Hey fellas, i need some advice on storing my Camaro.. this is the first vehicle other than a bike that i have ever stored... i live in mid-michigan.. and will be storing it in my garage over the winter..it is not heated.

As far as the motor goes, should i put new oil in it? or wait until spring... how about them tires... on my bike i have a stand the lifts the tires off the ground... but a car is different, i've heard that inflating them to like 44lbs is ok to do.. and will reduce flat spots

Thanks for the input in advance.

 

I would change the oil if you havn't done it recently. The oil will take on moisture and break down over the winter, so I always change mine before winter and in the spring before I get it out. I'm not a fan of lifting a car up unless you keep weight on the suspension. I just inflate my tires to 40+ PSI when it gets cold. Radial tires will flat spot a little after they sit for a while, but driving the car will bring them back to shape after a few miles. Definitely check your coolant and consider flushing it if you havn't for a while.

 

Don't forget to pickup a bottle of STA-BIL and add some to your tank according to however much fuel you believe is in there. I usually just top off my tank and then follow the directions on the bottle. Pretty sure the tank in my Firebird holds 16.8 Gallons. (Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.) And I think its like an Ounce of STA-BIL for every 2 1/2 Gallons of fuel. Once I've added it to the tank, I start my car (and even take it for a drive if the weather still permits) so I can be sure the fuel stabilizer has made its way completely through the fuel system. Then I peroidically start it up throughout the winter months, to let it warm up and attempt to keep the battery charged.

The above post has some great advice. I should definitely flush my cooling system, as well. Its due.

 

I do what you guys do. But I also put carpet samples under each tire, and put dryer sheets every where in the car and under the hood. I guess mice and rats don't like dryer sheets.

 

thanks guys..good info.. and dryer sheets, hmm, i'll have to try that

 

leave the hood up some or all the way and the mice will stay out of the engine.

 

just wondering how long does fuel normally stay good for? I didnt have time to go get fuel stabilzer for my car or anything before i left for 7 and a half months for my training and deployment. I have someone starting the car every other week letting it warm up etc. Oil was changed around a 1k miles ago maybe a little less and it hasnt been to the track in a while.

 

i live in lower michigan and i plan on storing my T/A this winter. my bro's boss has a heated garage i can store it in for 50 a month. not bad right? but im curious about why if you lifted the car you would have to keep weight on the suspension. never ehard of doing that before. and on the dryer sheets... do the mice not like mountain breeze or lavender? haha

 

Gasoline will start to loose octane in something like 30 days. I'd have whoever is starting the car pick up some stabil and throw it in just to be safe.

 

I leave mine as is. Sad to say, never an issue. If the octane is not up to snuff, the PCM will retard it. I would just make sure there is a good mix of coolant and if it has not been done over 5 years to maybe run some cleaner through the system and then do a 50/50 mix.

 

The suspension will have will kind of sag if you lift the car. I think it would settle when you drive it in spring. Might have a F body that looks lifted for awhile though. As for the sheets, I'm not sure what it is, but they really don't like the smell or something. It does work. I've stored my cars in the same spot every year. After I tryed the sheets, no more mice! Plus the car smells good when you go to start it every month!!!

 

I've never changed the oil before storing the car but looks like I need to. But I've been doing most of what other people were saying. I used to put my stock rims and tires back on the car, but this year I'm just going to put more air into the current setup, since I'm going to throw some ET Street radials on 2 of my stockers. Also some people unhook/remove the battery as well. I always top it off with fuel and wash it before it goes under the cover for a few months.

 

Move South and you don't have to worry about it lol.

 

STA-BIL - is a waste of money. No one ever used it prior to it coming out. Ive never used it. I live in southern WI. I park it in the garage and put some dryer sheets in it to keep the mice out. Other than that nothing.. Tires wont get flat spots, even if they sit flat. Mine have gone flat and sat all winter. Then aired up and driven down the track at 130mph....tires are perfect. Winter is only a few months... not a few years.

 

Tires have more of a chance of flat spotting in HOT weather. We do full vehicle testing in environmental chambers all the time. If we go hot, the tires are flat spotted, and there is no getting them back in shape.

 

did it last winter with no problems..all i did was fill up the tank..put STA BIL in....I live in PA and it got pretty cold... If u wanna be safe...plug exhaust pipes and do tha sheet thing for mice...i didnt do either

 

i think your smoking something, gasoline starts to turn to varnish in 30 days. the chemical compound of gas changes as the hydrocarbons in gas react to oxygen. this causes the gas to develop "clumps" or "deposites" within the gas and seperates alot like salad dressing does. adding fuel stabilizer eliminates the reaction of the oxygen and takes the condensation out of your gas tank.

op id also say seafoam your car before you store it, it will break out the carbon build up before it sits.

 

I live in southeast mi
Whenever I store my car(s) I put sta-bil just to be safe. Granted noone used it before, but nowadays with all the electrical sensors and injectors you can't be to safe.
Never did anything with suspension- never had issues
never did any dryer sheets- never had issues.

 

I just finished storing my 2K Z28. I live in Northen Suburbs in Illinois. This will be my 2nd car I have stored for a Cold Chicago Winter. Things that I go is Get the oil changed for sure(Think about it, If your oil is dirty and worn out, why would you want to leave it inside your engine for a long winter when the car really wont be moving much). I get a box of dryer sheets and 2 plastic can of this stuff called "Dampner"(It is in a Blue Plastic can) what it does it is a almost sand material in a cup that slowly foams up over a period of time from pulling out moisture from inside the car. I get my car fully detail and washed very well. I also replace/flush my coolant.

I have learned 2 new things that I did last winter for my other car which was very affective. One of them was spreading out some cheap charcoal on either a blue work tarp with a large wood board under it or get some big aluminum car shop drip pans and do the same thing. The 2nd thing I do is go to a Hardware store, where I can get cheap carpet pieces in about 12inch x 12inch size squares. I get a total of eight, and look for the thickest/partially soft carpet I can get. I then will place 2 carpet squares under each tire. I do this instead of jacking the car up with floor jacks and I have found that by doing this It prevents any possible flat spots.

Hope this can give some help for my fellow LS1 Members.