Fuel system question on our '73
04-18-2015, 09:06 PM
#1
Racer
Thread Starter
Fuel system question on our '73
I have been doing some work getting the '73 ready to start after being poorly stored for the winter. I have usually managed to get the engine running in the spring by making sure the fluids were adequate and the battery fully charged. This year was different, and I am pretty sure it is due to the amount of ethanol blended into the fuel these days. I had the tank about half full when I parked it, but as usual, didn't add any fuel stabilizer. I recently got the carb back from Lars, have it installed, changed the plugs, and at this point checked on the gas in the tank. It didn't even smell like gas. More like that musty varnish smell from truly old gas. I have siphoned what I could from the tank and am about to add fresh fuel. My concern is the bad gas still in the fuel lines from front to rear. The fuel pump has three lines on it, and I am fairly sure one is a return line to the tank for any excess fuel the carb doesn't need. If I was to engage the starter without actually starting the engine for a moment or two a few times, would the fuel in the lines be returned to the tank by the pump and mix the small amount of old gas in the lines with the new gas freshly poured in there? I am hoping this would be what would happen, but have no experience with trying something like this. Any suggestions, or does this sound like what I need to do? Thanks in advance for any help.
Last edited by blu73; 04-19-2015 at 10:20 AM.
04-18-2015, 09:11 PM
#2
Burning Brakes
If you have the stock return on the pump it will move some fuel back to the tank, but the line to the carb will have the bad stuff. If you are really worried about it you could remove the feed line to the pump and drain the stuff.
04-18-2015, 09:32 PM
#3
Racer
Thread Starter
Yeah, I thought about that line. I figure I will just disconnect it at the carb and pump a few ounces of gas into a container to clear out that part of the system.
