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My grandpa's mechanic buddy swore by putting ATF in the gas tank to clean out old carbs
Tried it on my '65 Mustang after it sat for 3 years and the thing ran like a dream after 20 miles, but now I'm wondering if anyone else has seen this backfire or if I got lucky?
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riverf3417d ago
Did you drain the old gas out first or just pour the ATF right in? I'm glad it worked out for you, but you might have just gotten real lucky there... I've seen guys try that trick on old small engines and it just made a smoky mess instead of cleaning anything. The thing is, those old carbs with the rubber seals can get eaten up by the additives in modern ATF, especially if it's not the old-school Type F stuff. Still, if she's running good after 20 miles I'd say you're in the clear for now... just keep an eye on the fuel lines for a while.
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jason56217d ago
I mean, I get the concern but people act like a few ounces of ATF through a lawn mower carb is gonna melt the whole thing down. It's a little transmission fluid, not battery acid. I've run it through old Tecumseh engines that were sitting for years and the rubber seals were already toast anyway. Maybe it's just me but if it starts and runs after 20 miles, I think the risk was worth it.
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oliver24217d agoTop Commenter
The old Type F stuff is the key there. Most people grab the modern synthetic blend ATF and wonder why their carb turns into a gooey mess. I've seen it happen with old Briggs engines where the seals were fine before someone dumped in the wrong fluid and then had to rebuild the whole thing. But if you stuck with the old school fluid and the carb was already crusty, then yeah, you probably just gave it a last chance before it was toast anyway. Works great on a lawn mower you don't care about, wouldn't risk it on anything I actually wanted to keep running.
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