Storing A Car For 6 Months.

[KezR33]

Hey guys,

A friend of mine recently lost his license and plans to lock his R34 GT away for 6months but was concerned about any damage he might do to the car if its not driven. Anyone have any suggestions as to what he can do before he locks it up, or anything he should be wary of once he starts driving it again?

Only thing I can think of is:

Lock it up in garage out of the weather.

Disconnect the battery.

Baby it till you empty that first tank as the fuel might go stale.

Is it worth starting up every month or two and running for a bit, or even getting someone else to drive it around the block, or will 6 months do nothing? I understand these cars often sit for much longer periods in Japan before coming here.

Thanks.

[Spurdo]

im in the same boat as your friend.. although not from the lack of licence.. more due to economic reasons lol.

theres no straight answer for this really. depends on a few things although 6 months isnt really all that long. i think the things you already mentioned almost covers it. but yes it would be a good idea to run it and have it driven maybe once every month or every second month or whatever he can be bothered doing. the tyres will probably go down slowly and if they go down enough to get a good droop on and the car just sits there on them that can permanently distort the shape of them and they'll be rubbish when he goes to drive it again.

when i bought my current skyline, it had been sitting untouched for 18 months (dont know if it was inside or outside) and within a few months of owning it, the head gasket blew. now that engine was supposedly only built about 6 months prior to going into storage.

but yea i pretty much just do what you mentioned. get it out of the weather and disconnect the battery. although i do take it for a quick squirt up the road every month or 2 so the head gasket doesnt disintegrate again

[t_revz]

left mine for 7 months while i was living in Japan. one big tip i would recommend is to put mouse baits around as the car stunk when i got back and there was crap under the back seat. i guess in the boot or under the car would do the trick!!

[drgtr7]

http://www.wikihow.com/Store-a-Car

Some interesting shit here ^

[gotRICE?]

I have done it with mine on more than one occasion.

Get it inside. Dis connect the battery, fill the washer bottle etc, and just go.

I had a fresh oil change in mine and a full tank of gas. Came back after 5 months, put the battery on, started it up and drove away.

I might also recommend bumping up the PSi in the tires a few PSI, that, or if its possible try chuck it on axle stands. OR if you have them, put the stock wheels back on just so you dont get flat spots on the tires

The way i did it, was fine. So i guess it depends on how paranoid you are. I didnt get flat spots. Think i upped the PSI in mine to around 45.

[Duncan]

don't forget pretty much every skyline is aus has spent 6 months sitting around at auctions/docks/compliancers as well.

other than dead battery (always disconnect, and if possible charge it every few weeks), I've never had any problem. And my car is often off the road

[.:: GimpS-R34 ::.]

my car sat for 9-10months in my garage.. i had mine on a trickle type charger.. Got in.. started it up and let it run for a bit on idle.. And away I went..

If you can go back and start it up every month, it wouldnt hurt to do that..

[ClutchBurndout-:(]

after six months wouldnt it seize up? or is that a myth?

[mad082]

be a myth that it would sieze up. i have a VH commodore that was sitting out in the weather under a tree for 3 years or more and was never started. new battery, bit of fuel down the carby and it started straight up.

if you can start it every month or 2 just to run the aircon to prevent any seals/o-rings drying out is worth while, other than that, not much to do.

if you are worried about flat spots on tyres, simply roll the car forwards a few inches in either direction after a month or 2.

[.:: GimpS-R34 ::.]

after six months wouldnt it seize up? or is that a myth?

my car sat for 9-10months in my garage..

[Ten Four]

My supra prior to me owning it, did 4k kms in 11 years - last 4 years it hadn't seen any driving. Was stored in a heated garage, under covers.

Disconnected battery, old 11 year old oil and no idea how old fuel, started and drove perfect.

mythssssssssss

[Socrates]

prior to me getting my car from grandparents it did only 45,000km in 19.5 years 1990 - 2009

2300km/year.

from 2003+ i would start and run it for 5 min each week/ 2 weeks. and keep it charged.

Was kept under some sheets, in covered shed. As is, no car stands.

[Wacky Dee]

I've had to go through this .. my recommendations would be: park in garage and make sure it's alarmed/immobilized, don't use handbrake just put it in gear, roll it back and forth once a week/fortnight and let it idle for a few mins once a fortnight so nothing dries out completely (internally), disconnect battery, recharge battery once a fortnight using trickle charger, put some of those dehumidifier bags under seats. After six months, change the oil.

I also change the fuel as it does degrade after a few months and mine's turned for 98ron. Easiest way to disconnect the fuel return line and simply let it idle ... obviously put the return line into a bucket to collect the old fuel. After 5-10 mins it will empty out the tank and stall. Get a canister of fresh bp ultimate and off you go.