How to winterize a car

[whitefrs]

Originally Posted by LeeMaster

Where's what I do:

-Fill up gas tank to 99% full + Added Stabil to keep the gas fresh


-Unplugged the battery
-Set gear in neutral and do "NOT" engage the e-brake(You dont want your calipers/brake pads stuck)
-Put some 2x4 wood on the front and back of the tires to keep the car from rolling
-clean interior and vaccum(important....but I didnt do "DOH")
-Waxed the car and cleaned the car before putting it to sleep
-Buy a size 3 car cover to protect it
-Pressed the button that dont let air from the outside to flow inside to keep rodents from coming inside the car.... (What did I just say?)


Optional:

-Change transmission oil
-change engine oil/filter
-Take out important papers/electronics/junks in the trunk etc

EDIT:



Sorry, I didnt read that in the first place. Very important thing to keep in mind is that ANY car cover(regardless of quality) is not designed to keep a car stored outside for a long time especially through winter. Imagine all the dirty things that can get on your car cover and then sneak inside your paint! When it comes time for you to take it off, you have to be extra cautious since those dirt that has been blown by the wind may end up scratching your paint. Now may be a good time to get Opti-coat or a fresh wax if you havent done so already.

It's doable since I personally wont want jealous people to throw ice or snowballs at my precious car thats been sitting outside for months, but just be careful. Cheers

Im goin to take all this steps

[Rayme]

Start the car every 2 weeks or so.

1. I don't care what people say, I stored a car for about 6 months without starting it and when I started it back (which wasn't hard at all), the oil completely drained from the head/block it was knocking HARD for at least 5-7 seconds before the oil started being pumped around the engine and quickly stopped thereafter (when I mean hard I mean it sounded like I just threw a rod). Just make sure it completely warms up before shutting it off. I thought the engine was going to shit itself later on but those 2.2 5s-fe were bulletproof lol.

2. I've seen starters/alternator seizes from not starting a car for a few month, though it shouldn't be an issue with a new car.

3. Tire's don't bald spot anymore, no need to lift the suspension either, useless.

4. No car covers if sitting outside. (as someone previously mentionned, the wind will move it over the paint continuously).

[Justin.b]

Outside of the fuel stabilizer (and you'll even be able to get through a few months without that) there's not much you really need to do before parking for the winter.

One thing to consider - you don't save that much corrosion on a car by parking it outside in the elements. In my very non-thorough research, cars can even sometimes rot faster when left outside un-driven for long periods.

-Justin

[White Shadow]

The "don't leave a battery on a concrete floor" thing is an old wives' tale....a myth....started way back when....and it doesn't apply at all to modern batteries.

[White Shadow]

Originally Posted by ottopilot

Start the car every 2 weeks or so.

1. I don't care what people say, I stored a car for about 6 months without starting it and when I started it back (which wasn't hard at all), the oil completely drained from the head/block it was knocking HARD for at least 5-7 seconds before the oil started being pumped around the engine and quickly stopped thereafter (when I mean hard I mean it sounded like I just threw a rod). Just make sure it completely warms up before shutting it off. I thought the engine was going to shit itself later on but those 2.2 5s-fe were bulletproof lol.

One way to prevent that is to disable the ignition (or the fuel pump) and crank the engine over using battery power long enough for engine to build oil pressure and circulate it throughout the engine.. That's a much kinder/gentler way to start an engine that hasn't been started in 6 months or longer.

[White Shadow]

Originally Posted by _hollywood

Im in the same dilema, i was thinking about starting the car every few weeks but honestly cold starts are the most damaging thing that any engine goes thru...
.

Yes, cold starts are hard on engines, no doubt about it. But think about that for a moment. Every morning when you start your car, you're starting a cold engine. A cold start is a cold start and you're doing it every day. If you're storing your car for the winter and you start the engine every few weeks, that's only one cold start compared to a cold start every day. So it doesn't make any sense to avoid starting the car at all during winter storage simply because you think it would be hard on the engine. If anything, you're being much easier on the engine than if you were not storing it and therefore cold starting it every day.

BTW, it's also important to let the engine reach full operating temperature when you start it occasionally during storage. You want any condensation in the engine (and in the oil) to burn off. You also want the thermostat to open and circulate the coolant. Those are just two quick reasons to start the engine and let it idle for a while before shutting the engine off. I used to let my car idle for 30 minutes.

