I was wondering if I had to put lead additive into the gas I put in my 53 Plymouth. I have heard about the new gasoline eatting the rubber of the old fuel lines.
Are there carb rebuild kits for unleaded gasoline? What should I do to the fuel lines?
When I fill up my tank how much lead additive should I place into the tank?
Quote from: XmikeyX on August 31, 2006, 05:02:05 PM
I was wondering if I had to put lead additive into the gas I put in my 53 Plymouth. I have heard about the new gasoline eatting the rubber of the old fuel lines.
Are there carb rebuild kits for unleaded gasoline? What should I do to the fuel lines?
When I fill up my tank how much lead additive should I place into the tank?
Unless you have significantly increased the compression ratio of your engine it can run on standard unleaded gasoline. It was equipped from the factory with hardened exhaust valve seats -- the basic engine was designed to run on "regular" gasoline back in the days when you had to pay extra to "fill it with ethyl" (tetraethylead). So you don't need to buy or add lead additive to your tank. If you have increased the compression ratio of your engine you may have to run on mid or high octane gasoline but if you have the original compression ratio regular should be fine. Basically if your engine is not pinging your timing, mixture and octane are such that your engine is not being damaged.
There are a number of additives used today that do not play nice with old fashioned rubber. So your fuel system (fuel hose, fuel pump diaphragm, carburetor float needle tip, etc.) may be damaged by modern gas. Antique Auto Parts Cellar sells rebuild kits for pumps and carburetors that use modern rubber and are safe with modern gas. I had a local brake and tubing specialty shop make me up a new fuel hose using modern rubber.
If you car is running, I'd just get spares for the fuel hose, fuel pump and carburetor and swap them in when/if the current ones develop a problem. If you have things apart, just get a modern rebuild kit (not a NOS one off of eBay!) and update them.
My car has been together for eight years and I have had no fuel system related failures. And to the best of my knowledge my valves and valve seats are still good (compression is still good and it is hitting evenly on all cylinders).
If you are really desperate to read more of my writing on the topic of gasoline and lead you can see
http://www.ply33.com/Misc/gasoline
for additional information.
My 51 Plymouth has run 45000 miles on unleaded regular with 8.4 to 1 compression. No pings no problems, excellent fuel economy. Some years ago I rebuilt an engine for a 50 which is the only transportation for its owner who drives it like a teenager. It has now passed the 70 000 mile mark without problems. I am certain our favourite flatheads would run on distilled cabbages if given reasonable care.