What To Do Before Storing Your Car For The Winter

Kinda cold outside, isn’t it? Depending on where you live, of course, winter is here or knocking on the door, and that means it's time to put away the automotive toys.

There’s a procedure here, and whether you’ve already got a system down pat, or are looking for a little advice, we’re going to tell you exactly how to put away your car for winter, what it needs before you do, and what to do to keep it protected while it’s put away.

How Much Are You Gonna Drive It?

It’s worth first assessing how “stored” the car needs to be. If you live in a milder climate with only occasional winter weather, keeping the car rolling will eliminate the need to do some of these steps, like changing fluids or the use of a battery tender.

A lot of temperate climates see warmer days during the winter, and using this as an excuse to run some errands in your second car can only be a good thing. Just be mindful of outside temperatures, weather, and your tires, as many summer or all-season tires don’t handle snow well, or cannot be driven below certain temperatures.

Of course, this might not work for everyone, as Tyler White, owner of Simply Clean Detail Studio in Denver, Colorado, points out. For one reason or another, keeping a car stored over winter may be a necessity.

Some of Tyler’s clients own vehicles that are investment pieces, and Tyler says those folks “want it stored in a good place, but also started and driven periodically to ensure everything is exercised regularly.” Others, he says, just want more space at home during the winter, or simply don’t have it to begin with. Either way, once you’ve established this baseline, including how long your car will be stored for, it’s time to get to work.

Do Some Maintenance

Before you even put the car away, it’s a good time to take stock of what needs to be done with the car. These can be things that you may want to address over the winter while the car isn’t being driven, like, say, redoing the suspension, or something as simple as changing the oil.

As a matter of fact, a nice fluid change is probably a good idea, and you’ll want to top it up with fresh, ethanol-free gas (so drive it one last time). Regardless, the idea is to keep dirty fluids from sitting for six months, creating potentially more maintenance as the car comes out of storage.

Top the tank off with fresh, ethanol-free fuel if you can find it. Most premium fuels are free from ethanol in case you're worried. A fuel stabilizer is a must regardless of the fuel you add, but of particular importance if you can't find ethanol-free fuel.

Ethanol-blended fuels are hygroscopic, meaning they will attract moisture. Ethanol blended fuel begins to degrade within weeks, and after a couple of months phase separation will occur. Phase separation is when moisture sinks to the bottom of your fuel tank, leaving the fuel sitting on top—think oil and water. When you go to start the car in the spring, the first thing to hit your fuel pump is the water, and you do not want water in your engine.

Clean It!

Giving your car one last wash before winter has some benefits: for starters, it’ll help protect your car against corrosion. Tyler sums it up nicely: “I recommend detailing your vehicle before putting it in storage, whether yourself or via a detailer. You want to remove anything on the vehicle that could harm the finishes while it is stored. Things such as bugs, tree sap, etc. will do damage fairly quickly when left sitting, and the longer they sit the more damage they do."

It’s also worth chucking in something to eat up moisture, like the baking soda boxes you put in your fridge if you live somewhere humid. Dehumidifier bags used for shrink-wrapping boats also work well for this purpose.

Keep It Dry

You’ll want to put the car somewhere dry and out of the elements as best you can. Not all of us can afford a nice, well-lit, climate-controlled garage with a lift in it, but even a home garage can be a great place to keep a car out of the elements.

Check for leaks or unwanted animals in your garage before putting the car away, and we recommend ensuring wherever the car is parked it isn’t sharing space with things you’ll use frequently — working around a large parked car will only get it scratched, dirty, or damaged.

Protect The Tires

There are several ways to do this: put the car on tire savers, set it on jack stands, or the old school approach, simply increase the psi in each tire. Each has its merits.

FlatStoppers are the lazy person’s way of doing things, but they're also expensive. They do keep your tires from getting “flat spots,” dispersing a car’s weight evenly and preserving tire shape. Jack stands also provide the same effect with a bit more labor involved. However, it is important to keep in mind that if your car has expensive aftermarket dampers and/or solid bushings it's best not to leave the suspension in full droop for months at a time.

Overinflating your tires is the best compromise, all you need is a tire inflator. Just don't forget to leave yourself a note or a reminder to reduce the tire pressure in the spring.

SEE ALSO: Best Portable Tire Inflators

Battery

Keeping your car’s battery charged is one of the final, and most critical, pieces of the puzzle. There are a number of great battery tenders on the market, and this is the go-to method for preserving a battery over the long winter months. A tender will keep the juice flowing to your battery, ensuring it’s charged while the car sits in storage.

Of course, you can also remove the battery from the vehicle and connect the tender in your basement or other warm, convenient location.

SEE ALSO: Best Trickle Chargers

To Cover Or Not To Cover

Keeping a stored car clean for six or so months will be aided by the use of a car cover. Don’t cheap out. Get one of the nice ones, as Tyler points out. “Higher-end car covers are recommended, OEM or OEM recommended covers are the go-to if you’re going to use one. Cheaper car covers made with more plastics almost always do more damage than protection. They typically allow dust and dirt through the cover itself, landing on the vehicle."

SEE ALSO: Best Car Covers

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