My city decided to paint all the main roads with salt. She's in the garage till the rains come.

In the past for winter the only I've done is to slow-charge the batter every few weeks.

Considering I only have 290 miles on the rebuild, is there any thing else I should be doing in terms of protective maintenance?


For the winter, besides replacing the coolant sensor, I'm going to pull the combination switch to see if I get the high-beams to work in the On-High position.

 

Fuel stabilizer.

 

Sounds good. Thanks.

 

my winter storage
-stabilizer for gas as suggested; I use SEAFOAM (whole bottle) with a FULL tank (full tank means no air gap to condense moisture on inside of tank, =rust)
-disconnect fuel pump (I wired in a switch) - connection is under the rear left storage box) and run engine till it dies: removes gas from carb so no old gas sitting in it for months. Remember to RE-connect for spring start
-50lbs of air in all tires: no flat spots on tires from sitting
-few ounces of motor oil in each rotor chamber: administered thru carb mouth. Need to hold open the throttle plate (hinged) to do this; then DRY crank engine a few turns (Disconnect coils). Will obv smoke a bit on start up to clear this
-remove air cleaner and place plastic bag/sheet over open carb mouth, replace air cleaner; likewise zip-lock baggy over each tail pipe. Purpose is to seal engine/exhaust from water condensation/rust.
-Vermin???? This can be huge. If little gnawing bastid rodents a problem:
use open plastic container (like a margerine one) and place several pellets of MOTHBALLS in several of these, then place around engine compt: battery tray, beside fr Rt light motor; on engine pan; under brake booster. ANYwhere mice tempted to chew. DO NOT USE INside car!!! (smell)
-if car INdoors: crack one window slightly for air flow. Dead air in moist environ can cause all sorts of
mold problems!
-cover car with correct breathable cover. Indoors: even old bedsheet will work. Outdoors: must be able to breath and be in wind-free area. I use a Covercraft Weathershield HD: about $260. amazing. lightweight, durable. You get what you pay for!!

Spring start:
replace fuel filter. remove covers, hook up battery, deflate tires to 30psi: go!
has worked for 10+ yrs with 7mo storage in Alaska winters...

Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

Aimed towards 2nd gens but equally as valid for 1st gens (minus some of the EFI stuff):

How To Store Your RX-7

 

Many of us use marine fogging oil too. Keep a spare set of plugs for when you wake it up. Its a good idea to keep a half bottle of Seafoam in your tank at all times in these cars just for the reason that these cars dont get driven as much as say your average Honda Civic. It just helps prevent problems year round. Its probably a good idea to change your fluids before storage. You dont want old fluids sitting in you engine for a couple months. Keep your windows up and in the garage preferably to keep rust and pests out.

 

This will take a little to organize, but I have many of the suggestions covered.

With the recent rebuild completed a few weeks ago, the oil and coolant are new. Actually the two are new twice as the first rebuild finished in October was faulty. In September I replaced the brake master cylinder so the brake fluid is new. I also replaced the clutch slave so its fluid is new as well.

My battery charger has an auto shut-off as I'm forgetful.
The garage is part of my house, not heated but stays considerably warmer than outside in winter. Concrete floor, not sealed, but no water seepage.

Oil/marine fogging oil definitely. I was curious about moisture/condensation over time.

When I first got the car it had been sitting for a year. I took the back roads from Cincinnati to Dayton as I did not trust it on the interstate. Seafoam or Sta-Bil in the gas.

I wish I had known about the 50 psi in the tires last year when I decided to pull the engine. I'm sure after 11 months of sitting I have flat spots on the rear tires. I'll pump them up to prevent any more.

(I need to print this and the link from Aaron Cake. Too much to remember at once.)

 

Also, I like to store it with the parking brake "off" and just keep a couple scrap pieces of 2x4's in front of and behind one of the tires as chaulks (sp).......and I hit the linkage(s), hinges, door locks, seat rails, (basically anything that moves) with its appropriate lubricant.

 

The biggest issue is stabilizing the gas in the tank. Modern gas is crap when store for more than a few months.
Lots of good advice here, follow it and you should be fine. I used to live in Pittsburgh (Zelionople actually) and I
would just pour some stabil in the gas, run it with the fuel pump off until it died, and put it on jack stands from Nov
to April when it would come back out. Pull the battery and keep it in the basement or house. The cold seems to
really knock the crap out of batteries.

 

Nice. esp hand Brake setting. I do this too.

garage concrete floors:
These _constantly_ weep moisture... right up to the undercarriage of your car, with predictable results.
I store my car OUTside (no garage, which is possibly illegal in US ) - and I ALWAYS park my beloved over a sheet of plastic to prevent moisture problems. prob not as much of an issue up Here (alaska) since 1) at -30F winters there is NO moisture
2) natural air movement outside keeps an moisture build-up down some
but in a static-environment garage this can be a chassis-killer for rust.

Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

I still have my 74 RX3 wheel chocks. The garage has a very slight slope to the door. The two will work fine. No point in stretching what does not need to be.

I have some heavy gauge plastic sheets. The garage is not sealed as the garage door is opened often and vented up and out through the attic.

(We have two high-top Ford vans which at 8+ feet will simply not fit in the garage. They are parked outside year-round.)

We may have enough rain this coming weekend to clean the streets. I would like to fill up the tank before hibernation.

 

I'm the opposite in some ways. I go out of my way to always use non-ethanol regular year round and mix in a little sea foam which acts as a fuel stablizer, in addition to its cleaning /de carboning attributes. I avoid ethanol due to its reptutation for attracting moisture, reduced mileage and short shelf life. For the winter, I don't like to keep much gas in my tank. This way, there is less to treat and go bad plus, I can dillute it down in the spring with a fillup of fresh fuel when it comes out of winter hibernation. This year, I bought some of the new 360 stabil too. Its supposed to release a vapor to help protect the exposed inner tank surfaces in addition to stablizing the liquid fuel itself.

I also store inside, in a heated garage with a rubber matt floor covering the entire garage. This way, I don't have near as much temperture varaition as opposed to storing outside where the constant cycle of day and night cause repeated heating and cooling which in turn, is what causes condensation in the first place.

I think that storing over the winter months is not that harmful or hazzardous in itself. Especially when combined with some precautions as well as maintance and exersize during the summer. Its when they are stored over long periods of neglict with no maintenance, usage or precautions that they deteriorate and breakdown.

 

I store my car in a heated garage, I change all of the fluids and clean the entire car including the underneath, if l the fill tank and add stabil. I also change out the summer wheels(and store them in the basement with track bags over them) and tires for a beater set that do nothing but hold up the car. I also put slices of Irish spring soap on a plastic lid inside the car and in the engine bay, its supposed to repel rodents, which it has for 5 years that I've used it.

 

Really?! nice. beats that gawd-awful stink of mothballs if true. Thanks.

Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

I'm assuming the STA-BIL will not hurt the 13B when started in the spring? I don't know if the fuel in the tank will keep at the 93 octane level after 5+ months of storage and if the additive would help or hurt.

 

Cap off the air intake hole on the breather and also seal up the exhaust tips. Just remember to remove them before first start-up.

 

Lots of great information here.

I kept checking the weather reports, no rain or snow for 5 days, going up to 50's next week, some rain. Thinking this morning I'll deflate the tires and take it out one more time. But, in a hurry and late for work, no time for tires so I took the Ford. As it turns out, my city soaked the main streets in salt brine while I was at work. The FB hibernates this Friday.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.