Grandma's Van

[JC1]

Call the dealer and see if they can make a key using the vin number. At least it's an old style key and not these chipped fob style ones.

 

[atikovi]

Or take out the door lock and take to a locksmith if the cut is the same.

 

[meep]

With the two barn finds I got to watch come to life recently, one thing we observed was all the rubber bits on the fuel pumps were melted, presumably from ethanol. The guy supervising the work (church program) is ASE certified and said what we were looking at was ethanol related. I hope you don’t run into that but who knows? Do those have an access panel to pull off the top of the tank from the interior?

 

[gfh77665]

If it happens to have a 1/4 tank of gas or less, I would fill with fresh premium high octane gas, and a 2X dose of Techron or Gumout Regane.

This might allow you to avoid having to pull the tank.

 

[Crash Bandicoot]

Sorry for your loss. Lost my grandma a few years back, amazing woman and fantastic link to the past, grew up in the tenements, lived through the Great Depression, had a career, went back to school in her 50s and had another career. They don’t make them like they used to. I’d run some fresh fuel in that beast and change the fuel filter as well as drop some Techron into the tank. Rattle can or wrap for the roof. Check the brake lines as well.

 

[irad]

Remove the plugs. Squirt some oil in each cylinder. Crank the engine, by hand or by jumping it. Clean the plugs and put them back in. Try to start it. Good luck.

 

[Rochev]

Thanks everyone for the replies! It's actually been sitting for 7 years. The key was one of the first things I found when cleaning out the house. I don't know what motor it has or the condition of anything under the hood because the hood release cable snapped and vice grips can't pull it. There was a lot of weight stored in it, but I cleaned everything out of it and tried rocking it, and its suspiciously stiff. I also didn't hear gas sloshing. It's squat down so much the exhaust is almost touching the pavement so I hope the suspension isn't rusted in place. I'm going to try filling the tires and have it towed home, but it may be a bit before I can get around to it unfortunately.