In all the excitement of unwrapping the car and getting it out for its first drive after a long hiatus, I almost forgot too since I close the frunk and run the wire up by the wipers.

I do all the things mentioned, except for putting it in neutral. My car is on a lift, so just in case aliens attack and the earth got tilted off its axis, I kept it in gear. (Probably first gear, maybe I'll switch to different gear next time.)

I also slather on leather conditioner all over to let it absorb over hibernation. I wipe off some excess when I open it.

 

Intended to store for about 2-3 months in garage. Mothballs, mouse traps, tires to 50psi, battery maintainer, steel wool in tailpipes, stabil in full tank.

However, it will be a rare January 50F in Boston this weekend with recent rain to wash the salt off the roads. Time to undo the above and drive a little!

db

 

i disagree with everyone that you should fill up the tank before you go. i would leave a minimal amount of gas in the car. if your gas goes bad, its easier to deal with an 1/8 of a tank than a full one, although you shouldnt have any problems in 3 months. just fill it up when you get back.

 

you should put sta-bil and THEN top the gas. so stabil get mixed

 

Battery Tender

 

last night i took my car out for the first time since early november. it started up just fine with no issues. i didnt do anything special to prep my car.

 

Have your wife drive it to work once a week. Not sure what the issue is. My wife would apprciate me letting her drive it. Maybe she will love what I love about it and want to get one for herself or at the very least maybe she will "get" it and not complain when you need to spend time or money on your car. Problem solved.

 

Why not? The only reasons I can think of is that you either forget it's on stands and try to drive off (stranger things have happened), or that it may be bad for the suspension. Many museums put their collections on jack stands all the time.

I know from personal experience that if you leave it parked on some epoxied or painted surfaces, the tires may bond to the surface after a few weeks and pull the paint and some concrete with them when you drive the car the first time.

The reason I would fill the tank is from the possibility of condensation in the space not occupied by the fuel in the tank. No huge deal, and this might be offset by having less "old gas" in the tank when you get the car back in service.

 

bad for the shocks to leave on stands

 

Okay, here are more tips....Motorweek talks about loading the suspension. They took the wheels off so the tires don't have weight on them.


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