Frozen gas lines?

Oct 1, 2007
33
0
0
35
Chicago, Il
My car has been sitting outside since june with less then a quarter tank of gas. over the last month or two its been really cold in chicago so im thinkin the gas froze or the gas lines froze. the engine cranks over and we even changed the battery and car still wont start. If i put my car in the garage and turn the heater on and put heet in my gas tank plus some other additives will this solve my problem? by the way its a 1987 turbo any help will be greatly appreciated
 

suprajztwenty

Member
Nov 5, 2009
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corinth tx
dont forget theres ethanol in gas today. it collects moisture, especially after 6 months. i would pour some octane boost and a few gallons of fresh gas and maybe get a fat guy to dance in the hatch to mix it up?

you can cycle the key a few times to circulate the fuel a little...but really youll have to wait for warm weather or a warm garage. ah, and just when i was starting to hate tx, it could be so much worse, chicago sucks in the winter
 

gaboonviper85

Supramania Contributor
Jan 13, 2008
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suprajztwenty;1471649 said:
dont forget theres ethanol in gas today. it collects moisture, especially after 6 months. i would pour some octane boost and a few gallons of fresh gas and maybe get a fat guy to dance in the hatch to mix it up?

you can cycle the key a few times to circulate the fuel a little...but really youll have to wait for warm weather or a warm garage. ah, and just when i was starting to hate tx, it could be so much worse, chicago sucks in the winter

Unless he let it sit without a gas cap or open fuel lines then that's very very unlikely that it could absorb enough moisture to lower the freeze point enough....not to mention that the charcoal canister/evap system will help purge and burn any moisture released by warm fuel untill shut down.

I personally refuse to believe this is a possibility in IL weather as I've live in northern Alberta Canada for a few years of my life and this shit doesn't happen....starting problems are 98% cause by something else such as cold start injector failure or fuck knows but never fuel.
 

fixitman04

fixer of all things !!
Sep 18, 2008
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north dakota
first of all gasoline and water will never mix.... no matter how much ethanol is in it
second gas lines will freeze up because of the first point..... water is heavier than fuel therefore it will collect in the lowest point in the fuel line as water, not a mix of fuel and water(remember it is impossible to mix the two)

i live and have lived in north dakota, it was a static -23f last night, my womans bronco froze up last night, 2 cans of heet additive and 20 min later it was running again. it can and does happen gaboon.
especially if he filled up right after the gas station got fuel as the below ground tanks sweat condensation and collect a little rain, this gets stirred up after they get fuel delivered.
 

gaboonviper85

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Jan 13, 2008
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fixitman04;1471663 said:
first of all gasoline and water will never mix.... no matter how much ethanol is in it
second gas lines will freeze up because of the first point..... water is heavier than fuel therefore it will collect in the lowest point in the fuel line as water, not a mix of fuel and water(remember it is impossible to mix the two)

i live and have lived in north dakota, it was a static -23f last night, my womans bronco froze up last night, 2 cans of heet additive and 20 min later it was running again. it can and does happen gaboon.
especially if he filled up right after the gas station got fuel as the below ground tanks sweat condensation and collect a little rain, this gets stirred up after they get fuel delivered.

1. Fuel pump doesn't go to the bottom of our tanks
2. Fuel lines run out the top of our tanks
3. With a frozen fuel line no fuel will cycle threw the system so no amount of additive will make it to said blockage unless added prior to freezing (another case of "blame it on whatever")...
4. If it had enough water in the fuel line too collect enough to cause a blockage in the line then his car wouldn't have ran for shit prior...(keep in mind that the only water that will freeze in the fuel line is the water that is already in said fuel line...not all the water in the whole fuel system and givin that car ran prior then obviously fuel did cycle threw it and run)
5. I absolutely do not believe your bronco fuel lines froze...so unless you honestly checked to see if you had fuel flow then I call bull on that...

I'm not trying to be an ass...I'm trying to be realistic...it's easy to blame stuff but unless you problem solve then you'll really never know...problem is, who the hell is going to pick up a wrench when it's friggin cold out?! Now I know it magicly started after you added the "heat" but in all honesty it probably would have started reguardless after enough cranks...blaming water in the gas from pump station is not the answer as if there was enough water to freeze a fuel line then the car wouldn't have run for shit!

Frozen fuel lines was a big problem way back in the muscle car era prior to fuel injection and emissions as gas tanks were vented and fuel systems where midevil at best....our systems "should" be sealed as that's how they are designed...fuel gets hot and water vapor should be vented out threw the charcoal canister so after enough heat cycles to burn 3/4 tank of gas then there should be little water in the system by then...

Sure it's "possible" but unlikely...as I said before "check codes" and for shits and giggles check fuel flow...

