The bad news, my car is going to be in storage this whole summer until September because I'm deployed out here in Iraq.

The good news I saved money on my car insurance! (Really I did!)

My car has been is in a 10x15 garage at a local, and highly secure, public storage place for about two months. Before I took off, I read the manual and the long term storage notes it has.

I took her to the dealership for the 30k mile tune up, put fuel stabilizer, enough for one years worth of storage, opened the windows a little, unplugged the battery, left her in neutral with no e-brake up, and kissed her good bye.

I couldn't afford jacks to keep the tires off the ground so I guess when I come back I'll have horrible flat spots and maybe flat tires. I also couldn't afford to get a car cover, but I thought "If it's in a room with no windows or cracks how is dust gonna get on it?"

Well, since this is my first "brand new" car I'm starting to worry. Should I have drained the all fluids? Should I have left the windows closed? Should there be a car cover on it? When I get back will I have to buy new tires and/or replace all the fluids?

I know when I start her up I'll have to input a radio code. Any other precautions I need to take before the first start up?

Last and final question: I noticed a good amount of water inside my trunk underneath where the car jack sits before I left, will it rust up my trunk over time?

Thanks for taking the time to read my worries and questions. I just don't want to come back to a car, after a stressful deployment, and have problems with it.

 

First off all, there is no need to worry about it...your baby is fine sitting there I just pulled mine out of storage w/o a single problem. My guess is your tires will be within 2 psi of where they were when you parked the car. Not having a cover is no big deal since its indoors...dust won't hurt it, just give it a bath. Leaving the windows open a crack is a good idea, it keeps things from getting too musty. That water in your trunk is a bit odd though. Did you dry it out with a towel before leaving? When you go to start the car, just hook the battery back up (it'll probably be dead/weak so bring a charger, jump-pack, or some jumper cables) and hit the start button. Get some fresh oil in there as soon as possible too. Did you get it changed right before parking it?

 

Hope you filled the gas tank when you put in the stabilizer. A full tank keeps out condensation and rust. Unplugging the battery was a good move. A better move would have been to leave the battery on a tender at home. You'll probably have to jump start it when you get back. Leaving the e-brake off is another good move, but I hoped you blocked the wheels so it won't roll. I would have left it in gear.

Leaving the car on the ground is fine. If you do have flat spots, they will work themselves out as you drive it. Not covering it is not a problem.

You did fine. It's best to change the oil before you store it. (That should have been covered by the 30k service.) If the oil wasn't changed before storage, I would change it when you get back. Tires and other fluids will be fine.

Just make sure the battery has a full charge on it and the oil is full.

Yes. I hope you dried it out well before you left. Assuming the paint in that area is good you should be OK. You'll want to find the leak and repair it when you get back. Fortunately it is stored inside, so any water in it has probably dried by now and none is getting in while it's stored.

Check the air pressure in the tires before you drive it as it will probably be low.

Next time, a couple of boxes of Decon in the garage would be a good idea to fend off small critters. If there is no food supply in the garage and it is a newer tight building you should be fine.

Keep up the good work in Iraq

Hoping for a safe return.

 

anthon_E: Stay cool and keep up the great work in Iraq. Do your day dreaming about your S in bed so you not distracted on the job. It seems to me that you've got better things to worry about. Thank you for your service to your country and to the people of Irag. Maybe your work will help to adjust gast prices to pre-war numbers. In the meantime, think how much money you'll be saving by having Uncle Sam buy your fuel.

Stay Safe and Thank You Again

 

Thanks for the motivation!

Also, thanks for the replies. Yes, the storage place seems fairly new, the place is VERY clean, so I don't think rodents will get in. Gas tank is full btw.

As for the water in the trunk... I think water got in somehow when it rained or after I washed my car due to me not closing the trunk properly. I noticed a moldy smell in my trunk (January), thinking it was my nasty running shoes. A month later when I cleaned out my trunk, before it was stored, I noticed the jack and tire iron were wet/damp. I then lifted the jack set out and there was about 1/4 in, maybe less, of water in there! I don't know if it evaporized already or if it will. I was hoping it would since that morning that I cleaned the car I HAD to put it in storage a.s.a.p. or I would miss my ride back to base. (So no, I didn't dry it out due to poor time managment, *cough* hangover *cough*)

I'm just hoping it wont rust on me and I'll have a huge hole in my trunk. The paint in the trunk should be good to hold against the water in there, and the carpeting should also help by absorbing most of it. I can also imagine the moldy smell, if any, when I get back!

Thanks again! I can now stop worrying about my cars condition and think about what kind of mods I can get!

 

BTW, it's pretty calm out here in Iraq. My unit (1st Battalion 5th Marines) is out here supporting the Army (1/9). The first two weeks were pretty hectic, mortared every day, but now it's calmed down. This isn't a full blown war like OIF I (I've heard stories/comparisons of OIF I & II to now OIF III, this is my first deployment), so I've got time to think about home so that it isn't distracting.

 

I did the "fill the tank and put stabilizer in" and "unplug the battery" before my winter storage of about 6 or 7 months. And that's all I did. I started her for the first time since then last week and she fired up on the first partial crank. Not one problem and you shouldn't worry either.