personal opinion on lead additive for classic cars.

[STUDEMAC]

i have talked to many people and dont always get the same answer. with the classic cars that were made when good old lead was still in gas do you add lead or use the modern gas straight. any ideas or input?

[Gunslinger]

Waste of money. If it were truly needed there would be true episodes of cars with burnt valves, not just dire predictions. Those predictions just haven't proven out in forty years of hearing them.

i think most, if not all, cars that had problems since the changeover to unleaded gas in the 1970's were due to high mileage or poor maintenance by owners who simply used unleaded as an excuse. Amoco was selling unleaded fuels since the early '60s if not even earlier.

[63t-cab]

I remember my father telling how "in Ohio" in the 50s when He and His buddies were yong running around with un-leaded gas,"I think He called it white gas'or some crazy name cuz that's what the kids could afford when out racing the streets and He did'nt remember ever haveing trouble with it.and He never could understand all the concern about it !

Waste of money. If it were truly needed there would be true episodes of cars with burnt valves, not just dire predictions. Those predictions just haven't proven out in forty years of hearing them.

i think most, if not all, cars that had problems since the changeover to unleaded gas in the 1970's were due to high mileage or poor maintenance by owners who simply used unleaded as an excuse. Amoco was selling unleaded fuels since the early '60s if not even earlier.

[50starlite]

I agree, it's a waste of money. First of all I don't believe you can by a true "lead" additive anymore.
Now alcohol is another story. I do not put an alcohol fuel of any kind in my Studebakers, my outboard motor, my Gravely Tractor or any of my chain saws or lawn equipment.
And yes, I know, all of us do not have that option. That's sad.

Dick

[63 R2 Hawk]

Run a little 100LL avgas every now and then, it's good in small doses. That's the only way you will get lead in your fuel. Otherwise, try to keep non-ethanol contaminated gas in it. Lead "substitute" is nothing more than top oil. As the name implies it is only a substitute.

[alaipairod]

There are several ethanol neutralizers on the market.......
I use an ounce of lead additive and an ounce of the E neutralizer for every 5 gallons of fuel ...Just because I can...........

[bezhawk]

I have read over and over again on adding "High Octane Aviation Leaded Fuel" to Studes( or any other make for that matter). My question is......HOW?
It is highly illegal since no 'road taxes' are factored in. Who sells it to you? If you were talking about racing fuel from a speed shop, that's one thing, but how in the heck is everyone purchasing AvGas?????

[Chris_Dresbach]

Corey I thought we had this talk...
My personal opinion that was told to me by an expert Studebaker mechanic is that you do not need to run additives in the fuel because Studebaker had hardened valves and seats. Other cars of the day didn't have that and that's why it's good to run additive in the fuel mix. The reason lead was there in the first place is because it was a form of lubricant and kept the valves from getting destroyed.

[thunderations]

Often when people DO use lead additives they tend to "over prescribe" and get more into the system then is required. Next thing you know is that the push rods are stuck and the lifters don't work properly, bending push rods. Sometimes it gums up the valve stem itself and sticks the valve. SOOOOOO, if you chose to use a lead additive, don't overdose. I've never used an additive in any of my classic/antiques and have never had a problem. I drive my cars on the highways and at highway speeds, so I'm not babying them or only warming them up to put back in the garage.

[JimC]

If you feel the need for some top lubrication, squirt a little marvel in your gas tank after a fill up. A bottle of that goes longer, costs less, and does the same thing as those single use lead substitutes. Nothing can replace true leaded gas, but I'd argue it's not a concern. If the folk legends about my car are true, it's never had valve work (aside from lash adjustment) done in 50 years, and for half of that, it's only had unleaded fuel.

[mapman]

I have worked on an Avanti R1 that the valves had receded into the head making it foul plugs at a weekly rate. This car was a daily driver. The valve heads were nearly buried in the seats. We added hardened seats and always do at rebuild with high compression engines. It has been shown that the removal of lead is actually benificial to most engines because of the lack of build-up in the fuel contact areas. The lower performance engines don't suffer from the same pounding that the R engines are subjected to with the higher lift cams and heavier valve springs. The alcohol fuel definitely has adverse affects on the fuel system, allowing water to creep in and disolving ancient deposits in the tank and the fuel lines as well as deteriorating the older rubber parts.
Knowing this I drive my cars expecting these problems and fix them as they come up. Once they have been fixed the problems seem to go by the wayside and I no longer have to worry about them. I do run unleaded in my regular studes but always try to fill my avanti with unleaded, alcohol free, premium. I know others feel the added expense is worth it to them to not have to worry.
Rob

[63 R2 Hawk]

I have read over and over again on adding "High Octane Aviation Leaded Fuel" to Studes( or any other make for that matter). My question is......HOW?
It is highly illegal since no 'road taxes' are factored in. Who sells it to you? If you were talking about racing fuel from a speed shop, that's one thing, but how in the heck is everyone purchasing AvGas?????

I live in an airpark, so it is readily available there. It is illegal to pump it directly into your car for reasons cited but it's usually not a problem to fill a 5 gallon jerry can or two from a credit/debit card operated pump. Generally, the pump LCD readout will ask you if you are grounded and ask you if you want X gallons or X dollars and ask for a tail #. If you don't own a plane, you can zero out the tail # query and proceed. I have seen some gearheads pump directly into their vehicle, but I don't care to do that. I use avgas in all my small engine stuff as do a lot of my neighbors, have for years and never had a problem, never had to use Stabil.

[rusty nut garage]

Hardened valves and hard seats in stock studebakers heads is another urban legend.
If your running your stude hard In a truck for instance or expect considerable mileage out of a valve job I'd recommend hard seats. If its a hobby car I don't feel it's necessary.

Corey I thought we had this talk...
My personal opinion that was told to me by an expert Studebaker mechanic is that you do not need to run additives in the fuel because Studebaker had hardened valves and seats. Other cars of the day didn't have that and that's why it's good to run additive in the fuel mix. The reason lead was there in the first place is because it was a form of lubricant and kept the valves from getting destroyed.

[JoeHall]

I have read over and over again on adding "High Octane Aviation Leaded Fuel" to Studes( or any other make for that matter). My question is......HOW?
It is highly illegal since no 'road taxes' are factored in. Who sells it to you? If you were talking about racing fuel from a speed shop, that's one thing, but how in the heck is everyone purchasing AvGas?????

On I-71 in Kentucky, off exit #28, 28 miles north of Louisville, there is a Chevron station with a pump that sells 100+ octane (forget exactly the octane but over 100), but was around 10 dollars per gallon, last time I looked, a couple of months ago. Only reason I can figure is because it is only about 25 miles south of Sparta, KY where the NASCAR Speedway is. I was thinking maybe folks going to/from there might want to pay that much for gas.
Not sure if that is "Aviation" gas, but it is legal to buy it at the pump.

[raprice]

If you can get Avgas, it's 100 octane. Your engine wouldn't dare ping on that stuff. However, around here, it's $6.00 per gallon. A little goes a long way.
Rog