car storage procedures
12-06-2002, 06:23 PM
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car storage procedures
Hi
I'm leaving town for 3 months and will have to store my car (02 turbo). Are there any procedures/precautions to be taken? Is there a way to avoid flat spots on my tires? Should the battery be disconnected? Anything else? If anyone has input it would be much appreciated.
cheers
I'm leaving town for 3 months and will have to store my car (02 turbo). Are there any procedures/precautions to be taken? Is there a way to avoid flat spots on my tires? Should the battery be disconnected? Anything else? If anyone has input it would be much appreciated.
cheers
12-06-2002, 07:35 PM
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How long are you leaving for. My hot rod sits for months at a time sometimes and I've never had a problem with the tires flat spotting. But <a href="http://www.griotsgarage.com" target="_blank">www.griotsgarage.com</a> sells a pad you can park the tires on that prevents flat spotting if I remember correctly.
12-06-2002, 09:25 PM
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storage would be for 3-4 months. i just spoke to a Porsche service advisor, according to him I don't need to worry about flatspots for the first 7 months or so. He suggested I get a battery maintaner of some sort. I'll look into that. Does anyone know of a good way to keep rodents away?
12-06-2002, 09:44 PM
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Variable,
FWIF, I received a 1 page document titled:
"The Basics - Porsche Cold Weather 'Hibernation'" when I bought my car.
In summary:
1. Fill gas tank, change oil/filter, top off fluids.
2. Detail car inside/outside (wax, vacuum, etc).
3. Run/drive car to operating temperature and then drive to storage area
4. Temporarily fill tires to 50psi
5. Use the Porsche Battery Maintainer (P/N 000-043-202-56) to keep battery charged.
6. Park the car on plywood to keep tires off of cold concrete (plywood acts as insulator)
7. Mothballs in trunk, engine compartment and interior. (I don't do this one, my garage is heated, dry and mouse free!)
8. Quality car cover
9. Don't start the motor until you are ready to drive it. Running it for 10 minutes and then shutting it off every month does no good; in fact it just generates moisture that will not burn off since the water temp will be up but the oil temp will not unless you really drive the car.
I did this last year and had no problems getting the car back on the road after storage from Nov - Apr. Did the same thing again last month.
Not 10 commandment type stuff, but it seems to work.
Happy Holidays
FWIF, I received a 1 page document titled:
"The Basics - Porsche Cold Weather 'Hibernation'" when I bought my car.
In summary:
1. Fill gas tank, change oil/filter, top off fluids.
2. Detail car inside/outside (wax, vacuum, etc).
3. Run/drive car to operating temperature and then drive to storage area
4. Temporarily fill tires to 50psi
5. Use the Porsche Battery Maintainer (P/N 000-043-202-56) to keep battery charged.
6. Park the car on plywood to keep tires off of cold concrete (plywood acts as insulator)
7. Mothballs in trunk, engine compartment and interior. (I don't do this one, my garage is heated, dry and mouse free!)
8. Quality car cover
9. Don't start the motor until you are ready to drive it. Running it for 10 minutes and then shutting it off every month does no good; in fact it just generates moisture that will not burn off since the water temp will be up but the oil temp will not unless you really drive the car.
I did this last year and had no problems getting the car back on the road after storage from Nov - Apr. Did the same thing again last month.
Not 10 commandment type stuff, but it seems to work.
Happy Holidays
12-06-2002, 09:53 PM
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Thanks Lewis,
That seems like a good list of advice. It doesn't get particularly cold here (Los Angeles)...do you think an oilchange is necessary? Inflating the tires to 50 psi seems interesting. Thanks again.
That seems like a good list of advice. It doesn't get particularly cold here (Los Angeles)...do you think an oilchange is necessary? Inflating the tires to 50 psi seems interesting. Thanks again.
12-06-2002, 10:20 PM
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honestly variable. I wouldn't worry about any of those steps. They seem to be basically for cars stored in cold weather. I've heard stories of gas going bad through time so i wouldn't fill the tank all the way up. And don't really worry about the oil change. 3-4 months isn't long. I'd do all that maintenance stuff when you get back.
