Hello everybody.

I have "inherited" a 1983 Chevy 6.2L diesel. The truck is actually a step-side half-ton. The body is in great shape. The truck has a 4 speed manual tranny and it was originally bought by my father-in-law brand new and he and his family drove it until the late 90's at which time he semi-retired the truck and placed it in a barn. He continued to periodically drive the truck and start it up until about ten years ago at which time the truck was not ran or started. I have been cleaning out the barn and I really want to get this old truck running again and bring it into use again. My FIL claims that he regularly got 26 MPG while driving the truck. It really is a nice looking vehicle and even has a wooden bed floor.

Does anybody know what happens to diesel fuel when it is allowed to sit for 10+ years? I know that gas will gell rather quickly but I had heard that diesel can stay good for a long time but that algae can grow in it.

My thought on getting the truck running is to of course drain all the fuel if it has not gelled or otherwise turned solid. Next drain all the fluids ( water, oil, etc) and attempt to flush the new fuel forward. I have heard that getting the glow plugs out can be a real pain on this particular truck but I would think that you would need to remove/replace them and spray a little oil into the cylinder. Next I would think that it would be good to try and turn the engine over a few times w/o glow plugs to try and lube up the cylinders.

Any help or suggestions welcome.