VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 6 month winter storage for my area??

Here in western NC , the temps can get down in the single digits, I put up on jack stands( non heated garage) ...drain anti freeze-cooling system and flush...pull the plugs and spray a little WD 40 in each and then replace the plugs....pull the battery and haul south and keep it charged....fill the gas tank full and add some Stabil. Any other suggestions for a 6 month shut down ?? Is draining the cooling system better than leaving full with anti freeze ?

You are much more involved in it than I am. I change the oil & filter, put fuel stabilizer in it & put a battery maintainer on it. We regularly get to single digits below & I've never had an issue.

For the last 40 years I make sure the battery is fully charged, slightly over inflate the tires, add some form of oil to the gas, sometimes I kill the engine by pouring Marvel Mystery oil through the carb. shut off the key, and say I will see you in the Spring.
In the Spring I start the engine. If the battery dosen't have enough power to pump the gas up to the carb. get a new battery (usually every several years) dust it off or remove cover and hit the road.

Cars are stored in unheated garages and in winter can get below zero.
Also years ago I filled the tank. Now have the tanks below 1/4 is possible to avoid having a full tank of old gas in the Spring.
Also some years no preparing was done for some reason and no problems.

As a note. If you add Stabil and have ethanol in your area get the Stabil for ethanol.

I`ve been under the impression that leaving gas tanks low on gas for extended times can collect condensation and cause problems after a prolonged shut down. Also I`m leary of leaving battery maintainers plugged in while away for months ....Murphys Law etc. My bias plys are 35- 40 years old and still going strong( 4k miles on them) ...no cracks , so that`s why I put it up on jack stands . My first flat I`ll probably get some new shoes.I`m just a small town putter ...so, I`m not too worried about their age .

Your method is all noteworthy. If it works for you keep it up.
As far as condensation is concerned the unheated garage temperatures slowly change and if any condensation does form it will be absorbed by the ethanol in the gas.

All sounds good to me. Only other thing is don't forget to put a pc. of steel wool in tail pipe to keep the mice out and set a few traps.

Your better off leaving the cooling system full of antifreeze than draining it and leaving the system with nothing in it. Antifreeze has a rust inhibitor in it and that will protect the inside of your engine.

If the coolant is in good shape and the mixture of Anti Freeze and water are correct for the temps in your area why drain them? My 52 has been stored in heated space since 2001 but prior to that withstood winters with -25/30 degrees with no problem. Besides on occasion when the weather takes a turn for the better I like to fire up the old girl and take a spin.

Although I have never done it I often thought of removing the vented gas cap and sealing off the opening to prevent moisture from entering the gas tank (condensation).

Any tank or confined space will collect moisture. That most often is the gas tank and crankcase. The way it happens is that as the temperature drops air (with water vapor) is drawn in. As that air is further cooled some of the water vapor can condense into droplets which collect in the low points (water is more dense than hydrocarbons (gas/oil). That process continues on a daily basis. The amount of water depends on the relative humidity of the air and the temperature drop. Sealing the gas tank and crankcase would help but if completely sealed can risk collapse. A full gas tank has less vapor space and therefore less air can be drawn in. If a gas treatment (Sea Foam, Sta-bil) is used there may be more molecules to absorb the water and keep it away from the metal in a full tank. Yes you may have more old gas in the spring. Same for the crankcase. The more oil the less moisture. Oil has additives to hold some moisture. More of them in fresh oil than used.

I have given the description of what happens. The choice of storage conditions and prevention measures is yours.

I should add that one reason I don't take more serious storage precautions is that I try to drive my car most of the year. I leave it in the garage below 30 deg F and when the weather is bad. If it's freezing or above and there's no snow on the roads I let her warm up good then hit the road 2-3 times a month during the winter.

Tiny that is by far the best option. We can drive our cars all year but since most of my road cars are stored 120 miles from home I don't get to run them as often as I should.

Good suggestions and explanations. I think I`ll leave the anti freeze and in the spring drain the oil and refresh. I`ve been running non-ethanol , so I`ll add some stabil and forget it . Will stick something in the exhaust !_Thanks to all.....We go to S. Fl for the winter , but if we were up here I`d sure be driving her all winter !

Best time to change the oil is in the Fall.....any acid in the old oil can attack the bearing material (babbitt).

I would never store a vehicle without anti freeze protection. I bought two 216 engines this summer that were stored outside last winter. One I already shared pictures of in previous posts, it had a freshly cracked block. The other I am going over now. It has a repaired cracked block. I will post pictures when It is cleaned up a little more. Both were stored with anti freeze in them, but last winter was extremely cold, for a long time, and the antifreeze mixture was not strong enough in atleast the one.

Remember most water jacket areas in our blocks are full of rust corrosion which forms into a very course sand like material. If this corrosion freezes it has no where to expand so the block ends up cracking.

With the unpredictability of our winter weather I would store my vehicle with maximum anti freeze protection if I didn't have a heated garage.

Good luck, Mike