39 replies to this topic

[E-Tizzle]

im going to uni in a week and am not allowed to take my car with my whilst i am living on campus.
what is the best way of storing the car whilst i am gone.

i have axle stands and was going to jack it up and leave them on that. (using the subframes not the sills)
i havnt got a garage so it will have to be left outside.
will putting a car cover on it be enough?

i will be taking the wheels off, battery out and dizzy cap + leads off to protect it against teeaaaves.
theres also no petrol in there so it should catch fire. hopefully

what should i do in terms of the weather.

oh yeah, any tips on insurance. can it be put down under the house insurance. i dont want to pay a years insurance with my own policy.

thanks a lot
elliot

[sazal]

theres also no petrol in there so it should catch fire. hopefully

You want it to catch fire?!

As for insurance, some insurers will insure it not being used (cant remember what its called), but I dont know if it has to be garaged, its worth asking about though.

Edited by sazal, 21 September 2010 - 09:36 AM.

[chrisandsarah]

theres also no petrol in there so it should catch fire. hopefully

You want it to catch fire?!

As for insurance, some insurers will insure it not being used (cant remember what its called, but I dont know if it has to be garaged, its worth asking about though.

Haha! just spat my coffee over the place #

Tis a strange thing to hope for

[jimmyH]

If im not mistaken you would be better off having a full tank of petrol.
An empty tank would most likely fill with vapour (the flammable stuff) from the residue left over. A full tank would mean the fual air mixture in the tank or wherever would be too rich, no enough room for air.
Please correct me if im wrong

[sazal]

Buttt, fuel doesnt have a very long life if its just sat in a tank, although apparently higher octane stuff (v-power etc) has a longer shelf life. I'd leave about a quarter/half a tank in there, saves all the crap in the bottom going through the car or the tank going manky inside.

[surfblue63]

^ Leaving the tank full would also stop the possibility of corrosion within the tank.

[E-Tizzle]

haha yeah i meant shouldnt!! lol

thanks for the help

i will find out what the house insurance is and get researching.

regarding the petrol i have no idea.

what about the weather aspects?

cheers

Edited by E-Tizzle, 21 September 2010 - 09:38 AM.

[surfblue63]

Regarding insurance, a lot of the specialist companies sell what I think is called "lay up" insurance. It for covering cars which are off the road in storage or during restoration. I don't think household insurance will cover a car.
Get a breathable car cover, not one of the cheap plastic jobs, to prevent the build up of condensation and damp.
Leave the handbrake off and if possible jam the clutch pedal down. That will prevent seizure of the rear brakes and clutch plate. You could also easy the front pads back from the discs as well.

[E-Tizzle]

Regarding insurance, a lot of the specialist companies sell what I think is called "lay up" insurance. It for covering cars which are off the road in storage or during restoration. I don't think household insurance will cover a car.
Get a breathable car cover, not one of the cheap plastic jobs, to prevent the build up of condensation and damp.
Leave the handbrake off and if possible jam the clutch pedal down. That will prevent seizure of the rear brakes and clutch plate. You could also easy the front pads back from the discs as well.

thanks thats helpful.
i will do them once ive jacked it up.
how shall i jamm the the clutch pedal? a brick? or shall i use a bar from the pedal up to the steering coloum or something.
cheers

[ANON]

leave big tray of cat litter in it and one in the boot

[olds_kool_lews]

i wouldnt leave my car outside for a year on axle stands under a cover, if damp gets under the cover, when you re-commision your mini your gonna have to change the brake discs due to corrosion (unless you can put vaseline or something on them, and use brake cleaner to get it off again when you recommision it to stop the rusting) id also give the car a damn good clean and wax it to keep it in top condition, and also put some condensation traps inside the car to keep the inside dry, or you'll end up with mouldy seats from condensation build up

[M44K TS]

Give the car a good coat of wax, smear the underside of the bumpers and other brightwork with wax too so they don't rust, lubricate the locks with 3 in 1 so they don't seize and put the battery on trickle charge. I'd say get someone to start the car every couple of weeks too, just to keep everything ok.

Edited by M44K TS, 21 September 2010 - 11:10 AM.

[DAVEY_C]

as far as i know a tank of petrol will only last up to 6 months before going off but the benifits are all mentioned above, make sure and get a good cover or better still get one of those you drive your mini into and blow it up like a baloon, don't know much about them but they must be better...! i paid expensive for a cover before that still kept in moisture so i'd recomend maybe a 3 ply because as far as i know they have a moisture barrier

[Mal_whitby]

... and make sure it's in neutral and the handbrake is off, in fact I'd back off the brake adjusters right off, and rotate the wheels by hand every couple of weeks or so, so the brakes don't sieze onto the drums, and to generally keep the rotating parts free.

Make sure there's plenty of anti freeze in it, it'd be a good idea to drain the system, back flush it with a hose pipe, then refill it with a mixture of fresh water and anti freeze - pre-mix them in a bucket before adding to the radiator, as it might not get mixed properly if the engine isn't started.

If the car isn't being started for the whole year then maybe drain the petrol out of the float chamber, it tends to go "off" after being sat for a long time, and in small quantities (i.e. in the carb) it can go solid like a jelly.

[E-Tizzle]

ok cheers guys.
i will be coming back for holidays and maybe every month or so. so i will be able to maintain it. maybe take the cover off and dry it out abit and then put it back on when i leave again.
do you recomend leaving the wheels on for that added protection to the brakes instead of leaving them completly bare.
if i seal a plastic bag over them, will it do any good?

other than removing the petrol from float chamber, do i have to do anything in the engine bay
its just the water drained, change and filled with antifreeze.

thanks for the help so far.