Another reason to start the engine occasionally is to keep an oil film on all the engine internals. An oil film sticks to engine parts (like cams, for example), but over a long period of time, gravity will eventually cause the oil film to "drip off", leaving most engine components unprotected during those first few seconds during start-up before the oil pump builds pressure and starts circulating the oil again.

[Jayde]

Originally Posted by Natheria

This was one of the reasons why i got a form fitting cover. Hopefully it won't be quite as bad. From the pictures ive seen of custom fits they don't look like they could mar the paint too much if you covered the car clean.

Oh and from what i've seen, storage around here is more like 85 a month.

Where is this?! Everywhere around me is like 150$+ a month which is outrageous.

[gily25]

Originally Posted by ottopilot

Start the car every 2 weeks or so.

1. I don't care what people say, I stored a car for about 6 months without starting it and when I started it back (which wasn't hard at all), the oil completely drained from the head/block it was knocking HARD for at least 5-7 seconds before the oil started being pumped around the engine and quickly stopped thereafter (when I mean hard I mean it sounded like I just threw a rod).

I read in another thread (not sure if it was here or another vehicle forum) about pulling the fuel pump fuse and letting the engine try to crank for a bit to circulate the oil (kind of like cheating on a hand crank). Not sure if that will work with our engines but it seemed like a solution to the dry knock.

[Justin.b]

Originally Posted by Jayde

Where is this?! Everywhere around me is like 150$+ a month which is outrageous.

$85 is very cheap for indoor storage. The last time I rented a storage locker I was paying ~$250/month for a 10'x25' that I could drive a car into. If you're looking for outdoor storage, check into places that store RVs and boats. They may have better deals for a car. But outside storage there really isn't any better than outside storage in your driveway.

-Justin

[Jayde]

Originally Posted by Justin.b

$85 is very cheap for indoor storage. The last time I rented a storage locker I was paying ~$250/month for a 10'x25' that I could drive a car into. If you're looking for outdoor storage, check into places that store RVs and boats. They may have better deals for a car. But outside storage there really isn't any better than outside storage in your driveway.

-Justin

What I would give for my own garage. I did hear a rumor that a local fairgrounds building lets you store a car inside for like $300 over the winter. Though, I think I missed the cutoff. I'll look into it next year, but for now I'll be driving my BRZ in the winter! Though I'll just have to take off work if it's going to snow.

[Rayme]

Originally Posted by gily25

I read in another thread (not sure if it was here or another vehicle forum) about pulling the fuel pump fuse and letting the engine try to crank for a bit to circulate the oil (kind of like cheating on a hand crank). Not sure if that will work with our engines but it seemed like a solution to the dry knock.

I did that and it didn't work (pulled the EFI fuse), so I didn't really wrote it down lol. If you can't afford to start it it's at least one way to go but you're still cranking a dry engine.

[White Shadow]

Originally Posted by ottopilot

I did that and it didn't work (pulled the EFI fuse), so I didn't really wrote it down lol. If you can't afford to start it it's at least one way to go but you're still cranking a dry engine.

Pull the fuel pump fuse and you can crank the car all day long without it starting. Yes, you're still cranking a dry engine, but cranking it dry is MUCH better than starting it dry.

[Rayme]

Originally Posted by White Shadow

Pull the fuel pump fuse and you can crank the car all day long without it starting. Yes, you're still cranking a dry engine, but cranking it dry is MUCH better than starting it dry.

I just wrote that cranking the engine dry didn't stop the knocking, maybe I wasn't clear enough. I dry cranked it over 10 seconds then started it and it still knocked badly for 5-7 seconds. I'm not going to suggest things that I tried and didn't work. Maybe dry cranking it for a longer time would work.

[White Shadow]

Originally Posted by ottopilot

I just wrote that cranking the engine dry didn't stop the knocking, maybe I wasn't clear enough. I dry cranked it over 10 seconds then started it and it still knocked badly for 5-7 seconds. I'm not going to suggest things that I tried and didn't work. Maybe dry cranking it for a longer time would work.

Yup, you have to really crank it longer...at least long enough to circulate the oil all the way on top of the engine (in the valvetrain). If you engine still knocks on start-up after that, then I'd say there are other issues to worry about.