12-06-2002, 10:34 PM
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variable,
The 50psi inflation is to minimize the possibility of flat spotting. When I drove my car this past April after 'sleeping' since November, there was no out of round/flat spotting that I could tell. Tires only lost 1-2 psi all winter.
The oil change is to minimize any water/contaminants in the used oil which may cause corrosion. Oil is not very hygroscopic.
Filling to fuel tank to the top is to minimize the available volume for water vapor to forum in the tank due to changes in temp/humidity.
I live in Boston and my garage is heated to 45degF all winter, so the car is never really exposed to cold.
The 50psi inflation is to minimize the possibility of flat spotting. When I drove my car this past April after 'sleeping' since November, there was no out of round/flat spotting that I could tell. Tires only lost 1-2 psi all winter.
The oil change is to minimize any water/contaminants in the used oil which may cause corrosion. Oil is not very hygroscopic.
Filling to fuel tank to the top is to minimize the available volume for water vapor to forum in the tank due to changes in temp/humidity.
I live in Boston and my garage is heated to 45degF all winter, so the car is never really exposed to cold.
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12-06-2002, 11:59 PM
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[quote]Originally posted by ltc:
<strong>
1. Fill gas tank, change oil/filter, top off fluids.
2. Detail car inside/outside (wax, vacuum, etc).
3. Run/drive car to operating temperature and then drive to storage area
4. Temporarily fill tires to 50psi
5. Use the Porsche Battery Maintainer (P/N 000-043-202-56) to keep battery charged.
6. Park the car on plywood to keep tires off of cold concrete (plywood acts as insulator)
7. Mothballs in trunk, engine compartment and interior. (I don't do this one, my garage is heated, dry and mouse free!)
8. Quality car cover
9. Don't start the motor until you are ready to drive it. Running it for 10 minutes and then shutting it off every month does no good; in fact it just generates moisture that will not burn off since the water temp will be up but the oil temp will not unless you really drive the car.
</strong><hr></blockquote>
Good advice. I think for a short period of storage filling the tank with petrol is the most important one. Not sure about increasing the tyre pressure. 44 PSI is already pretty high.
The one that I really haven't made up my mind about is the car cover. I am highly suspicious of this. Seems to me that dust will get caught under them and then heat expansion and air movement will tend to rub the cover against the bodywork thus rubbing the dust into the paint.
From my experience, if you use a the battery minder then check the acid levels after. I think it can overcharge the battery a little over time boiling off some of the fluid.
S.
<strong>
1. Fill gas tank, change oil/filter, top off fluids.
2. Detail car inside/outside (wax, vacuum, etc).
3. Run/drive car to operating temperature and then drive to storage area
4. Temporarily fill tires to 50psi
5. Use the Porsche Battery Maintainer (P/N 000-043-202-56) to keep battery charged.
6. Park the car on plywood to keep tires off of cold concrete (plywood acts as insulator)
7. Mothballs in trunk, engine compartment and interior. (I don't do this one, my garage is heated, dry and mouse free!)
8. Quality car cover
9. Don't start the motor until you are ready to drive it. Running it for 10 minutes and then shutting it off every month does no good; in fact it just generates moisture that will not burn off since the water temp will be up but the oil temp will not unless you really drive the car.
</strong><hr></blockquote>
Good advice. I think for a short period of storage filling the tank with petrol is the most important one. Not sure about increasing the tyre pressure. 44 PSI is already pretty high.
The one that I really haven't made up my mind about is the car cover. I am highly suspicious of this. Seems to me that dust will get caught under them and then heat expansion and air movement will tend to rub the cover against the bodywork thus rubbing the dust into the paint.
From my experience, if you use a the battery minder then check the acid levels after. I think it can overcharge the battery a little over time boiling off some of the fluid.
S.
12-07-2002, 12:35 AM
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guys, i've read in a bunch of mags that it's not good to fill up the tank. I may be wrong, we should maybe look this up somewhere. (i'm on it 
)
But it only is a few months so it won't really matter.
) But it only is a few months so it won't really matter.
