Calling all 1958 Fuelie owners - Need help with winterizing

[Jack U.]

A member of my Corvette club recently had a stroke and will be incapacitated for a long period of time. He is unable to speak or walk and is in intensive care at a local hospital.

His wife has asked our general club membership to help winterize his two Corvettes; one of which is a 1958 fuelie.

We don't know the last time maintenance was performed on the vehicle or what was performed. I suspect we will find out through a series of examinations only.

I own a '63 fuelie but is there anything specific that should be performed on the 1958 in general or specifically regarding this model of FI unit? I believe the 1958 is kept in a basement garage which is "somewhat" heated.

[Duke W.]

Re: Calling all 1958 Fuelie owners - Need help with winterizing

A little archive browsing will unearth a number of discussions, but for winter storage - fresh engine oil and fresh full fuel. Other considerations are battery and tires. Also, coolant and brake fluid should be changed if they will expire prior to the end of storage.

Long term storage - say over 1-2 years calls for some different prep.

Worst case is that the owner may never be able to drive the car again, so one should plan accordingly.

Duke

[William C.]

Re: Calling all 1958 Fuelie owners - Need help with winterizing

In addition, there is a gasoline additive called "Stabil" I believe that will help prolong the life of gasoline in storage.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Calling all 1958 Fuelie owners - Need help with winterizing

after putting 'stabil" in the tank make sure you run the engine to get the stabil/gasoline mixture thru the complete fuel system.

[John D.]

Re: Calling all 1958 Fuelie owners - Need help with winterizing

HI Jack, So sorry to hear about your friend. As far as keeping the 58 FI from going to pot here is an easy solution. Do like I do for my 63-the LWC. I run 100LL aviation fuel in it. It won't gum up in a 100 years. Down side to it though is that it evaporates much faster than pump gas.
My vendor trailer is done for the season. At Fall Carlisle I ran the generator dry to rid it of the 87 octane gas. Today I am filling the generator with 100 LL and come next April it will start up immediately.
Don't cut the 100LL. Use go to a local small air port with two of five gallong gas cans and tell them it's for testing purposes. If you want any other info email me. johndegreg@aol.com

[Joel F.]

Re: Calling all 1958 Fuelie owners - Need help with winterizing

If it is going to sit for a considerable period of time, there is a good chance the high pressure fuel pump seals will become useless.

[William L.]

Re: Calling all 1958 Fuelie owners - Need help with winterizing

Jack
John D got me started using aviation fuel in our 63 F.I.. One time the car was in the NCM for 18 months and when we brought the car out it started right up and ran just like it did before. I have used ave gas ever since.
You may also what to think about putting jack stands under the front A frames and rear axle to save the tires, but I would not let the suspension
hang free.
Bill