bothanspy

I own a 2006 TL w/ Navi. It has about 3000 miles on it. I went away on business for a much longer period than I planned. It has been sitting for about 8 weeks. 4 weeks outdoors (I'm in Chicago). Four weeks in a garage, for a total of 8 weeks now.

I'll be back this weekend. Is there a proper way to start the vehicle and drive it initially, without doing any damage? IIRC, it has about half a tank of gas in it.

Can't wait to get back behind the wheel of this car. I've missed it so.

pinky_ttc

What else would you do but start the engine? Make sure it runs and then go for it!

bothanspy

I guess I should be more specific.

Do I need to worry about circualting the oil through the system? Do I need to drive it slow for a period of time before racing the engine? Should I top off the half tank of old gas or let this run through first? Should I be concerned about anything at all?

Basically, I have never let a car sit this long before. I just wasn't sure if there was something I should do, or shouldn't do that will keep me from damaging the car.

dmarcus48

I'm in the same boat. My car has been sitting in my garage since the end of August. I had an operation on my right foot and can't drive. I've started the car a couple of times, but that's it.

All you can do is start it, let it run for a minute or two and then drive. I'd take it easy until it gets up to operating temperature and then drive like normal.

Dave

Legend2TL

I agree, let it idle for ~2 minutes before taking off.

For older motors and those that have not been driven for years, I would crank the engine without starting (removing the fuel pump relay does this) to build up oil pressure before actually starting the engine. But for only a few months this is not needed.

geekybiker

Dont be surprised if your tires have flat spots from sitting in one spot too long. They'll work themselves out, but may thump/vibrate a little bit at first.

In the future if you leave the car for months at a time, I would suggest using Sta-bil in the gas to prevent seperation.

Your first drive I would make sure is a nice long one as well. The battery may have partially discharged while sitting and you want to give it a chance to recharge before hitting alot of starting cycles.

gqchicago

Yeah, the biggest concern would be the gas. Gas that is left sitting longer than 30 days turns into varnish... so you need to use Sta-Bil. Very important part of wintering my boats!

I've had my snowblower carb, fuel lines, etc all need to be rebuilt 2x now cause I forgot to put Sta-bil in the fuel.

I shudder to think of what might happen to a TL with a gummed up engine like that! Would be very expensive to fix clogged fuel injectors and the like, it was $125 just to get a snowblower done and that's a simple 2-stroke engine!

By the way...the marine people all tell you to put away a boat full with sta-bil in the fuel..to prevent condensation in the tank / moisture over the winter.

The 2-stroke engine people (snowblowers, lawnmowers) told me to run it dry for the winter, but be sure to use Sta-Bil in any gas cans I have around the garage, or just throw away the old fuel.

The biggest problem I've always had is where do you safely and environmentally consciously throw out old gas??

rt4563

Old gas is probably bad gas. It it was my car I'd want to dispose of the old gas and fill it with fresh fuel. If it were diesel I'd recommend fuel polishing. That's something that's done frequently on large boats.

I used to find the American Petroleum Institute and they recommend contacting your local fire department to find out where to dispose of old gasoline.

gqchicago

Thanks for the tip! I actually have a gas can sitting in my garage from last winter I need to get rid of before using the snowblower soon! I've actually asked quiet a few people locally and people usually mutter something like "the sewer" which I just don't want to do.

That's easy with a gas can though...with a car or a boat full of gas it'd be a lot tougher...to find something to siphon it out into, large enough, then to transport, etc....what a pain! Happened to me once on a powerboat where water got into one of the tanks, fortunately it was a smaller one with the removable gas can and the gas can came off of the boat easily.

bothanspy

Thanks for all the tips. Ciphoning the gas is a bit out of the question, so maybe I will just go top it off with some premium gas and have a nice leisurely drive this weekend.

Really wish I had ran this tank empty. Can't stop kicking myself.

evantec

I also had a can of gasoline I wanted to get rid of. Then one day I saw a lawn-service truck stopped down the block. Those guys always have lots of gas cans on the back of their trailers for all their lawnmovers, leaf-blowers, tractors etc. I offered them the can and they took it, no questions asked. I imagine they made good use of it.

As for storing the vehicle, the 2006 TL manual has a bunch of tips, though it's a little late for that after-the-fact at the end of the storage period. It mentioned jacking the car up so as not to put too much pressure on the tires, leaving a window open if the car is garaged (so it won't get too stale inside), and avoiding non-porous materials if you were going to use a car cover.

I think the main things to look at are using a gasoline stabilizer and not being too surprised if the battery is dead after 8 weeks of non-use. (The dead battery might also mean a lot of re-programming of radio presets and security codes and keyfobs.) Back when I had a motorbike I garaged for the winter, I'd top off the tank, put in gasoline stabilizer, disconnect the battery (so it wouldn't discharge), and possibly drain something or other (since it was a 2-stroke engine). It's been a long time since then, tho.

I'm not sure it would have been such a good idea to have stored the car with an empty tank either, so maybe the half-full wasn't so bad after all.

toowetTL

I wouldn't worry about the fuel going bad in that short of time. I'm routinely away from home for 6 weeks and have never had a problem.

KJSmitty

Don't worry about the fuel. Drive-out what fuel is in your tank and then refill. My TL ended up sitting in storage two separate times for 6 months each. Both times the tank was near full with a little stabiliser. No issues.

Seriously, I would not add "new" gas to your tank. All you will do is have a full tank of "not the best gas". Run out whats in your tank driving normally and then start with a fresh one. You could however add some Sta-Bil to your tank now. It not only stabilizes the fuel for storage yet also is a varnish etc. remover.. Not that I think you have any but non the less the Sta-bil will act like a fuel system cleaner while you're getting rid of that 2 month old gas.

If you had a premium fuel to start with, 8 weeks and your gas is really nothing to worry about.

It also sounds like the car was started/drove at the 4 week point (into a garage).. This would have helped move the fuel a little as well as circulate oil within the engine.. However, the 2 min idle time is definitely a good suggestion. If you have a 5AT it would also be good to just cycle from reverse to drive once or twice with your foot on the brake during those two minutes. Big picture, you're just trying to ensure oil is circulating again prior to driving/applying load to the mechanicals.

Enjoy your second "TL honeymoon"

ubnpast

you must disconnect the battery, then take out the plugs. turn over the motor, crank a few more times. then put every other spark plug back in, crank over, start the enine, then off after a few seconds. let sit for at least 24 hours then your good.

















lol j/k. You dont need to do anything, I agree you should let it sit for 2 minutes, but these cars are so advanced that really nothing is needed.