on my 2 most recent fill ups to try and clear any leftover gunk.

EVAP shouldn't have anything to do with the Trac system they're completely separate systems. The EVAP canister is not a common thing to fail on older vehicles as there's not much to it. It would be a relatively easy and cheap fix if you sourced the part from a junkyard and installed it yourself, but it doesn't sound like it's going to fix what's going on.

Sent from my JSN-L23 using Tapatalk

 

[Devbot]

thanks all! got her started and made it to the gas station for a fill up, runs fine now. I do try to keep 5 gallons on hand for emergency's......what do you figure is a safe time to keep it before it goes bad? here in mex we have no ethanol in our gas if that matters. thanks!

6-12 months is usually the rule of thumb. A little Sta-Bil (or other fuel stabilizer) will work wonders too.

I would say that it doesn't "hurt" anything, but ethanol gas is AWFUL on rubber lines and seals. My motorcycle sat for about 18 months due to work, kids, money issues, and I forgot and left gas in the lines/carbs. NOw it's leaking like crazy from the fuel lines and overflow. Ethanol gas didn't even exist when these rigs were designed. I really want to get a 55 gallon drum and run Ethanol Free as much as possible. My dad runs E-Free in his dirtbikes that sit for months at at time and they always start right up.

I go about 10 miles out my way to ensure I only use E-Free. 4runner runs MUCH happier with it. Ironically the co-op advertises it specifically for carbs, since ethanol will dissolve and corrode everything involved with them, as you found out.
You can remove ethanol by adding water and siphoning it off, it's just a lot of hassle.

 

[kstewguitar]

EVAP shouldn't have anything to do with the Trac system they're completely separate systems. The EVAP canister is not a common thing to fail on older vehicles as there's not much to it. It would be a relatively easy and cheap fix if you sourced the part from a junkyard and installed it yourself, but it doesn't sound like it's going to fix what's going on.

Sent from my JSN-L23 using Tapatalk

I've since taken my 4runner into the dealership; they found a valve disconnected. Reattached and reset the system, no lights on, car drives beautifully now. Praise God!