dr bob

The pump does in fact use the fuel as both a coolant and a lubricant. A bottle of B12 or Marvel Mystery Oil, or a few ounces of ATF run through the system will protect the pump and all the rest of the system including injectors. Do it by jumping the FP relay, not by running the car. That stuff MUST be flushed out completely or at least diluted in new fuel before starting the car again. Note that this guidance is for cars stored for longer periods, greater than six months. It's in concert with fogging oil in the cylinders for less than a year, and some much more serious 'pickling' for more storage time.

There's a half-day of prep that constitutes the difference between 'old beater barn-find' and 'well-preserved example'. That half-day and less than $100 up front is worth many $thousands later in the life of the car. My car was professionally prep'd for storag, and stored for almost seven years before I bought it. I count my blessings regularly. I've also looked at some 'real bargains', cars that were just parked when something simple made the car less than fully reliable. Owners just never got around to doing any storage prep, mostly because they didn't really intend to store the car at all. It just sat in the other side of the garage with stuff piling up on it. The Jetta (or whatever...) became the daily driver because it started reliably. By the time the owner wanted to put their baby back in service, it wouldn't start. Luigi at the local foreign car garage gave an estimate for a half-day of troubleshooting minimum so the car stayed in the garage for another couple years until she-who-must-be-obeyed issued the directive. Has anyone else looked at this car?

Wisconsin Joe

Never mind. I didn't see that Dr Bob had already addressed it.

andy-gts

I agree with everything except one thing......

a rod and custom shop owner I have business with always recom NO cover for storage if dust is the only issue, over time the cover itself.....even the best on the market,.....will scratch over time..

just wash in the spring and no scratches....


but as long as we try to take care of these great cars they will pay us back ten fold with a smile every mile !!!

dr bob

Hmmm. My car sits covered whenever it isn't being driven. It's for UV protection, plus it can keep some of the dust away. It will stay covered.

I'm on the fence right now on adding additional covering for dust and mechanical protection. I have a couple dozen mover's pads I need to store somewhere or send on their way. Don't want them to end up as rodent homes in the garage though. Tough decisions.

mickster

You can always get one of these...

http://www.calcarcover.com/product/7...Storage_Bubble

soundbehindyou

I use light cotton flannel bed sheets for a car cover when in garage...no scratches that I can ever detect..