Bad gas can have a negative affect on your automobile. Unfortunately, most people have no idea that gas can go bad, or what can happen if gas does go bad. You can encounter bad gas when pumping new gas into your car, after refueling your car with gas from a sitting gas can, or simply because gas has been sitting in your car for a prolonged period of time. Here is everything that you need to know about bad gas.
How Does Gas Go Bad?
There are numerous ways that gas can go bad. Too much water can be mixed with gas, causing problems. This can occur due to improperly mixing the gas at the refinery, humidity in the air where the gas is being stored, or water mixing with gas when it rains due to an old or failing gas container. Gas also degrades as it mixes with air. As such, gas can simply go bad due to its age. Most gas will begin to degrade within two to three months if it is not mixed with a fuel stabilizer.
What Are the Signs That Your Gas is Bad?
If you are looking at gas that is bad, you may notice that the gas is darker in color when it is bad. Gas that is bad may also have a sour smell to it that you can smell as you pour the gas. Once the bad gas is in your car, your car may not run as smoothly as it once did. Your car may have trouble starting up, your car may be running rough, or your vehicle may even begin stalling out. You may also notice that you get far fewer miles per gallon with bad gas than you do with gas that has not gone bad.
What You Should do If You Have a Bad Tank of Gas in Your Car?
You should try to use any gas in your car within two to three months and avoid filling your car with gas from a gas can to prevent bad gas from being in your car. However, if your bad gas came from a gas station, you may be wondering what you can and should do. You do not need to go to an auto repair shop simply because you have bad gas. You can pour a fuel stabilizer into your fuel tank to help stabilize the fuel you have. From there, you should attempt to drive frequently to burn off the bad fuel as quickly as possible. Do not attempt to mix bad fuel with good fuel. Burn off the bad tank of gas as low as you can go before you re-fill your fuel tank.
In most cases, simply burning off the tank of gas you have and filling your car up with fresh gas will solve the issue. Unfortunately, there are other auto repair problems, such as a clogged fuel injector or sediment in the fuel tank that can mimic the signs of bad gas. If you have filled your tank with fresh gas and are still experiencing issues, you should have your vehicle checked out by a car repair shop. Here at Morgan Automotive Repair, we can diagnose and repair your vehicle. Call to schedule an appointment with us now.