There has been lots of articles written about preparing your old car for winter storage. As with the human body, inactivity is a killer. For your car, rubber, metal, wiring, chrome, internal engine components and brakes all can suffer from sitting and experiencing changes in tempurature and humidity. A constant temperature environment is ideal, of course, but we all dont have heated storage at our disposal. So here is our collection of thoughts for winter storage. You'll want to take her out for one last spin and top up the gas tank and add fuel stabilizer.
Start with a good detailing. Wash and dry the car well then wax. Remove all road grime and dirt from the undercarriage as well as wheel wells and chrome trim. Try using a thin film of Vaseline around the weatherstriping on doors and trunk.
Vacuum the inside of the car well and place a couple of boxes of open baking soda, it helps absorb moisture. To help make it critter proof, try a couple moth balls on the rear seat carpet area. Also keep critters out of the exhaust system by stuffing an oily rag in the tail pipe(s).
Make sure you have fresh brake fluid and antifreeze in the car. Remove the battery, wash it, and keep it in the basement or somewhere warm. Jack the car up and grease all lubericating points. Then leave the car on jack stands at the suspension pionts and remove the wheels for storage. Change the oil in the engine. Over the summer a small amount of gasoline may be in the oil pan. If left over the winter corrosion could occur around the main and rod bearing area.
Now you're pretty much ready to cover it up. Keep a couple windows rolled down a couple inches . Good quality, beathable car covers are good. Cotton flannel blankets work great too. Don't use plastic or polyester fabrics, they trap heat and moisture during tempurature changes. Hopefully you have a couple small assignments to do over the winter to the car to keep you checking it's condition.
Boot Hill is opening it's doors for car club tours. Over the winter, to keep the enthusiasm up, we've desided to conduct shop tours to car clubs that meet in the evenings and weekends over the winter. This practice will likely carry on into next summer as well. Just give me a call at the shop during regular hours and book an appointment a few weeks in advance. Let me know how many are coming and the snacks and coffee will be on.
John Inglis
Shop Manager
