Winter is almost here and i am going to put my car away for the winter. I am going to store it out side with a car cover over it. Is there anything i should do to prepare it for the long winter sit?? Thanks

 

Change the oil, fill the gas tank and put stabilizer in it. Inflate the tires to 45-50 psi to avoid flat spots.

 

I read somewhere on here not to use a regular tarp, but some special kind due to mosture and rust. If I rem right, the same post said to store it in jacks on the control arms and rear alxe.
Might want to do a search. Post was about 2 months ago or less I belive.

Agree with fuel stabalizer, and very thin oil.

 

Man I love that car.

The color's great... and that's the first 'bird I think I've seen that I like those rims on.

 

I am going to end up storing my '89 RS outside as well. I was thinking about a car cover (a good one too - not a $20 special). Thing is though, what about wind and the possibility of the cover beating the paint? A fellow that lives around here and covers his cars mentioned that problem to me and that I should rope the cover down really well. Any tips or ideas? I am not sure if I want to put a cover on it or not - the paint job really doesn't need any more damage (it is a cheap job someone did themselves - chipping in a few places and the factory paint is underneath - the factory paint looks fine in all the places the paint is chipping - but it is just SLIGHTLY darker).

I am going to seal a small leak on one T-Top and add extra air to the tires. Anything else?

 

Might want to throw some mouse traps or rat poison in there, too... you don't want to pull the cover off in the spring and find your interior shot to hell. We used to use moth ***** in our old pop-up camper after opening it one spring and finding that mice made their home in it. After we started the mothballs, the mice never came back.

 

I was thinking about covering mine for the winter. Then my dad(a.k.a. my bodyman) told me about a car he had.

I guess he sat it outside with a cover on it for the winter, the weather was a mixtue of freezing rain and snow. It froze part of the cover to the car, when it melted and he removed the cover, the cover had removed his clear coat in certain spots. He was not real sure why.


This wa a car he had painted himself, so the clear was good. ANd he has never bought a cheapie cover. That may have been a fluke, but it's something to think about.

 

Put the battery on a trickle charger.
I wouldn't just let it sit all winter, I'd crank it every once in a while. Pick a warm day, crank it up - get it up to operating temp. Turn on the A.C. even.

 

Also try and get a plastic sheet or plastic tarp to put under the car if you have to store it on dirt or the lawn. Helps keep th moisture from rotting the subframe.

Use old blankets/comforters as a soft barrier between your paint and your car cover(s). This might not be applicable to people storing outdoors, but might save a dent or two if you store in your garage and accidentally drop something (like a garage door rail part... *sigh*) on your car...

I place a magnetic oil pan heater on the pan when I park it for the winter. I pre-heat the oil for a few hours before starting it up every other weekend. Try and let the engine warm up fully before shutting it off, and try to get the water out of the exhaust system.

Cut up 4x4's make inexpensive jack stands.

Leave your windows, t-tops, decklid open or ajar to allow the seals to relax. Rub Vaseline on your seals before storing your car, and let them sit in the sun for a few hours.

Open your body plugs, and spray in your favorite oily protectant.

That's about all I can think of for the moment... I'm sure other people will add more to the list...