parked the accord for the winter

[coolman603]

so i have parked my car for the winter and was wondering if there is anything i should do to it for when it is sitting in the winter for a few months. it will probably sit till some time in late april or early may. i was thinking of just starting it up maybe every once and awhile. anything else i should do? thanks for any help

[Lil Mike]

bad to start it up if its a carb'd car, pull the fuel pump fuse and run it till it dies, get that gas out of the carb. fill up the tires and leave the windows down a crack if you can.

[coolman603]

ok that makes sence i will do that tomorrow thanks for the advice

[cubert]

Why park it?



Make sure you put some stabilizer in the fuel, cover it, and put some moth balls around it so mice leave it alone.

[coolman603]

well my rack and pin went on it and its so cold to fix it right now and my parents have an extra car that i can drve for the winter that has auto start and is not carbed. it kinda broke at the wrong time

[cubert]

I hear that man...working on cars in the cold sucks. period.

[Civic Accord Honda]

I hear that man...working on cars in the cold sucks. period.

truth!

[coolman603]

ya it sucks im cold just thinking about it

[carotman]

Is it stored in a garage or is it in a driveway? Asphalt or gravel?

[Ayeobe]

Im gona be doin the same thing, so im folowing this thread.. though, im parking it to keep it clear of SALT. It can go die. I might pick up a 4th gen..

Anyway, ill be keepin a close eye on this thread.

What about EFI cars? does it not matter if we start them?

[lostforawhile]

so i have parked my car for the winter and was wondering if there is anything i should do to it for when it is sitting in the winter for a few months. it will probably sit till some time in late april or early may. i was thinking of just starting it up maybe every once and awhile. anything else i should do? thanks for any help get some stabil for the gas, the new gas will break down in a couple of weeks, change the oil and filter to remove accumlated moisture, run the car to opeating temp first, keep the battery on a trickle charger. or disconnect it. clean the living daylights out of it, especially underneath, accumulated dirt will attract moisture. same for the inside. flush your brakes with fresh fluid to remove any accumlated moisture. get a small bag of charcol, slice it open and keep it in the car, it will absorb all the odors better then any air freshner, DON'T use the stuff with lighter fluid built in, the dry stuff

[Civic Accord Honda]

a bit overboard ^

[w261w261]

The most important thing is to get some fuel stabilizer in the gas. My brother parked a perfectly-running 4 cylinder Honda motorcycle for about 6 months a couple of years ago and when he went to restart it the carbs were all gummed up. He sold the bike because a shop wanted $600 to take them off and rebuild them.

The other thing about cracking the windows... do something so the mice can't get in. When you go to restart, check the airbox for an overflow of nuts from the rodentia.

[lostforawhile]

the bag of kingsford really works, will absorb every odor in the car. then in spring burn it in the grill and drive the car

[lostforawhile]

a bit overboard ^

not in the slightest, this is what you do when you care about a car, you scedule these things to be due about the time you park the car. they should be done anyway. always clean a car before storage, dirt attracts and holds moisture, moisture starts rust.

[charliekuney]

Just start it every couple of days and let it run until it gets warm. And every few starts take it for a ride around the block (if possible). There's no way to garage it?

[coolman603]

ya it is parked in my back yard on pavement and i have the front tires up on some wood blocks there is no way i could drive it because its all fenced in now because when my dad built our fence he made a part that pops out so a car could get into the back but there is no way i could pop it out in the winter because it is frozen shut just like the gate we cant open it right now.

[w261w261]

If you do start it periodically it's important to do what Charlie said - run it until it gets warm and then another say 10 minutes. You want to make sure all the condensation is vaporized and removed from the system - the moisture in the oil and the moisture in the exhaust system from the initial running before things are warmed up. I'm sure you've seen the water dripping from the tail pipes of cars when they've first been started, this is a result of the combustion process and is always present, it's just that when the system is hot it's vaporized. Left in the exhaust pipe, it will promote rust.

[Civic Accord Honda]

not in the slightest, this is what you do when you care about a car, you scedule these things to be due about the time you park the car. they should be done anyway. always clean a car before storage, dirt attracts and holds moisture, moisture starts rust.

most people that have theses cars now are not to worried about the rust as its normally a car they dont plan to keep forever(and most already have the rust). and i may be wrong but judging by the wording of his question i think he just meant he wanted to know what to do to keep the engine and carb in good shape. i dont think he parked it to help preserve the car im pretty sure he just parked it because its to cold to fix it lol... and next winter it will probably be snow driven... but then again i could be wrong.

[Ayeobe]

Also, CAH, i was readin' all what lost was sayin, as JUST BEFORE HE POSTED, i posted saying i was storing the car for the winter to keep it from RUSTING. so, read the whole thread before bashing people for giving useful info.

Thats a long-ass list, lost. lol. Im gona get on it.. but it alredy snowed, and they alredy salted, so im rather upset.

[lostforawhile]

Also, CAH, i was readin' all what lost was sayin, as JUST BEFORE HE POSTED, i posted saying i was storing the car for the winter to keep it from RUSTING. so, read the whole thread before bashing people for giving useful info.

Thats a long-ass list, lost. lol. Im gona get on it.. but it alredy snowed, and they alredy salted, so im rather upset.

wait until you have a day with sun out, if you can't get the car out of the yard get a garden hose and clean the bottom side really good. salt is your enemy, especially the concentrated salt like crap they use now, it's ten times worse then plain old rock salt. I've head horror stories from relatives up north about it eating suspension parts on new cars. I still remember repairing floor pans with rivets, stolen street signs, and expanding foam. just to keep the mud out until the cars rusted beyond fixing, which they would,. youth.:facepalm:

[cubert]

I've head horror stories from relatives up north about it eating suspension parts on new cars.


no.

[lostforawhile]

no.

it depends on what they put down, regular salt is bad enough, but the liquid they spray is insideous, it's been banned in a number of places due to damage. if you have anything made of aluminum where it can reach it reacts with aluminum, most everyone I'm related to is still up north

[Civic Accord Honda]

it depends on what they put down, regular salt is bad enough, but the liquid they spray is insideous, it's been banned in a number of places due to damage. if you have anything made of aluminum where it can reach it reacts with aluminum, most everyone I'm related to is still up north

yeah man... i hear all the time from friends up north. they will be driving down the road and its really salted.... next thing you know there fucking rims just crumbled in to pieces from the rust!!!!!! i was just like WOW!! i best park my 20 year old cars every winter to make sure this doesn't ever happen to them!!!

[cubert]

yeah man... i hear all the time from friends up north. they will be driving down the road and its really salted.... next thing you know there fucking rims just crumbled in to pieces from the rust!!!!!! i was just like WOW!! i best park my 20 year old cars every winter to make sure this doesn't ever happen to them!!!



:kekeke:

[lostforawhile]

it's calcium chloride, the chlorine in it reacts badly to aluminum and causes corrosion. it also promotes rust. try putting some bleach on a piece of aluminum and let it sit. I never said it was going to make your rims fall off, but it does a lot of damage to the underbodies of cars. especially aluminum suspension parts

[Vanilla Sky]

Yup, closed.