Stored Vehicle - Start Monthly or Let Sit?

[pmt]

In the local cities newspaper, a weekly car maintainance column guy stated in answer to one of this week's questions, that he starts his stored vehicles once a month for a half hour (outside his garage) to warm the various lubricants and run the A/C system.
I know that starting engines in stored vehicles has been debated here at BITOG several times in the past, but I'm curious to know current thinking on the subject.
The column writer seems to me like a pretty savvy car guy, but I've always been torn myself between wanting to get some oil circulated through the engine and worrying about acid buildup in the oil from a short warm up in my 96 T-Bird I let sit each winter for 4 to 5 months - the usual salted road period in this part of the country.
I have been letting the Bird sit each winter without starting for the past 10 years, and am not aware of any negative affects so far. When I do the "Spring" start in April, I do hear the 4.6 engine's timing chain idler thump for a second or so, but other than that the first start of the season seems perfectly normal. The car has about 75,000 miles, runs well, and oil consumption is insignificant except with 5W-20 oils or 5W-30 oils that shear down. Last summer's driving season I used GC 0W-30 oil, and consumption was nil after 5500 miles use. So engine seems to be in pretty good shape.
I'd be interested in what others here do with their winter- stored cars - start occasionally or not?

 

[Bulli]

i just stored my 07 civic.
Put it to sleep on November 25,07 and I DID start it up every now and then when the weather was nice.
I had sta-bil in the gas tank and i fogged the cylinders but that was in all honesty pointless and a problem because the fogging oil seeped down past the rings and went to the oil sump.

NExt time ill just pour in some oil

car sat for about 1 months without being started.
Some guy who has been storing cars said a car is made to run.
ITs better for the engine to run because that wat it was made to do. blah blach Seemed true to me so
i tried to start the car every 2 weeks and go for a short drive.
if i went for a drive i usually ended up iving it about 12-15 miles.
at times when it was nice but wet outside i just started it up and let it idle for about 30 minutes.

Recently changed oil and filter. M1 synthetic

car seems to behave better then new!



Its important to drive the car little because the brakes corrode and also you can get flat spots on your tires i have heard.

 

[cosynthetics]

I don't believe fogging is worthless. It helps with corrosion on long sitting engines.

 

[Bulli]

well from the experience i had im not putting it in never again in my cylinders.

 

[Doug Hillary]

Hi,
pmt - You could consider using an engine lubricant containing a Vapour Phase Inhibitor (VPI). This type of lubricant is ideal for this type of use

 

[BarkerMan]

If you start an engine once a month just run it enough to get the oil circulating and cycle the a/c and if you have an auto-trans or a standard cycle it through all the gears, move it back an forth and shut it off. 30 minutes at idle will not warm it enough to do anything useful and you are just creating more sludge. If up on jack stands still cycle through the gears and turn the dif. If you a/c does not run the heater then cycle the heater off and on. Also put some rat poison under the seats and in the engine compartment and under the car.

 

[PT1]

I have stored boats for over 20 years and have fogged the carbed models and not fogged the EFI ones. NO difference. Stored motorcycles and fogged some but chose to start the others monthly and still no difference. STABIL in all for certain. So to me it doesn't make any difference as long as the oil & filter is chenge prior to storage and fuel liberally stabilized. If I were to store an engine longer than 6 months I would fog the engine well. I have found the marine grade fogging oil does not run past the rings into the sump based on the giant oil cloud on start up.

 

[Buffman]

I just park it and let it sit. Mine usually gets stored for about 5-6 months. I feel that unless you're going to go out and drive the thing to burn off condensation you're doing more harm than good.

 

[Bulli]

i used the marine grade fogging oil by pennzoil. still seeped through

 

[SevenBizzos]

I was told to let it sit (if you're storing it for less than 6 months or so).

Other than the A/C seals, there really isn't much point to running the engine during storage periods. The way I learned it was 1) Put Stabil in the tank 2) Drive it a bit afterwards 3) Move the car a couple of feet now and again (not a necessity) and 4) Change the oil before resuming service.

That's just the way I learned it and have stored my Mustang for 3-4 months for 5 winters. No effects yet.

