Run engine

I use a trickle charger and start het once a month and let it idle till the vents of the radiators start. I also pump some extra air in the tires (3 bar).

 

No need to start it at all unless you will be actually getting everything hot.

 

Lots of vacuum when removing the gas cap is normal. Many have said, "don't start the car unless you are going to drive it". Use a trickle charger with a maintenance mode. I use a trickle charger year around; you don't know when you will have time to drive her.

 

Yes there should be vacuum when opening the gas cap according to my mechanic. I found that you should not tighten the cap too much or it can be hard to get off. I found that out the hard way, now I just snug it up.
Mike

 

Do you put any Stabil or fuel additive in it at the beginning of winter?

Define "everything hot."

I obviously have moved to a colder climate here in Nebraska and have no clue about winterizing cars as Portland didn't get very cold and I could drive all year as there was never any salt on the roads.

I've done some thread searching in here and as always I seem to find 8 different opinions. Tim, yours matters as you work on these things and you live in chilly Minneapolis!

 

If possible get those tire pads for long term storage so they don't flat spot. Or set the car up on jack stands. Once you flat spot a set of those expensive tires, you'll learn.

 

......as long as you have more than 12 degrees centigrades in your garage you only have to connect the charger to the battery....the smart ones all the time.......and the old ones maybe once a month or so.

If you store the car in a cold garage you obviously have to do a lot more.........

When the weather is nice, sunny and dry....I start the car and roll her out of the garage and let the engine run idle till the fans start....happens only a few times during winter...

.....and I have the same kind of weather conditions as you since I live the other side of the channel.

All the best and good luck with the car!!!!!

//B//

 

If you insist on starting it, the very minimum for me would be to run it until the fans are cycling on and off. If you are starting from a cold-unheated garage in the dead of Winter, you will probably do more harm than just leaving it hibernating til Spring.

Fill the tank, add StaBil, connect a Battery Tender, put a cover on, leave it alone.

Critters trying to build a nest in the car are another possible problem. Moth Balls or Bounce dryer sheets are popular repellents (not crazy about having my car smell like paradichlorobenzene). The air cleaners (among other places) make a cozy home for mice. Of course the big risk is chewing. A cat or two might keep the rodents under control (works for me) and give you someone to talk to about not being able to drive the car for several months.