I don't care about your bronco and about "your heat additive" as you added it after it was already frozen therefor no way in hell it could flow the fuel to let the additive reach the ice...sorry but it's impossible!!!!!!!! Say it wasn't completely blocked....so had you have let the ignition on for a few seconds befor cranking you'd have built enough fuel pressure for it to start then die again anyway.....again your fuel line was not frozen...not a snowballs chance in hell!
 
Last edited:

gaboonviper85

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Jan 13, 2008
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For shits and giggles..

Auto Repair
Questions and Answers
Gas Line Anti-freeze: Is It Worth It?
Q. Hi, I'm wondering how effective "Gas Line Anti-freeze" is or if it is even needed below freezing temperatures. Gas stations seem to sell plenty of those yellow "Heat" bottles around winter time in Chicago.
Thanks,
Nakshab

A. The State of Illinois requires all gasoline sold contain 10% ethanol, which is alcohol. Gas Line Anti-freeze is either Methanol or Isopropyl alcohol. The difference between ethanol and Isopropyl alcohol is ethanol is made from corn and Isopropyl alcohol is made chemically.
Methanol, also known as wood alcohol is an organic alcohol and an oxygenate which is blended with gasoline to enhance octane and create cleaner burning fuel.
So a 10% blend of ethanol and gasoline contains not one, but two types of "Dry Gas". Now why pay for something that is already being pumped into your tank? And keep this in mind, if you have a 20 gallon fuel tank, 2 gallons of it is "Dry Gas". How many of those little bottles would you need to add to get the same blend?
Additional Information provided courtesy of AllDATA
Back to Index
© 2005 Vincent T. Ciulla
HomeAutosAuto Repair

Auto Repair

http://autorepair.about.com/library/a/1i/bl696i.htm

I'll let you do the work to prove the info wrong...
 

Another MkIII

Member
Feb 22, 2009
697
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Chicago
Anyone here familiar with summer and winter blend gas?
Basically, you are going to have a hard time starting it. In summer, gas is made to be less volatile, because in higher temperatures, it atomizes easier. In winter, it is harder to atomize gas, so they raise the volatility of it. There is a lot more to it then that, but for our purposes I don't need to get more in depth.
By using summer blend gas in the winter, it is going to cause a hard/no start, because it is cold causing less atomization and the gas itself is less volatile. This, in my opinion, is the most likely cause of your problem. My advice would be top off the tank with some fresh gas and put it in the garage with the heat on.
-AM3
 
Oct 1, 2007
33
0
0
35
Chicago, Il
Thanks for the help everyone ima just put it into the garage with the heat on and see what happens on and btw my car doesnt have a charcoal canaster because the guy who had the car before me decided to take it out
 

shaeff

Kurt is FTMFW x2!!!!
Staff member
Super Moderator
Mar 30, 2005
10,589
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Jump +B and FP in the diagnostic block w/ the ignition ON. That'll run the fuel pump. Listen at the fuel rail (or simply crack a line loose) to see if you've got fuel. If you do, you've got other issues.

(or your FP relay died)

Also, the first thing you should always do is check your codes.
 

Moy

It's broken...
Aug 6, 2008
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Beach Park, IL
Another issue that we had last night was when I tried to start the car, the starter would keep spinning even after I had turned the key back to the "lock" position
 

Poodles

I play with fire
Jul 22, 2006
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Fort Worth, TX
Moy;1471804 said:
Another issue that we had last night was when I tried to start the car, the starter would keep spinning even after I had turned the key back to the "lock" position

Frozen starter solenoid
 

figgie

Supramania Contributor
Mar 30, 2005
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Twin Cities, Minnesot-ah
fixitman04;1471663 said:
first of all gasoline and water will never mix.... no matter how much ethanol is in it
second gas lines will freeze up because of the first point..... water is heavier than fuel therefore it will collect in the lowest point in the fuel line as water, not a mix of fuel and water(remember it is impossible to mix the two)

i live and have lived in north dakota, it was a static -23f last night, my womans bronco froze up last night, 2 cans of heet additive and 20 min later it was running again. it can and does happen gaboon.
especially if he filled up right after the gas station got fuel as the below ground tanks sweat condensation and collect a little rain, this gets stirred up after they get fuel delivered.


I myself lived in Grand Forks for 1 year during winter..... saw -35. NEVER ONCE did I have an issue with a car starting. It is not (as gaboon mentioned) gas freezin or any of that nonesense. Something else is going on.
 

gaboonviper85

Supramania Contributor
Jan 13, 2008
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figgie;1471963 said:
I myself lived in Grand Forks for 1 year during winter..... saw -35. NEVER ONCE did I have an issue with a car starting. It is not (as gaboon mentioned) gas freezin or any of that nonesense. Something else is going on.

Can't teach old dogs new tricks...once they have something in their head then that's it...it's done:-(
 

casgallo

Not a lurker :)
Apr 3, 2005
68
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6
New York
hehehe on freezing gas. been below 10*F here for days and no problems starting car up today.

next time you think gas is frozen shake the car see if you hear swirling hah