Starting a car that's sat idle for six months?

New battery (pretty cheap and would be a bugger if the old one left u stranded somewhere!)

Disable the igntion system- wiring to amplifer off. plugs out, spoonfull of fresh oil into each cylinder.

Spin the engine over on the starter motor for a good 15 seconds to pump some oil around. Will also serve to pump some fuel up to the carb which will be dry.

Preferably new plugs in, and she should fire up straight away.

Tim..

AIUI octane is a reference for the fuels resistance to igniting under pressure without spark.

Model engine fuel is hygroscopic so it absorbs moisture from the air which can cause it to go a bit shitty, but it still generally works. Not sure if Petrol is hygroscopic.

methanol/castor oil? Yes, methanol will be - it'll happily mix with water as much as you want, it being a simple alcohol.

Petrol isn't miscible with water, so won't be hygroscopic.

cheers, clive

In article , Mike P writes

I've got a Land Rover that hasn't started for many years, would it not be better to change the oil before trying to start it? The old oil is relatively clean but doesn't feel very 'oily'.

Thare she goes.....

I put the battery back on, turned the key ... instant start!!! Obviously my fuel injectors are healthy ... retaining the fuel pressure in the fuel system.

The oil light went out after a second as well ... not bad for an engine which ran on a good oil/water mix for a couple of hundred miles

Or to put it another way ... when i went out the oil level was bang on maximum. When i got back the oil level was 1cm over maximum ... and the coolant was nowhere to be seen!!

I am involved with people who have cars that regularly spend the winter shut away in their garage and only come out in the spring.

Battery - depends on the state they were in last year, but this sort of treatment wears batteries out savagely. It would very likely be flat, and may now hold a low charge and be unable to crank. The top tip with a battery is to disconnect it from the leads if you're going to leave it standing for any real length of time. Fully charged and not connected to anything the battery does not age or discharge a lot. Powering a dashboard clock, it is flat and badly calcified next spring.

I would take jump leads and I would be prepared to buy another battery if the one that's there is incapable of charging.

Fuel - wouldn't worry about it. Summer fuel has less of the volatile, lighter components because they evaporate away faster in summer, but even so, the bulk of it is stuff that burns fine. What I would be aware of is that a fuel tank that wasn't (and isn't) full, will have accepted air and water will have deposited on the inside walls of the tank and having rusted them, ended up in the bottom of the tank, rusting that away. Seems unlikely to be an issue after six months. If laying a car up for a bit, make sure the tank is full up.

I would expect to turn the thing over a fair bit to get rid of the water in the bottom of the tank before the petrol starts coming through.

Clutch could have seized, this is common on older cars. The pedal becomes tough and the gearbox doesn't disengage when the pedal is pushed to the floor. Freeing the clutch can be a bit of a palavar, but seemed to work out ok when driving it at low speeds in third with the handbrake on, when I've helped free them. Dunno about a Micra, though.

Overall, I'd take jump leads and expect to have a bit of time cranking the engine, then it to start ok. You'll need to do this with your car front near enough the other car front for the leads to reach, which might not be an easy option. Sort out the other problems if they happen. I wouldn't expect too many issues and might find it started ok with no tricks at all, but that would be lucky as the battery really ought to be flat / duff by six months wired to the car.

I worked on a Transit that had been parked up for x years, x being at least some without being started. Charged battery, bit of swearing at the auto choke, and it sprung into smelly smoky life.

Another was a barn find Mini. Hadn't been run for many many years, still fuel in the tank. Cleaned the cap and plugs etc, cranked it over till the oil light went out, then tried to fire it. Ran fine, if once again a little smelly.

I will say though that very old 4 star does smell incredibly odd, and really stings if you leave it soaking on your arms :)

Probably :-) I bought the car as a non-runner though and wanted to see if it'd at least turn over before I bothered to get dirty.. Also, a bit of heat will make the old oil run out easier.

Mike.

Paul Hutchings wrote in news:Xns94CE7815F5947paulhutchingsspamcop@130.133.1.4:

Thanks to everyone for all the replies/suggestions/comments.. it's appreciated.

Although I don't work nearby I happen to work at MIRA and if you know what that is you'll know that any bits I might need should be easy enough to source.. I'm thinking I might borrow a decent battery/powerpack before I visit grandad rather than arse about with chargers etc..

One thing that did occur to me is that if I get it going I presume the best way to "bed it back in" is to drive it.. thing it it's been SORN'd as it hasn't been in use, guess there's no leeway and it's a case of "you get pulled and it's tough shit".. it is at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac so 50 yards forwards and backwards repeatedly shouldn't be a problem :-)

regards Paul

Paul Hutchings ( snipped-for-privacy@spamcop.net) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Yep, a jump box is just the thing you need. I picked one up at the Ally Pally classic car show, and I only wonder why the hell I waited so long...

Thought you worked at MIRA?

(I've passengered down the unlimited speed mile and back in a *real* GT40... 170 or so, thankyouverymuch...)

I used to get bangers that hadn't been run for years. If they wouldn't start with a jump, I used to connect the car's battery and the trucks battery in series and put 24 volts through them. If they don't start then, they aint gonna. The first thing that happens is when you open the door, the interior light comes on *very* bright, and then goes out. When you hit the starter it sounds like a jet winding up. But hey, it's a banger so who cares?

Steve

What, the shower people?

;-)