I'd never say every old car is a classic! Mass produced 70's and 80's junk is probably the furthest thing from classic you can get

__________________
Current:
2021 Charger Scat Pack Widebody "Sinabee"
2018 Durango R/T

Previous:
1972 280SE 4.5
2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited "Hefe", 1992 Jeep Cherokee Laredo "Jeepy", 2006 Charger R/T "Hemi"
1999 Chrysler 300M - RIP @ 221k

Whoooo Hoooo............. we agree on something!

Tom, I have had all parts of my 72 fuel system apart - I haven't seen any rust or corrosion. Others have - probably something to do with how cars are stored when not in use. BTW, I also owned a 95 Tahoe for 11 years - no problems with it or our E320 so far as ethanol in fuel is concerned. Even modern cars have steel fuel systems and can sit idle for months on end.

In order for ethanol to be absorbed water, it has to have a source of moisture. Main source is the atmosphere. When car is in use in summer, fuel gets replenished regularly, so little chance to absorb much moisture or for separation to occur.

In winter during storage, my SL fuel tank is filled. Very little surface area or void above gas level for moisture to be absorbed. Besides, there is almost no moisture in air during a Canadian winter! I don't do it, but it may be an idea to fill with ethanol free gas (in Canada, most premium grades) plus a stabilizer when storing for long periods. (This comes from marine experience). For our outboard engines, I run carbs dry and empty the fuel tanks. I am a bit lax on snowblower and mowers because they are not as easy to empty. But they always seem to start.

To be honest, I think there is a bit too much hype about ethanol. Very political in USA. I don't know if it makes sense, especially in Canada where we have more than enough oil to meet our needs for foreseeable future. Why we followed the USA with 10% ethanol, I just don't know.

PS: Tom you wrote "You can say nothing newer than '72 is a classic, that's just your opinion." Just to be clear, I did NOT say that. I don't care what a classic is - just wanted OP to explain which cars he was talking about.

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Graham
85 300D,72 350SL, 98 E320, Outback 2.5

Graham, I was referring to Benz Dr's post,
I did learn a lot about the difference between the technical (IE government) terms for "Classic" and "Antique" and the difference between enthusiast clubs for those cars. I also learned a term I've never heard before, "Milestone" - which I guess covers the wide timeframe & type of cars like the Road Runners, E500s, Shelby Cobras, etc.

I'm not trying to start a war or say I'm not willing to learn anywhere. We're all here to learn and also share knowledge in a fun way. We're all of the same cloth - Vintage Benz enthusiasts. We can all get along, right?

Graham, you're lucky to not need to deal with it but here in the USA I am fairly sure even our 93 has Ethanol. Probably more, in fact, because Ethanol is a cheap & easy way to boost octane, so the gas they give us is lower quality. Here in NEPA, winters are quite damp. For example today it'll be low to mid 40's and it just sleeted / rained last night so all that moisture will be around. Last winter was far worse, we never had a solid stretch below freezing more than a week! March 1st last year I was in shorts outside.

__________________
Current:
2021 Charger Scat Pack Widebody "Sinabee"
2018 Durango R/T

Previous:
1972 280SE 4.5
2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited "Hefe", 1992 Jeep Cherokee Laredo "Jeepy", 2006 Charger R/T "Hemi"
1999 Chrysler 300M - RIP @ 221k

I gave up trying to define the term after three car club meetings in 1969 = Everyone has an opinion.

The following is strictly my personal opinion:
* Antiques are pre ww2.
* Classic is a moving target of roughly 20 - 30 years old.
* Many people use either or both terms regardless of vintage.
* Arguing about it will make enemies, to no gain.

Here is what the state of Michigan goes by.
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/hplate_16252_7.pdf

Virtually every US State has different rules, definitions, and laws on the topic.

Every nation has different rules, definitions, and laws on the topic for import, export, tax.


.

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1985 300SD
1983 300D
1984 190D
2003 Volvo V70
2002 Honda Civic

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Absolutely!

If it is raining, humidity would be 100%. But at 40F, there is much less water in air than there is in summer at say 80F. You can see this in a psychometric chart or this table.

With our Canadian winter temperatures being below freezing, water content of air is minimal.

From what boaters have learned, keeping water out of the fuel is key. Emptying and draining tanks is recommended if practicable. Otherwise fill tank to minimize air to fuel surface and volume. Then add fuel additives. But apparently these don't help with phase separation. From Mercury:
Saw this useful check list on BW

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Graham
85 300D,72 350SL, 98 E320, Outback 2.5

Oh, I know that part about temp & how much water the air can hold. The problem is it's going to be mid 40's during the day today, just like yesterday. The humidity will be high, just like yesterday, when the moisture on the ground evaporates. Then tonight like last night it'll drop below freezing, so all that moisture will precipitate out of the air again. If that air goes into the tank (which it will, since the tank heats up during the day, getting the vapors filtered out of the system; then cools at night letting new damp air back in) it'll settle in the tank. Keeping it full does indeed help but when you drive every day it's hard to keep the tank full all the time!

__________________
Current:
2021 Charger Scat Pack Widebody "Sinabee"
2018 Durango R/T

Previous:
1972 280SE 4.5
2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited "Hefe", 1992 Jeep Cherokee Laredo "Jeepy", 2006 Charger R/T "Hemi"
1999 Chrysler 300M - RIP @ 221k

I've always used the earliest term for a Classic Car from 1952 because they were the first to coin this description. The Full Classics built during the classic era of car building is what I'm talking about here. The fact that most of these cars are rarely seen outside of museums or places like Pebble Beach make it much more difficult for Joe public to indentify with them today.

Later naming of classic cars came mostly from used car salesmen. '' This thing is a real classic! I mean, just look at those lines and that unique grill!'' ( this was an Edsel BTW )

Now, anything older than a todler is a classic. This highly over used word, and the modern description of cars that magicly fall into this slot due only to age, means SFA today. Most of the neat cars that were built during the 50's and 60's will likely be Milestone cars but not Classic Cars in the true sense of the word - maybe post war American classics? - I prefer to say vintage cars or old cars.

Anything builty after 1972 ( when Milestone production stopped ) are little more than used cars. At some point I can see stuff like the Viper or the NSX being modern day Milestones but under a different banner.

Really guys, I'm not trying to be smart here or anything like that. I believe that a true car guy should at least know the orignial meanings of these things and he can choose his own direction after that .You won't ever hear Mike Joy at B-J say a car is something that it isn't. He will call them resto-mods, modified, street rods, and a number of other fabricated names but you will never hear him say they're classics - because he knows they're not. B-J used to sell a lot of Classic Cars in their early years and then they found their place in post war American iron.

Isn't it wonderful that we can each have and express our own opinion.

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Charlie.

This debate over 'classic' is really a matter of semiotics. The problem being that the term (like all signifiers) has changed, and it now holds different meanings to different people. One can speak of the 'classic car' in terms of it's historical usage, but as this thread shows, the term 'classic car' is no longer the clear and agreed upon signifier it once may have been: it has become modernized, or mythologized, to various degrees. These changes occur over time, they always do, and it need not trouble us.

The importance, here, is really to know what the original poster meant by the term classic. If he meant cars up until the 1970s -- fine. Disagree if you must, but this is the information required to inform our reading and interpretation of the post.