winter storage
 

Snowflakes in the air as I go to the garage to clean off the oil that had gotten into the connection between the oil sending unit and its wire. I knew it wasn't good when that guy changed the oil filter by just uncranking it and letting the oil run where it would. This after I had told two managers I wanted to talk to the "mechanic" before any work was done. The sending unit for the oil pressure guage is right under the oil filter and oil in that connection resulted in eratic readings on the guage. Remove pan plug, punch little hole in top of oil filter, wrap rag around filter, remove filter. I walked out of that shop with free oil and filter, tire repair and rotation after I saw him spraying water all over the engine to hose off the degreaser. The manager did do the right thing.

Am I doing the right thing by starting and running the engine 15 minutes every few weeks (at least) when the car sits in an unheated garage for 5 months of Wisconsin cold. I try to pick warmer days. I also move the car a few feet back and forth.

Starting it up every few weeks in the cold is very hard on the engine. Furthermore, idling the engine for 15 mins without any load is not very good for anything. Overall this business does more harm than good; don't bother. Moving it a few feet won't hurt anything.

Some ideas for you:

- make sure to remove the battery, else you'll be replacing it sooner than normal
- inflate the tires higher than usual to avoid flat spots, and maintain the inflation over the winter
- fog the motor with engine storage spray if you like
- rust spray the car every year
- install a ventilation fan in your garage (doesn't necessarily have to be a fancy one); this will reduce the moisture level inside significantly
- put a teaspoon of oil into each carb primary when you start the car in the spring; it will seal better, lubricate the seals and fire up much faster

There's lots more than I'm forgetting. This stuff has been discussed many times - check out the search button and you'll have all the answers you seek:)