Winter Storage

[theholycow]

Originally Posted by epd313

i store mine in a semi-heated building. it is on the second floor and by semi heated i mean the first floor is heated,so some heat makes it's way up stairs.

So the heat gets up the stairs by convection...but how does the car get up the stairs?

Originally Posted by mbauer14085RS/SS2010

so my buddys ideas for storing my car is get a car cover and start her up every 3 weeks or so get her up to temp and not just let her idle.

Drive it at least a few feet and turn the steering wheel back and forth to make sure nothing gets seized up. If it's got an automatic, you might have to take it on the road to get the transmission properly warmed up. If manual, shift into each gear once. Make sure that the exhaust has dried out before you shut it off.

Originally Posted by latemodel3

watch out for critters my buddy with a vette stored for winter in a garage went to drive it in the spring turned heat on and almost puked the mice got into the heating ducts pissing and pooping all over took him a long time to take everything apart and put back together.

Ugh, I hate mice. They destroy everything in my yard. Strategically placed poison took care of that problem!

Originally Posted by franknbeans

Here are the basics.
{a bunch of good stuff}

[AZ2010SS]

Hmm... Winter? Ohh yea, thats when it cools down into the 70's!! Ill be driving mine all winter

[NHHHR]

I store my SKY convertible every winter (Oct-Mar) and its not all that hard to do. I put stabilizer in the gas tank and drive it into the system a bit - but put the car away with about 1/2 to 3/4ths of a tank. I start the car every 2-3 weeks and let it run and rev a bit. (You'll be amazed at the moisture from the exhaust tips, so be sure to wipe them out when you're done.) To avoid flat spots, pump up the tires to well above driving psi (but below max - I do about 40psi). Instead of jack-stands, you can either buy (expensive) rubber storage pads for under the tires, or styrofoam insulation boards (white - $12 at Lowes) work just a as well. I usually double them up and drive the car right onto them. I usually jack and rotate each tire 1/5 turn every few weeks or once a month or so just to make sure. That's about it in an attached garage (w/ no rodent or bug issues). When you take it out, remember to let the pressure out of the tires and fill up with Premium gas a couple tanks to clean everything out. PS. The styrofoam trick works so well I now keep the car on them all year unless the tires are really hot (the styro would probably melt)
Good luck!

[camaro67]

take it put it in a barn someone will find it in 40 years sell it at barrett jackons for 150;000thousand dollars.

[mbauer14085RS/SS2010]

great ideas everyone i appreciate it a lot.

[myold88]

Just put it in the garage. its a new car for gods sake, not '29 Packard. Whats going to happen to it for 2 or 3 months- NOTHING. Starting a car in storage for a few minutes every week is the worst thing you can do to any car- leave it be ! I have antique cars, I put them away with plastic floor covering, mothballs inside, stabilizer and disconect the battery. 4 months later they start right up and are good to go. You dont have to do anyhing to a new or 3-4 year old car.... Drive and enjoy when the roads are dry.

[levi1922]

Originally Posted by franknbeans

glad to help...

My car gets parked from November- May.

thats seven months.
my fourwheeler is luck to get stored this long.

[Riderover40]

Ya....I have an idea! Drive it dam it !

[franknbeans]

Originally Posted by levi1922

thats seven months.
my fourwheeler is luck to get stored this long.

I know right..... I sold my 2004 srt-4 last year with a whooping 16k on it.

[levi1922]

Originally Posted by franknbeans

I know right..... I sold my 2004 srt-4 last year with a whooping 16k on it.

nice,
this will be my daily driver.
too bad i cant buy two..

[CTS]

Worst thing you can do is start the car. Nothing useful will come of that. All you will do it cause moisture to form in the exhaust and the engine and it will lead to corrosion over time.

Do NOT put the car on jack stands or raise it in the air, the car is designed to sit on the tires. They are softer than hard metal or blocks and won't cause suspension or body damage from hanging in the air for months. Also, you want to get the car out if something happens to the building. I recall hearing about a guy who lost his car when the building was on fire but he had removed the battery and wheels and they could not get his out of the building.

I have been storing a car every winter for the last 20 yrs. I change the oil a week before I store it and fill the tank with fuel. Drive it for about an hour before I park it and try to coast to a stop to prevent brake pad from locking on the rotors. Once a month I put the battery charger on for a day (good smart logic charger). Every spring it fires right up. I bought a GM accessory car cover, not cheap be very good quality. Its stored in a metal pole building on insulated concrete slab.

[bigd1276]

I used to store my Mustang every winter. I would start it up and let it run for about 15 minutes every Sunday. If the roads were clear I would take it out for a 30 minute spin. I did that for about 7 years. Seemed none the worse for wear.

[Super Sport]

It's a harsh reality for those of us in the Great White North. A 400+ hp rwd car isn't exactly the best thing to be totting around in some of the world's harshest winter conditions. Winter storage is a must and knowing exactly how to do it is absolutely essential.

I've stored cars in the past but I'm afraid I've never done it right. Luckily, I've never had any major problems whilst firing them back up again - but I think I've been just that; lucky.

I've been reading a lot of articles on the net and not one of them is singing the exact same song. While some say to put the car on jack stands, others say this ain't a good idea because of nowadays' independent suspensions, but still maintain that you should at least inflate the tires to 40 psi in order to keep flat spots from forming (I don't see how overinflating your tire will help, seeing as I work at a tire center and I know overinflating is nothing good). No one, and I mean NO ONE, is saying the same thing.

So what are your tips, tricks and suggestions?

[marcgo2]

I always kept my stored cars hooked up to a batter tender plus. Didn't have to worry about disconnecting the battery or starting it.

I never did anything special with the tires or kept the car on jack stands and I never had a problem with flat spots.