Proper Care

[philipminion]

Hello all,

What is the proper way to store a car for winter. My car is in a garage, but is not heated. The temperature here can drop between (-4 to -13 degrees Farenheit or between -20 to -25 degrees Celcius). What is the ideal temperature to garage should be at? Should I put the car on jack stands and take of the rims? What about fluids?

Thanks everyone in advance

[Guess My Name]

First top off all fluids and check anti-freeze protection level.

Then if possible start the engine like once a month to recharge the battery and keep the engine healthy. It would be nice drive it a bit to work in the tranny and differential.

If you can't do that then disconnect the battery.

In my former employment, for long term storage of mechanical equipment we would over fill everything to prevent rust and such. Then before start up we drained everything, refill, and changed all filters. Then went through a detailed start up procedure. We had equipment with wet clutches and friction material so this was very important.

[philipminion]

Thanks alot for that post.

One question is if I disconnect the battery, how long will it last or will it die after a certain point of time since it's not being used?

[Brad B.]

It's best if you can bring the battery inside or, better yet, simply put a $15 trickle charger on it.

Fill all liquids as discussed. Use Stabil in the fuel tank. Follow the directions. This will keep the injection/carbs/fuel pump from gumming up.

Do not leave the emergency brake on. It can cause the pads to rust onto the rotors.

If you start the car monthly you MUST let it rull for 15 minutes minimum AFTER the car is at FULL operating temperature. This will burn off the chemical condensation. Any less heat-time will be worse than not starting it at all.

Roll the car to a different spot on the tires every couple weeks. Overinflate by 10-15 pounds. Park on carpet scraps or several layer of cardboard rather than bare concrete. This will reduce flatspotting. OR put on jackstands (inconvenient) or buy special curved parking pads (expensive).

Put a box of Arm and Hammer Baking soda in the trunk and in the front and back seat floor of the car to absorb moisture.

Keep windows tightly closed.

Change your oil just before parking the car for the season. Clean oil has no destructive chemicals and debris in it like dirty oil does.

Wash the car outside and in and let dry THOROUGHLY befor putting it away.

I have done this to my old cars every year for many years. Works great, never a problem.

[Guess My Name]

Listen to Brad.

Oh yeah tires forgot about them.

Open garage when running engine so you will be alive come spring!

[Cybercowboy]

Definitely trickle charge instead of disconnecting the battery. This is much better for your battery and, if you have a computer in the car, it's a necessity (not an issue in your case, apparently). You can get a $15 trickle charger like Brad suggests, or buy a more expensive model that does other functions like normal charging or fast-charging. I opted for the latter myself as you never know when you may need the extra functions. That and I always tend to overdo things. Even then it was less than $50.

One more suggestion. Cover the car while it's in storage.

[Yell00ITR]

Actually, I would have to interject and say not to worry about the tires. Back in the day tires used to flatspot if not moved for several months. That is not the case anymore. Unless you leave the car parked stationary for over a year, I wouldnt worry about flatspotting.

Also, if you are going to use a gas stabilizer, try to avoid ones that use methanol. Methanol is not as soluble in gasoline as one would think (put them both in a cup and watch them separate). So, what happens is it mixes with the water in your tank and whe you run the car, you have have some gas with a little water and methanol in it, and then just plain water and methanol. Isopropanol (like in Iso-HEET) is superior and a better choice, and not really any more expensive. It mixes well in gas and water and provides more consistent protection.

[Brad B.]

It's true that bias-ply tires are very much prone to flatspotting (older tires and classic cars with vintage tires) but even some modern radials can flatspot. Unfortunately I proved it to myself!

Maybe the brand matters or the style, I am not a rubber expert. But I had a set of brand new Dunlop radials on my XK that flatspotted one year. (4 months without rotation...duh!) It wasn't as obvious as the bias-ply's but it never all worked out and after a visit from the Dunlop regional rep they concluded that it was the case and replaced them at a discount. So I gues it "shouldn't" have happened but it did.

Personally, I now lean to the side of caution.

[Yell00ITR]

Im no rubber expert either...probably why I have 13 kids and I am only 24 years old!!

The tires I use all have VERY stiff sidewalls (Generally w or z rated summer/racing tires) and I have not had a problem with them. Perhaps flatspotting is still a problem in tires that dont have very strong sidewalls?

[Brad B.]

Good point! The radials I am speaking of are for a classic Jag and have a very tall sidewall. That's probably the deal.

Maybe I should put some 35 or 40 aspect tires on the Jag. It would be one low-riding cat!

[michaelb]

During the winter, I can flatspot a Pirelli P Zero on both the Jags in just a few days. Take a nice hot tire, park it on a cold concrete garage floor for about 5 days.

Instant flatspot. They aren't permanent but take about a hundred miles to true back up. You'd swear everything was out of balance.

One moral of this story. Be sure you take a nice long test drive of any high performance car you are looking at during cold whether. I can almost guarantee the ride will be better at the end than at the beginning.

[philipminion]

Thanks again everyone. I feel so much better now after having read all those great tips

So here is what I need in no paricular order :

1. Trickle Charger for the battery
2. Top off all liquids
3. Stabil in fuel tank - What is a name brand for this Stabil / gas stabilizer stuff? Yell00ITR and Brad B. , can you guys recommend something?
4. Emergency brake is not engaged
5. Fresh oil and filter change
6. Arm and Hammer Baking soda in the trunk and in the front and back seat floor of the car to absorb moisture
7. Windows tightly closed
8. Wash the car outside and in and let dry THOROUGHLY before putting it away and a car cover would be an asset
9. Park on carpet scraps or several layer of cardboard rather than bare concrete
10. Start the car monthly you MUST let it run for 15 minutes minimum AFTER the car is at FULL operating temperature. ( This will burn off the chemical condensation. Any less heat-time will be worse than not starting it at all. )