Time to Fire Up the ‘55 Chevy
Written by admin on April 27, 2010 – 5:19 pm -It has been a long cold winter here in Pennsylvania, and it’s time to get the Old ‘55 Chevy fired-up and inspected for the road. I hope you’ve had a chance to start your Chevy up over the winter; I was able to take mine out for a few short road trips thanks to some of the occasional nice days we had.
I am also hoping you followed some of the recommendations from my previous article on prepping the Chevy for its winter or cruise season hibernation.
The primary focus of good storage techniques is to have minimal problems now in fire-up season. There is nothing like giving the battery a good full charge, to get the old juices flowing during your critical start-up. In preparation for start-up let’s go back to the basics:
- Check all engine related fluid levels
- Check battery fluid level and terminals for cleanness
- Check brake fluid level
- Check under the car for leaks and any stains on your garage floor
- Check tire pressure
- Verify you have enough fuel in the car, add a little fresh fuel
- Check all driving lights before you cruise
- Work all the control pedals, gas throttle, clutch and brakes for proper and free operation
During you start up attempt the worst thing you can do is flood the engine with gasoline (carburetor models), take your time and use short engine cranking cycles, be patient for that first cough of the engine. If the engine will not start, check for fuel flow to the carburetor and ignition spark, you should be OK, but weird things can happen during winter storage.
Once you get the engine fired-up take it easy on the RPM’s until the engine is up to operating temperature, its best to move the car out doors and let it idle to warm-up. During warm-up once again check for any leaks and weird noises that were not there last Fall.
If you have gotten to this point congratulations, you have had a successful storage season, and you ready for that first official cruise of the season, remember check the fluids often, recheck tire pressures, and keep the “tunes” down low for listening. The most exciting part the fire-up is not going back over covered ground and projects previously done, but it is planning new projects for the Old Chevy in the new cruise season.
Good luck and always be careful, the Old Chevy’s are a true joy to own and drive, but also a major responsibility in terms of keeping them mechanically sound and driven safely.
Tags: 1955 Chevy, 1955 Chevy Bel Air
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