keeping a 14 off the road for a few years, advice!

Normally I keep the car off the road for the winter for 5-6 months and start it up every couple of weeks. But I want another car and really don't want to sell the 14 so I've decided to keep it off the road in a garage for a few years and work on it at my own pace.

Now how do you keep a car off the road for this long? I understand that I'll be putting it on Axle stands (on the main rear subframe bolts and probably on the front subframe)
But do I ever need to start it up? Or just wait until it comes back out and change all the fluids before starting?

How long does fuel last before going off?

Advice needed :-)

dehumidifier is a must as garages are quite damp and steam up quickly which makes thee cars rust like mad.

If its for a few years then drain the fuel. Tbh, do a google, there's loads of guides there for short term and long term.


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ahhh forgot about the moisture! thing is it's not my garage so I don't want to be leaving a dehumidifier in there all the time using their electric, so I've been looking to find a solution that doesn't need power and the only thing I can do is buy loads of them small boxes of silica gel (think asda do them for about a quid each)

I just wouldn't bother putting it in a damp garage.

Modern fuel is good for at least 2 years, especially if it starts out as Super :)

I store my 41 year old Triumph in my garage for long periods of time. And this is what I do:

- Firsty make your garage non-damp. No garage should be damp. If it is then it has a problem. Having timber in the garage acts like a natural dehumidifier and the wood absorbs the moisture. Fit vents in the garage to get a good draft of air flowing through it. Make sure the rood is not leaking. And damp walls or floor- get it sorted.
- I park the car, leave both windows down about 2 inches to allow the interior to breath, disconnect the battery and put a cover on it.
- Ideally I like to keep the tank full to the brim but I not fussed. Last week I put her to bed with a ¼ tank. She will sleep now for the next 6 months.
- Every 2 months I will start her and bring her up to temp to keep everything nice and oily. Get her juices flowing!
- Every now and again I will pump the tyres and roll her back and forth.
- If you are storing her for years, your tyres could get a flat spot if you don’t raise her off the ground, but then again my friend has 26 cars and they are all on their tyres without issues. And after a few years, flat spots or not, the tyres perish anyway.

But last year when my nipper arrived I didn’t have time to do the above so she sat for a full year without me even seeing her! So what did I do to revive her:

- Removed the car cover.
- Fitted a charged battery
- Pumped the tyres
- Checked the oil and fluid levels.
- Started her up and went for a 40 mile blast.

Take from this as you want. But don’t get too anal about it. An SX has better everything that a 41 year old Triumph. Lots of people have their own ways but the key is a good dry garage though. Again no garage should be damp.

I forgot to say to leave the handbrake off. Use wheel chocks if you are leaving her on the ground. Also when you start her from time to time, clutch her and run through the gears. Clutch pressure over time and a good cold winter can cause the clutch material to bind to the flywheel, (the same as brake pads if your handbrake is left on). I had this during taht really bad winter with the Triumph. Ignorance and brute force was the only way to break it free. And that wasn't nice on a 40 year old gear box! :-0

I do more or less the same as Markcro with my S13 on a more or less permanent basis now. She gets a run out about every month when I'm not working on her but not at all during winters now.

Windows down an inch for me and a breathable cover my Mrs made for me from 2 B&Q dust sheets. It doesn't scratch, it breathes really well and flies, moths, spiders and other animals can't get into the car through the window.

In neutral with handbrake off and battery on a trickle charger. I usually remove the battery and put it on a trickle charger as the battery seems to lose some of its "duration" if its left connected. I don't know why.

Give the car a really, really good clean, dry and polish before she goes away. Focus especially on cleaning wheelarches, suspension components, exhaust and car underside. Any damp and/or road salt deposits in wheelarches, engine bay, underside, bumper cavities etc. will sit there nibbling away at the bodywork while its away otherwise.

I'm lucky enough to have a brick built garage with a concrete floor, damp proofing and a proper roof so its dusty dry (which is what you want). The garage has to be watertight and the water has to stay on the outside. I can't stress that enough. My garage is carpetted and its fine because its so dry but don't fit carpet if there is any hint of damp as it holds any water that gets in and increases humidity.

I've had bikes stood over winter that have had their clutch stick and we used to push the front wheel against a wall, start the engine, clutch in and stamp it into gear. Not recommending that as a fix for a car though :D
I've seen clutches freed by putting the car in gear (with nothing in front of the car for a long way :) ) depressing the clutch and the brake pedal then cranking the engine but I think its kinder to put the unstarted car in gear and have couple of heavies rock it back and to while you dip the clutch.


EDIT: Oh, and for God's sake, remove ALL traces of food from the inside of the car before you park it up. Even a sweet wrapper will see unwanted hordes descend on your car and they make a great place to make a nest to over-winter.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Jonny Wilkinson

I've seen clutches freed by putting the car in gear (with nothing in front of the car for a long way :) ) depressing the clutch and the brake pedal then cranking the engine but I think its kinder to put the unstarted car in gear and have couple of heavies rock it back and to while you dip the clutch.

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My Triumph's clutch welded itself to the flywheel about 4 years ago during the really harsh winter. So much so that when I clutched it destroyed the seals in the clutch master cylinder. I replaced that with a new one. Try breaking it free by putting it in gear and using the starter motor. No good as the starter was not powerful enough. Tried rocking it back and forth, no joy.............. the last thing left apart from splitting the gearbox was pure violence......... I got my dad and a mate to push her up a good speed and then I slammed her into second gear. Pure murder on a 40 year old box but it broke the clutch free. :-) Now I always make sure to slip the clutch whenever I start her in the garage just to give the flywheel a cleaning.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Jonny Wilkinson

EDIT: Oh, and for God's sake, remove ALL traces of food from the inside of the car before you park it up. Even a sweet wrapper will see unwanted hordes descend on your car and they make a great place to make a nest to over-winter.

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Was just about to say the only thing you had missed was the pest control...

Mine has sat unused since 2008 (and for two years before that). My Dad fired it up now and then when I was overseas but we did nothing at all to it. For the first time in 6 years I fired it up and drove it (last month) - engine seems to run perfectly, just a fuel filter and vacuum hose check. There are bits and pieces of rubber that have perished, but it's in surprisingly good nick and only needs the fluids changed IMO. It has sat outside and in a garage for alternating times. I think the car is essentially bombproof, but I have a full rebuild planned for it.

Edit: hmm my signature seems to be quite out of date now too