yo lads.
soon will be putting my baby away for the winter very soon..just a few questions if you please.
firstly i can only really find 5w 30 oil here in sweden..i used that last year (mobil 1). now is this really ok to use? they recomend 5w 20 dont they?

secondly when in storage is it best to not start all? is it ok to leave it say 6 months without starting it? the car will be kept in a warm garage on wooden blocks (to prevent tire flat spotting)
i was also thinking maybe putting some plastic bags over the exhaust tips to prevent any moisture entering the motor.
cheers rudi

 

Fill the tank up and use a winter fuel stabilizer additive.

Put fresh oil in it (5w-20 or 5w-30 is fine). You typically want to start it up at least once every few weeks to a month. Leave the exhaust open, any moisture that does gets will be trapped otherwise.

Here's a pretty good article although it takes some extremes (removing the wheels completely, removing the battery which makes it impossible to start/run)

http://www.autotraderclassics.com/ca...er-75174.xhtml

Most people that will be starting it while in storage use a battery tender/minder that keeps the battery charged.

Here's a couple I don't see mentioned in the article. Don't use your parking brake and leave it in Nuetral. Parking brake use could cause the pads to stick/corrode to the rotors and leaving the car in gear could make it really hard to get out of gear later on.

 

I've been storing cars over the winter for years. Used to store my Thunderbird outside all winter, I would just change the oil, unhook the battery, put it up on jackstands and put mothballs under the car and in the engine bay to keep mice out (didn't really work though).

The Mustang gets an (unheated) garage to hibernate in, usually ends up on jackstands because I'm working on stuff, but otherwise I just change the oil shortly before storage, unhook the battery, and that's about it. If it's indoors there's not as much to worry about.

 

5W-30 is fine. Starting your car while in storage is not a good idea as you'll never run it long enough to burn off the condensation. Put a battery tender on it and leave it be. Moth ***** on the outside and dryer sheets on the inside will help keep the critters away.

 

I put my car away in the garage on jack stands, battery tender, and change the oil. I have a cover that gets installed too, but only during the winter storage.

 

cheers lads..mobil 1 has been ordered...i've heard from many peeps not to start during winter because of condensation build up in the motor and will rot the exhaust from the inside..

 

Do NOT start your engine unless you can drive it a minimum of 10-20 miles before re-locating it back in storage.

A fresh oil change as soon as possible before placing it in storage is all that's needed. But again, that should be a minimum 10-20 mile drive before storing to ensure you've driven off some moisture.