I'm sure there's different ideas out there and they both have their positives and negatives. I've got a feeling there isn't one positive, 100% right, answer...

 

[DragRace]

I've stored the mustang over the winter months for the past 5+ years and all I ever do is change the oil & filter,fill up the gas tank completely full,add some Stabil and throw in some laundry softner sheets into the interior.

I DO NOT start the car at all until it's time to back it out for Spring. Reason being is,it just creates moisture in the motor and thats never a good thing.

Never had a problem using this methiod with 2-different Mustangs.

 

[JustinH]

Park it and let it sit.

I drove Tbirds of that vintage for YEARS.

In fall, pull the battery out of it, and put it in the house off the cold concrete floor. Trickle charge it in spring.

Clean up the inside, and shake a cup of baking soda into a few paper cups, and let them sit inside the car to absorb any moisture.

Change the oil and filter, and let the car sit.

 

[Saab9-3]

I have a 72 MGB, has been stored every winter (6 months or so) for the last 35 years.

Process that is done every winter:

1: Fill gas tank and add sta-bil,
2: Warm engine up to Normal Operating Temp
3: Make sure coolant is at right temp grade
4: Park car and put engine oil into each cylinder (via spark plug opening) put a couple of squirts and the turn the car over twice.

I took the engine apart last summer and it looks fantastic. Car run amazing. The winters up here are a steady -5 to -25. This process seems to work well with my car.

 

[Saab9-3]

forgot to add, take the battery out

 

[Gary Allan]

Any open valves will have a rusty cylinder if it isn't fogged. Now whether or not that causes anyone any "apparent" problems is another thing, but I assure you that this occurs. The effects depend on either how long you own it and your lifespan.

The AC component to the starting while in storage thing may have more merit and trump the potential negative side effects of monthly warm up starts.

If I was ultra anal/OCD, I'd put a pre-luber and block/oil pan heaters and make a real ritual out of it. That way you could avoid the fuel enrichment thing ...probably dose the fuel with some upper cylinder lube in addition to some fuel stabilizer.


That said: I picked up a Turbo Coupe that sat for SEVEN years without being started. Threw some alcohol in the tank ..changed the oil ... and the guy from Virginia that bought it off of ebay was spinning the tires before he rounded the first turn

 

[Audi Junkie]

I say let it sit up to 6 months or just crank the engine w/o spark every 2.

 

[mechtech2]

Buffman has a great point.
There will be no condensation to 'burn off' if you don't start it in the first place. I'd leave it.
The gasoline will start to go bad in 3-6 months - that is a real problem.

 

[Cutehumor]

why have engine oil in the engine if you don't start the car for six months?

 

[CharBaby]

Been storing my purchaced new 1980 FIREBIRD FORMULA V8(6-7 months) for 28 years now and I've never started her while she's being stored. Everything seems fine when I do start her and she runs great all summer long. I do a couple of procedural things prior to starting the engine in the spring such as remove and fill the oil filter with oil and make sure the battery is up to par. I never put her away wet and make sure the tank if full of gas w/ STABLE and during the winter I make sure that the tires have plenty of air as not to get flat spots. I've never fogged the engine/cylinders. I have a little oil leak and a little tranny leak(both very little) but it's been like this for yeeeeeeears. I've replaced all of the easy to get at gaskets but there are still some very little spotting in the driveway/garage. Even my car guy buddies mention how well she performs and sounds.

 

[demarpaint]

I had asked a similar question a while back because my son would be leaving his BMW for between 6-10 months while deploying to Afghanistan, and got some good answers. Reason I asked was because no one would be watching the car.

I have long term stored my van with no issues (attached garage, and no rodent issues), and found that a full tank of gas with 1 qt of MMO coats things nicely. I also add Stabil to the fuel as well. IF you want to coat the cylinders, remove the plugs get a syringe and squirt MMO into the CYL's and just crank the engine over, or turn it if possible with a breaker bar to get the MMO to coat the cyl's. I never had a problem.

This van has a pre-luber, and about every 2 months or so, I turn it on and pressurize the system w/o starting it up, no condensation that way!

Frank D