Winter Storage Questions

[Bald Eagle]

This will be the first time I've ever stored a car and I want to do it right. I've read and heard some conflicting answers to these questions. What is your opinion. I will change the oil before storing the car.

Emergency Brake... on or off?
Leave it in gear?
1 or 2 Stabil?
Put mothballs in trunk, frunk, passenger cabin, exhaust pipes?
Inflate tires to 50?

Anything else I should be doing?

Larry (the Bald Eagle)

[Giller]

This is my first year storing my car as well, so have been reading heavily. I've read that bounce-type dryer sheets work well in the car to help keep rodents and such away. Better option than mothballs - the smell will be much more pleasant come spring.

Also read that you have to watch what you are parking it on. Cold cement floors are bad for tires apparently, so should put some plastic and maybe a little carpeting under the tires?

[Flavor 987S]

Originally Posted by Bald Eagle

This will be the first time I've ever stored a car and I want to do it right. I've read and heard some conflicting answers to these questions. What is your opinion. I will change the oil before storing the car.

Emergency Brake... on or off?
Leave it in gear?
1 or 2 Stabil?
Put mothballs in trunk, frunk, passenger cabin, exhaust pipes?
Inflate tires to 50?

Anything else I should be doing?

Larry (the Bald Eagle)

Brake off. Chock the wheels with a small block of wood.
Out of gear, so you can roll it a little bit each month to further minimize flatspotting.
Add Sta-Bil at a rate of 1 ounce per 2.5 gallons of fuel (I double dose because my car sits for 6 months).
I use a desiccant, in large amounts, like you get with fine electronics.
Tires should be over inflated to 55-58 PSI.
Car cover.
Full concours detail.
Suspend some of your insurance to save $$$.
Battery maintainer.

[coreseller]

When I was real anal and worried:

- tires pressurized at 50 psi
- wash wax, detail, leather treatment
- up on dollies to move it if necessary
- fresh oil change
- fill up gas tank and stabil
- no parking brake on
- in neutral
- never start it until spring
- covered exhaust pipe and intake
- battery tender always plugged into it



Now I wash it, spray wax it, change the oil / filters, put a cover on it, don't start / run it and plug in the battery tender once a month for a few days. No difference when I fire it up in the spring.

[Bald Eagle]

Appreciate the responses, all were helpful. Our county fairgrounds rents storage space but I will have no access from the time it goes in until it comes out so it will be on a battery tender all the time. Going to miss "Hi-Ho" (as in Hi-Ho Silver... Awaayy) for a few months and will be looking forward to spring

[Giller]

I've heard some people say you should park the car on some wood, or some carpetting to help keep the cold from damaging the tires. True? Make sense or something not to worry about. I'm keeping it in my garage, so it's insulated but not heated. The cement floor will get cold. Thoughts/suggestions?

[Blackcloud]

One thing I do for my 1967 MGB is put down a moisture barrier. I have an asphalt garage floor. Get some plastic sheeting and roll it out on the floor. Your can duct tape the corners so the wind won't blow it around when you open the door. This creates a vapor barrier of sorts. It also prevents the MG from "marking its spot" with oil drips! It can't hurt to do the same for the Boxster. As previously mentioned, dryer sheets do work well to keep away rodents. I drive my car during the winter, but not when there is a lot of salt on the roads. When you plug in the battery tender, run the plug wire out of the front trunk by the windshield, then close the trunk. I hate winter.

[Giller]

Originally Posted by Blackcloud

One thing I do for my 1967 MGB is put down a moisture barrier. I have an asphalt garage floor. Get some plastic sheeting and roll it out on the floor. Your can duct tape the corners so the wind won't blow it around when you open the door. This creates a vapor barrier of sorts. It also prevents the MG from "marking its spot" with oil drips! It can't hurt to do the same for the Boxster. As previously mentioned, dryer sheets do work well to keep away rodents. I drive my car during the winter, but not when there is a lot of salt on the roads. When you plug in the battery tender, run the plug wire out of the front trunk by the windshield, then close the trunk. I hate winter.

So just a moisture barrier? No worries about the cold coming through the cement floor and having a negative impact on the tires?

[tommy583]

I'll be putting mine away for the winter on Tuesday . I have used the same suggestions as above for the last four years. But i have never put anything under the tires. I just inflate them to around 55 PSI and have never had a problem with flat spotting. One thing I do that hasn't be mentioned is fill the gas tank up with non ethanol fuel and then add Stabl. I have read that fuel without ethanol is less likely to breakdown during storage.

[jaykay]

Originally Posted by Giller

So just a moisture barrier? No worries about the cold coming through the cement floor and having a negative impact on the tires?

I roll mine up onto dense insulating foam pads that are under the vapour barrier tarp (tape Xs so that you can put the car on target). The pads deform and take the shape the tires to some degree...rather than all deformation occurring in the tire. You can then fold up the tarp sides/corners around the wheels and tape to then top of the tire. You can then chock the wheels. After that you can take the car out of gear, and parking brake off. I been fine never never having to roll the car...for tire flat spotting anyway. Rolling the car gets the whole driveline moving and is a whole other topic.

I do all this as the car sits in at the bottom floor of an underground garage...it can get pretty damp.

Okay okay SoCal buddies no laughing or snickering please

[Blackcloud]

Originally Posted by Giller

So just a moisture barrier? No worries about the cold coming through the cement floor and having a negative impact on the tires?

The MG tires have a much bigger sidewall than performance tires with a narrow sidewall and are less susceptible to flat spotting. If I let the Boxster sit and it's really cold, you can feel it for a short time until the tires regain their shape. Mitch.

[unibagel]

What I have been doing for years with my VW Vanagon Westy Popup:

Park in garage with electronic rodent noise makers, charge the battery, disconnect negative battery lead.

In the spring: oil change, reconnect battery, check tire pressures, drive it.

Easy.

[kjc2050]

Many have made good suggestions. This is what I used to do when we lived in Nebraska:

-Gas tank about 90% full; add Stabil
-Wash/Wax
-Change oil and filter
-Put large dessicant paks in trunk, frunk, and interior (paks bought on eBay)
-Fill tires to about 50 psi when leaving for storage facility
-Park car in storage unit, put in neutral, no e-brake, chock a wheel
-Pull battery (no power for battery tender)
-Put large towel over frunk latch so it can't possibly latch, gently close frunk
-Put car cover on
-Put 4-6 small mouse traps out, baited with peanut butter
-Lock door, check every week or so
-DON'T START IT UNTIL YOU'RE READY TO TAKE IT OUT FOR THE SEASON

That was my approach. Worked fine. No issues with ECU. (I kept the battery on a tender in my garage at home, BTW.)