Q–My ’81 Pontiac Firebird 4.9-liter with 85,000 miles seems to be suffering blow-by. I tried a new PCV valve and hose to no avail. The crankcase filter is being saturated with engine oil. Would heavier oil or STP help on a car that isn’t worth replacing the pistons? D.M., Worth
A–We agree that a 1981 Firebird with a worn-out engine is probably not worth saving, so yes, try some oil additive. It may help with any smoke or oil that blows by the piston rings and is a heck of a lot cheaper than a ring job. If is doesn’t help, you have wasted very little.
Q–We own a 1991 Toyota Celica with about 70,000 miles. A couple months ago, my wife complained that the car smelled like gas. I took a look under the hood and found some fuel lines had corroded near the fuel filter, and they were wet with fuel. We took it to the Toyota dealer and they replaced those lines for about $400. Some time went by, and we continued to notice the gas fumes. Last week she took the car to have the oil changed and the mechanic said “We have to get this car out of here, it’s leaking fuel all over the place.”
She took it to the dealer and they said that they needed to replace the fuel line from the gas tank and the gas tank itself. I saw the other fuel lines, so I can understand that more fuel lines may be corroded. But the fuel tank?
Is it a common thing for fuel tanks to be replaced due to rust? Aren’t these parts supposed to be coated or treated with rust inhibitor of some kind? Are there any further precautions I can take?
My concerns are that Toyota may have used defective or untreated materials on the fuel system. We should warn fellow procrastinators that if it smells like gas, do something about it or you could be a fire ball on the side of the road. Luckily I did not learn this the hard way. T.McK., Chicago
A–Fuel lines and tanks do not usually rust rapidly, but can suffer increased corrosion from road salt and wet weather. Fuel tanks are usually made from terneplate (steel with a terne coating of tin and lead) that resists rust, but even they can be attacked by the elements. Now that everything in the fuel system has been replaced, you should have no more problems with leaks.
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Bob Weber is an ASE-certified Master Automobile Technician. Send technical questions about cars to him in care of Motormouth, 17717 Silcott Springs Rd., Purcellville, Va. 20132. Send e-mail with name and hometown to motormouthtribune@netscape.net. Answers are supplied only through the newspaper.
