I have Honda Accord DX 2001 that has not been started for about a year. (Long story–health problems to financial problems) It was running fine when I stopped using it. I need to know what is safest way to start it up and what I need to do for immediate maintenance. Live in NH and car has been outside. Please help!
I guess you could just try and start it however your biggest problem is that the fuel is a year old, probably not stabilized and for that period of time you have water and degraded gas to deal with…drain tank, change fuel filter, disconnect fuel line and drain as much gasoline from lines and tank as you can…refill with fresh gasoline and assuming oil level is okay try starting it.
After a year your fuel is probably actually good enough to use but get fresh gas into the tank asap. Also do an oil change asap and have all other fluids checked. After a couple tanks of gas, change the fuel filter. Have the car completely looked over, cracking belts, hoses and tires are all possibilities among other things.
Chances are you can hop in and, if the battery still has enough of a charge, crank it up and drive off. I think I would charge the battery first. If the battery were really low it could end up causing other problems.
For the most part your car should be fine, but as another noted, it has not been driven for a year so things like oil are likely do for a change. Oil changes and many other maintenance items often say every 6,000 miles or one year (which ever comes first.)
Have you tried to start it?? Tell us about that first…
You will need a charged battery and a little luck…
The only real problem MIGHT be the old gasoline. I would siphon a little out and look at it in a glass jar. What color is it. Clear is OK, a tiny bit green is OK, a very tiny bit orange is OK…But if it tends to look darker orange and smells like old paint, I would siphon it ALL out before attempting to start the engine…In NH cool climate, you should OK with the gas but I would check it…
Now, back to the beginning…Did you get it started and after a few minutes it quit and now it won’t start? Is THAT the case??