so the time has come to put the Balt away.. this is my first car that i will be putting in storage for the winter, and was wondering what people would suggest doing.

Here is my list so far:
-remove battery
-fill gas tank and add stable
-(tires are junk) otherwise i would put them on wood to keep them off the concrete
-cover tail pipe


what else??

 

i just fill up the tank and start it every now and then. and go for a little drive if its clean and dry.

 

the only problem with that is the amount of salt they use around here, I could go around my block with a 5 gallon pail and it would be d**n near full when i got back to my place

 

i mean you dont have to. i would just start it up and let it run for a little bit.

 

Its a Cobalt just drive it all winter lol

 

makes me laugh when people say that.

 

qft!

 

why so?

and when you start it make you you let it run up to normal operating temp, will help to no create condensation in the engine.

 

Well i mean for me i still have my beater so i have no reason to drive mine in the winter.

1. save on insurance
2. save on gas
3. cant even boost in the winter
4. no rust
5. dont have to worry about getting in a accident
6. dont have to buy winter tires/rims

but if my beater dies, the balt will meat salt and snow haha

 

this is why I have an audi s4 with ultra high perf all season tires....

SUCKAS...meet the snow hero lmao

 

1. Change oil
2. Put a full, fresh tank of 93 in it
3. add recommended amount of stabilizer
4. drive it a bit to get stabilized fuel through the system.
5. Inflate tires to 40 psi
6. Remove battery, leave on trickle charger all winter
7. don't start it till you're ready to bring it out of storage

That's it. I did exactly this and had no issues when I started mine 5 months later in the spring.

 

I'm not an expert on storing cars for the winter but why do you wanna park it on wood instead of concrete and why inflate the tires to 40 psi?

 

so your tires dont get flat spots from sitting for so long. but ive left it as is for 2 winters and nothing happened to my tires.

 

To keep tires from flat spotting, which you don't really NEED to worry about as modern tires SHOULD take their shape back after some movement. Pumping up the tires will help them keep their shape, plus should keep the pressure up to normal levels since cold air will make the air inside them condense and make the pressure drop.

 

Growing up on a farm, the tractors that sat over winter (not put off the ground) got some seriouse flat spots where it made you bounce off the seats (at 25mph), and they stayed for a very long time...yes i know cars tires are much difforent and weigh less

as for the wood, concrete can get wet, the inside of the garage can get above freezing when the suns out causing the snow to melt at the door seam and could run into the garage and then when it freezes around your rear tires, not good

 

Sitting on cement will take the moisture from the tires and dry rot them. Put a little piece of carpet underneath all 4 tires, put fuel stab in a full tank and run it through. Do an oil change, pull the battery and don't touch it till your ready to bring it out.

Joel

 

Oh ok. Tells you how many times I've stored cars lol. And tommy as soon as I read that I felt dumb because I normally inflate my tires more in the winter. Not thinking ftl.

 

I have been storing 2 cars (cobalt&cobra) for the past 3 years for the winter months. Personally I just leave them on jack stands for the winter.. That takes the load off the tires and suspension. Just make sure you have a battery tender, fuel stabilizer, change the oil and I always take the time to check my coolant mixture.. Even though they are both inside. Now if your car is going to be outside and exposed you will need to take some more precautions

 

if your gonna be removing the battery out of the vehicle place it on a block of wood as well otherwise you will be needing a new battery come spring

 

I just put mine in my bedroom closet with the charger on it.

 

that works too, just as long as its not on concrete. some bad chemical reactions happen. can't remember what exactly but i know it kills your battery

 

Concrete is alkaline, where as your battery is acidic.

Somehow the "fumes" from the cement can get into the battery and cancel each other out.

At least that's what they taught us in school.

 

ya i've been out of school for a long time and all i remembered was concrete + battery = bad lol

 

be careful with that...the fumes from the battery charging could actually kill you...