How to store car for winter
Not every car we buy is intended for year-round driving. Whether it’s a truck we keep around for hauling our summer recreation toys or a small car that we’d rather not mess around with on the slick winter roads, when it’s time to put your vehicle into winter storage there are steps you can and should take in order to ensure that it’s ready to go for you come spring with as little fuss as possible. If you’re looking for tips on how to store your car for winter, start with these:
1. Clean it up. The first thing you’ll want to do before putting your car away for winter is to wash it thoroughly, inside and out. Dirt and other materials on the exterior can be damaging, take out any trash, and vacuum out the interior. You don’t want to be giving any critters another reason to try to get inside for a winter warm-up. Besides, who wants to uncover a dirty, messy car in spring?
2. Put a cover on it. If you’ve got garage space, that’s obviously the best case scenario, but if not you should be thinking about investing in rental storage space to keep the car clean, dry, and protected. Absolutely need to store it outdoors? At the very least make sure it’s got a weather-proof cover and preferably a concrete slab to rest on. Moisture from below can damaging, too.
3. Change your oil and fill your tires. There are lots of maintenance-related tips out there that are very valuable, but two of the big ones are to make sure you get an oil change and put air in your tires. An oil change is important because used oil can be damaging if left to sit for an extended period of time. Adding air to the tires — more than you’d normally add for everyday driving — will help mitigate some of the flattening that will inevitably occur during storage.
4. Now you want to do what’s in your power to deter animals from making a home in your stored vehicle. We mentioned getting anything desirable to them cleared out, but your efforts should also extend beyond that. Cover up openings like the exhaust pipe (make sure to clear it back out in spring, though!), and try dryer sheets or mothballs (if you’re willing to put up with the smell), which are supposed to drive them away.
