storing your beloved mopar

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crvtec90

crvtec90

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not sure if this has been done, but i would like to start a good thread on keeping old cars from wasting away. i think the tech section is appropriate. there is a lot of bad things going on throughout the entire vehicle that go unchecked. the affects i believe will differ depending on climate and location. i had replaced all my wheel cylinders, shoes, and brake hardware first so i could cruise. when i let the car sit 4 too long ( i think it was over a year) the master cylinder went dry and moisture set into the system. before i knew it rust took over and all the work i did was garbage. also, i had an extra set of wheel bearings that i had cleaned and inspected to save 4 when i was ready to use them. they were inside a box inside the garage and still managed to start to rust because i didnt pack them with some sort of lube. did not expect to have them sitting 4 so long. as far as rust goes, i think its important to keep track of your fluids. even pressing the brake pedal every once in a while would be good so that the moving parts of the system have a chance to breathe. spin motors, trannies, rear ends so that the metal parts inside that are not immersed in fluid get some juice on them.
 
5.7Dart said:
I have found driving them works best.
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When my car is in storage,there is usually 1 foot of snow and salt everywhere.Driving is out of the question for some of us north of the border.If I could I,d love to spin my car around the block once a week,just to get surface rust from discs.There,s alot of moisture in the air here.
 
Best way is to change the oil, fog the engine with oil, add stabil to the gasoline, disconnect the battery and also drain the coolant. I do everything except drain the coolant and have had no problems.
 
lagrua said:
Best way is to change the oil, fog the engine with oil, add stabil to the gasoline, disconnect the battery and also drain the coolant. I do everything except drain the coolant and have had no problems.
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i also spray wheels with white linthum grees back off rocker arm shafts and put alot of decon in side of car. and dont forget to plug the exhaust opening.
 
I was told by my brother that the oil will sink to the bottom of the engine and will damage the engine if you start it up once a week over the course of a winter storage (4 months or so). I am curious if this is true and why should you driain the coolant and plug the exhausts? Getting ready to store the Demon 'til spring or atleast 'til the next decent day without salt or snow on the roads,
D340
 
I have always been told that you don't want to drain the coolant, because you always will have some moisture left in the system and this will allow rust to form. Another one I have heard is to put it away with a full tank of gas, so condensation won't form.
 
When you plug the exhaust use oil soaked rags and also do the carb as well. I also like to put a couple of sheets of plywood or heavy cardboard under the car to insulate from the cold ground.
 
Here's a couple of pic's of what my engine looks like after being stored for 12 yrs as I have stated.

DSCF0526.jpg

DSCF0527.jpg
 
If the car is being stored in a non-heated garage, you should put a vapour barrier on the floor, cover the entire floor with a plastic tarp and then cover the tarp with plywood or partical boards. This will help stop the moisture coming up through the cement, or especially if your garage floor is asphalt.
 
I have limited experience with this topic, but here it is.

Car is stored November to April. Before storing the car each fall, change the oil, fill the fuel tank, fully inflate the tires. Every other year, change the coolant. Car is stored in an unheated garage dedicated to winter storage (no water, snow or ice brought into the building), concrete floor, with plywood and cardboard under the car (as much to catch drips as anything). Put mouse traps and DeCon around the garage. Over the winter, periodically connect a battery charger/maintainer. That's it.

I've been storing the same car this way for 35 years and it seems to work.
 
Moisture is the killer here. If your not climate controlled, you can vapour barrier the h*ll out of the storage area, but, you need to CIRCULATE the air. A fan on a timer works wonders to MOVE the air so the air dissipates the moisture naturally (like a house, it needs to breath also). Do you research on it. The fan doesn't have to run 24/7.

just a dummy here.
 
yarcraft91 said:
I have limited experience with this topic, but here it is.

Car is stored November to April. Before storing the car each fall, change the oil, fill the fuel tank, fully inflate the tires. Every other year, change the coolant. Car is stored in an unheated garage dedicated to winter storage (no water, snow or ice brought into the building), concrete floor, with plywood and cardboard under the car (as much to catch drips as anything). Put mouse traps and DeCon around the garage. Over the winter, periodically connect a battery charger/maintainer. That's it.

I've been storing the same car this way for 35 years and it seems to work.
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over inflate tires, Do not let suspension hang.
 
Well I lay plastic on the floor and place the open "car bag" on the floor. The plastic it to protect the car bag. Pull the car in and take out the battery. After it cools down put desicant in trays inside the car, trunk, engine compartment and under car. Open the windows about 2" close trunk and zip it up for the winter. Car is in a non heated garage where other cars are pulled in that are wet (bad combination). Works great. Body shop guy told me about the Car Bags.

Oh ya I put stuff in the gas too. Next time I'll over inflate the tires too.
 
I just park it under the car port(would prefer a true garage but guess you gotta make due with what you actually have...disconnect the battery(then from time to time a couple times a month on nice days I will hook the batter up to a battery tender for pretty much 9am-4pm to keep that up. IF we happen to get one of those days/weeks of unusually warm(50+ degrees) I will try to start her up and let her run till the temp gets up to 180 or so then go through the gears in the tranny maybe even drive it back and forth in the driveway to get the tires moving to hopefully avoid flat spots) then when spring rolls around I hook battery back up...fire it up and go.
 
I have heard that for long-term storage it is good to get them up off the floor on jackstands etc. This saves the tires and is better to keep moisture from getting to the car...
 
Purple Haze said:
Here's a couple of pic's of what my engine looks like after being stored for 12 yrs as I have stated.

DSCF0526.jpg

DSCF0527.jpg
Click to expand...
Are those TTI,s?
If the temperature can stay the same all the time it will be OK.
But when it go,s hot to cold, this is not good. Condensation here.
Earth WILL take over car later.
Darryl
 
I through in lots of Bounce sheets in the car. Keeps the mice away.

Leave a small crack in the window to let the moisture out.

I've never tried it, but a buddy spays a lite spray of Spam non stick cooking oil on the engine compartment, he tells me that it prevents rust, he just washes it off each spring. He's been doing it for 10 years now and his engine compartment still looks great. Somebody might have a different opinion on this.
 
I use bounce too Mike. It must work because I've never had critters move in for the winter. I usually jack up the rear and put stands underneath. I have let the rear axle hang thinking the springs might not sag as much over the winter. Didn't seem to make much difference. What jacking up the rear will do is it allows you to start the engine and spin the drivetrain to keep all the parts lubed. If you can, it doesn't hurt to start the engine and let it warm up and drive 10 feet or so and back again. It coats the ring gear and bearings. It won't do much for the axle bearings though. tmm
 
living outside of Buffalo NY I believe alot of people are thinking.."the sky is falling" Been storing cars for winter since the mid 60's and My flawless procedeure is:
1...antifreeze is good to 20 below
2...sun visors down
3...disconnect battery
4...install and check garage for de-con monthly (mouse killing food)

That's it and the only issue over 45 years is a weak battery
 
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