red irocz28

Hi me and my dad just bought our first camaro and have no place to store it indoors, would a car cover protect it well, or would one of those shelter logic outdoor tents protect it. ive just heard car covers just really dont work that good? Thanks for your help.

90 camaro cj

id perfer the tent as ive seen car covers rub on the paint and leave marks, both will save the interior but the tent will completly protect it

red irocz28

alright thanks will eitheir protect the paint or is the paint ok outdoors?

puma1552

iTrader: (1)

Car covers are totally worthless, and the worst thing you can do to a car that sits outside.

camarotucker

iTrader: (2)

There are diffrent grades of car covers. I bought a "top of the line" custom fit Wolf, while in Europe with the service. It did the job, keept sap off the car. They can act as a theft deterent because thiefs are less likely to mess with a car with a cover. They will protect somewhat against hail. I drove the car on the weekends, so it wasnt always covered, but water will penatrate through the cover. I would not recomend one as a long term storage solution, I could see mold and rot issues. My advice is if you get one is dont get a universal but a custom fit, and get a higher end one. I could see it scrathing new paint, but paint that has cured 6-12 months it would be no problem, just like anything that touches paint you have to take care that it does not touch the ground.

puma1552

iTrader: (1)

^^^Till a light breeze flares up...

the solitaire

Car covers can be used for cars in a storage or in a garage.

Using a car cover by itself does not protect the car from the elements.
A car parked outside will be a car parked outside, regardless of whether you put a cover on it or not. If you're in an area with high humidity, large temperature differences between day and night, or with rain, and there is no possibility to put the car in storage or in a garage, best leave it standing outside without a cover and regularly clean it.

The biggest problem with these car covers is that they capture humidity. This humidity ends up between the cover and the car and nicely sticks the cover to the car promoting corrosion and mold. Doesn't do the weathersealing any good either.

I've seen a few cars that have been stored outside, using only a car cover, and the first location where moss will start to grow is on the rubber parts, then on the painted areas with bad clearcoat, then on the rest. In some cases it didn't take a full year to see a nice green layer of moss growing on the car.

J91

They are a moisture trap....

navy02ws6

Covering a car that stays outside ALL the time can work, but it's a total pain to do it the right way, and generally not worth the effort.

First off, unless you're starting with a fitted outdoor $250+ cover, you're wasting your time.

Second, the car must be 100% clean (as in just washed or rubbed down with quik detailer) whenever putting the cover on it, or the paint will get scratched.

Third, no matter how waterproof or resistant the cover says it is, rain will still soak through in anything other than a quick light drizzle. This results in staining the entire car with the pattern of the car cover, complete with any dirt or dust that was on the cover before it rained. Worse yet, if you're not at home when it rains, you get to put the rain-soaked cover in the back of the car, soaking your carpet, which you then get to peel back and dry also. And of course the only way to dry the cover properly is to stick it back on the car, which must be clean first, and will definitely be dirty again after the cover dries out on it.

Fourth, the cover must be dry-cleaned every so often, or it will leave streaks on the car every time you put it on (which is what mine is doing now, so bad that I can't even use it).

If it doesn't rain where you're at, it might be worth it...otherwise, they're usually more trouble than they're worth.

SKELITOR117

iTrader: (3)

Car covers stay on in windy conditions, if you inventive. Here's what to do, Get some bungie rope, wrap it around the sides of the car, over the winsheild (make sure to tuck it under the mirrors), and around the other side. Take both ends of the rope and tie them behind and underneath the rear spoiler (make sure it's tight!) it'll hold up to some strong winds. Bungie cording the sides of the cover to eachother so that they pull at one another from under neath the car is another way. Do this at the front and rear wheels. This combinded techneque will prvent it from flying away. it really helps if you do the bungie rope tie down as well as the lower bungi chord tie down, the bungie rope keeps the cover from ballooning up when High winds come, and there for releaves stress on the lower bungie ties.
P.S use two bungies hooked together for the front, and three in the back. I'll post picks later.

SKELITOR117

iTrader: (3)

As far as protection, they are really only good for preventing scratches and sun damage. The sun will ruin your paint if it sits outside all day uncoverd.

puma1552

iTrader: (1)

Not if the car is taken care of. Use a GOOD sealant and a good wax, and keep the car washed and it won't get ruined. Even red and silver can last a long time outside if protected properly.

A cover doesn't prevent scratches, it causes them.

Realize, that the goal to keeping nice paint is to have minimal contact with it at all times. This even goes for washing the car, if you've seen how professional detailers wash a car, they usually use a foam cannon to soak the car in a blanket of soap that lifts and suspends much of the dirt before a mitt ever touches the paint. Then after the loose dirt is removed without the car being touched, they wash it using the two-bucket method to minimize rubbing dirt around the car via the wash mitt. Once the car is clean and clayed, *then* you can apply a nice glaze/sealant/wax to it to give it decent protection. But if you put even a properly protected car under a cover, the abrasion from even the nicest of covers will just rub those products off and then the clear coat will start being damaged.

If you have a cover on the car, you have something rubbing up against the paint 24/7--not good. Just take care of the car without a cover and it will be no problem. When I was in college, my E36 had to unfortunately sit outside on the street in front of my apartment for the four years I had it. I took care of it as described above, and it looked just as good on the day I sold it as it did the day I bought it. That was in Minneapolis, where heat indices can reach 130*F in the summer with 80%-90% humidity all summer long, and wind chills can reach -40*F in the winter.