o_Rage_o

Well its that time again! Winter is fast approaching and I thought I'd share some of my tips for storing the baby for Winter (or in my case..just refreshing it since its been in my garage since LAST winter grr I miss it so much)

Anyways, here it goes!


------------HOW TO STORE YOUR INTEGRA FOR WINTER --------------

You can skip any of these points if you wish as some are more hardcore than others, ok, some are really hardcore, but I promise you'll love them!

1) Wash, Polish, Wax
Preparing your paint for winter should be an absolute must, plus it will be shiny when you take it out agaain! My personal system is Meguiers 3 Step, make sure to do this early, because its amazing how fast you can freeze when washing your car in the cold! Clean all chrome with cleaner and polish, lubricate all chassis points including the inside door hinge, trunk and latches with white lithium grease or better, don't forget sunroof tracks!

2) Clean Out the interior
Clean and vaccum the interior, wash those carpets you never paid attention to. If you have leather, apply a heavier than usual coat of cleaner and moisturizer. Use water and soap and not Armour All to clean vinyl and dash, it will leave smell when it gets out in summer. Use a good glass cleaner like 20/20 to do the interior windows, and throw in a new car freshener. Leave the windows slightly open and sunroof closed. Also leave a box of open baking soda in the passanger seat to take out interior moisture (passanger because i kicked the god damn thing in the drivers seat before)

3) Pick the right car cover
A good car cover should be breathable and made of soft material that should not scratch your paint, or trap moisture which could lead to rust (that means NO TARP OR PLASTIC). Also lay down a vapour barrier if your are parking in a garage with cement floors, this will prevent moisture trapping against the underbody and leading to rust (for this get the blue cheap tarp)

4) Battery
Remove the battery from the car and DO NOT place on concrete or metal, put it on a wood surface, as battery charge slowly leaks through concrete and will ruin it. Keep it hooked up to a cheap fully automatic trickle charger to keep it in top condition, a battery that is discharged fully and recharged again will not yeild the same output as before (ie. gets weak!) so stop being cheap and get the charger. This is also a good time to clean the terminals and apply some dielectric grease to them

5) Fuel
Ok, everyones divided on this, Some say remove all fuel by running car until it dies, disconnecting fuel pump line and cranking 6 times, then reconnect the lines. I personally go with the other half and keep a completly full tank of gas, and pour in Gasoline Stabalizer. The reason with the full tank is so that moisture cannot get to your tank and cause it to rust, plus the lines stay full. Since the lines are full and gas is in your car, you need a bottle of stabalizer to help prevent the gas from oxidizing.

6) Tires / Jackstands
Ok, you need to keep your car on jackstands so that your tires don't develop a flat spot as they are trying to support the weight of your car all winter!. I actually completly take my tires off the car, because they are very heavy and put a load on the suspension, but is not required. If you are storing your tires you might consider 5 extra PSI in them and 8-10 if leaving them on without jackstands. Also seeing as the tire is off, clean your brakes with cleaner and possibly bleed your hydrualic lines to remove dirt and moisture (go speedbleeders!)

7) Climate Control
Try to park your car in your garage if possible and if your garage is particularly damp throw in a dehumidifier (I've got to be kidding right? What's next heated garage??) Knowing that no one will and that i'm cheap like the rest of you, instead I have a open bag of sand/soil in the corner to absorb moisture.

8) Under the Hood Prep
Change the oil and filter - A MUST
Top all fluids
Clean your air filter if you can
Check belts and heater hoses
Check the cooling system (Ideal time to change antifreeze if its been a while)
Put steel wool or similar in your tailpipe to avoid spiders and other creatures making new homes..for you guys with big exhausts your on your own! (a Compact Disc perhaps?? )

Now, turn on your car and run it for 10-15 minutes to spread all the new fluids and if you have AC turn it on and let it run too! Freon can leak if allowed to sit for long, so might as well circulate it during those 10 mins. The water temp and oil must be heated before turning it off and storing.

9) Transmission
Leave the car in gear (reverse/1st) and keep the E-Brake off to prevent siezing

10) Routine Checkups

Make sure to start your car at least every other week and and let the temperature stay at normal for 5-10 minutes, this will allow the oil to heat up slightly so at least it can get close to operating temperature. Your best is to excercise the car for 20 minutes, but in winter with salt on the roads it usually does more harm than good.

Look for leaks and such before you turn it off and put it away.

11) TAKE LOTS OF PICTURES OF YOUR CLEAN CAR because you will miss it horribly! Enjoy guys!

- RAGE

STC

seems like a lot of work, good thing i dont have to do that here in cali.

Rob :190:

how i do it? the same way i store it in the summer....in my driveway, daily driven

hooptie157

thank Rage that was thorough. To bad I gotta drive my car in the winter

Larkin W.

11) TAKE LOTS OF PICTURES OF YOUR CLEAN CAR because you will miss it horribly! Enjoy guys!
No need to miss the car horribly.

I'm strapping on black millenia wheels with tires that will work in the snow, adding some splash guards and giving the ITR my full detail job. Then she will continue to be daily driven...

winter

Nice Faq however.


[Modified by EbboyPSi, 1:09 AM 10/9/2002]


[Modified by EbboyPSi, 1:11 AM 10/9/2002]

KBOi85

one thing good about cali is the weathers always good!

o_Rage_o

oh ic how it is....rage the poor student has a freakin 1990 beat up trecel hatchback while his peeps on honda-tech driving around in milennias! Nice

Winter sucks..

-Rage
(put putting around town with cylinder 1 misfiring! Makes left turns interesting)

Isaac

Wow awesome write up! Unfortunately I too have to drive my Teg in the winters, but my Alpins do me good.

Spoon97R

I rarely post, but that was funny as hell and insightful, for a good topic for not only R owners, but all integras.

ActiveAero

What's winter?

jond

good writeup

machgo5go

I keep it in the garage and starts it once a week if this going to be a long one coming for the northeast.
If I own an NSX, then i go through that extreme, but its just an R but i do love it alot!

Ferrell

jond

I do the same. I have a second set of wheels with winter tires on them. I mount them around december, and keep driving.

I am thinking about storing the mustang this winter though. I usually just cover it, and crank it up once a week for 20 minutes or so.

AssPenny

I was thinking the same thing... is that when the temp almost drops below 70 degrees ?


[Modified by AssPenny, 10:33 AM 10/9/2002]

AssPenny

How else are u supppost to roast marshmellows and make samores?

jond

Damn. I'm moving to florida!

AssPenny

Dude... 70 in south florida is cold... damn humidity...

Craig - Who likes the cold cause he can bring out his members only jacket

AssPenny

Now george we don't burn everything... mostly

B2FiNiTY

iTrader: (2)

Good write up

-Whitey-

thanks for the info mang you added some good points i over looked