Storage?????

Need to store my 1980 308 for about 70 days... It is running beautifully and I'd like to be sure it fires up like a dream when I can crank her up again. She'll be covered and garaged and I have a battery tender. Any other suggestions on how to keep her in top shape?

I know these horseys love to run!!!!

Included a picture for your drooling pleasure.

J
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Beautiful!!!
Fill the tanks to the brim, and add a fuel stabilizer of your choice.

Upon restarting, drive as far and as long as you possibly can, and refill with new fuel.

That's your exposure in storage IMO, but really 70 days is hardly cause for worry.

Change the oil as a precaution after running the treated fuel thru....if you want.
Oil should be changed twice a year regardless of mileage.....Royal Purple!!!

 

Thanks for the tip!

Just did oil and all fluids.

Where do you find the Royal Purple oil?

 

O'Reillys now stocks it, and ironically my local FORD dealer up the street sees me pull into the Parts Department in the 308GTB...LOL!

Their HQ is in Porter Texas, just north of Houston.

If I go out there my sponsorship with them has them fill my trunk and toss in some ball caps.

It IS a good product though and they make a coolant treatment (Purple Ice) that is excellent for corrosion protection in aluminum block motors with steel components.

 

It's a pure synthetic similar to Mobile 1 in many ways....maybe better??

 

Is this unattended storage? If so, I would disconnect the battery and forget about a battery tender. I leave my 328 with disconnected batt in unattended storage every year from 4-7 months. I connect the batt and it starts instantly.

Unattended batt chargers of the trickle/smart variety have destroyed several batteries of mine. I do not trust them at all. If it's in your home's garage, then it's no big deal since you can check them occasionally to be sure they aren't causing a problem. Otherwise, I recommend you don't use one.

 

For a 70 day period, you really don't need to do much of anything, other than top up the fuel tank to prevent condensation building up in there. Either put the battery tender on or disconnect the battery, cover her up and forget about it until you're ready to go. IMHO, oil change, fuel stabilizer, etc. is all overkill for a two month lay-up. Yeah, do it if you want or if you're ready for an oil change anyway.

Six month lay-up, different story. Then you need to put in some fuel stabilizer when you top up the tank, run it a little bit to be sure the stabilizer is through the entire fuel system, and put in fresh oil, etc. But a short lay-up of a month or two, no biggie, IMHO. YMMV, but that's what I do, and I've owned a lot of vintage cars and done it this way, never had a problem.

 

Oh, and you might want to check your tire pressure. I put mine at 32 all around when I leave the car sitting. In two or three months, the tires won't take a set, though they may run just a little rough the first couple of miles until they warm up when you take it out of hibernation.

 

Reminder that batterys will self discharge with time and temperature. All batterys. Chargers of good quality that charge to the batterys proper level then stop and then retop the charge over time (battery tending) are excellent for long term. 70 days is not long term but the battery will lose some charge for the above mentioned reason as well as parasitic discharge from the electrical components in the car (clock etc.) hence the suggestion to disconnect the battery is right on. A trickle charger will just continue to charge then over charge thus destroying a battery (also mentioned above) but at a slower rate then a regular charger. Today's gas with ethanol requires as BigTex recommended a fuel stabilizer and a dry gas additive to keep the volitales in solution and the conversion of water out.

 

Robert -- good point on the ethanol. Putting in the stabilizer and dry gas certainly won't hurt anything, and might avoid a problem down the road.

 

Just love the Jag avatar, brings back very fond memorys.

 

FWIW re full fuel tanks/condensation...

In the marine world storage /winterization is a big deal. Studies have indicated that condensation is pretty much a non issue Here's a pertinent read by a very prominent Marine surveyor on the subject. Read and form your own opinion - Personally, I haven't worried about it for many years.:
http://www.yachtsurvey.com/myth_of_condensation_in_fuel_tanks.htm

 

This is crazieness. Why do all this stuff that you wouldn't do were you home for those same 70 days and the car sat in the garage?

 

Working on your button post.

 

For winter motorcycle storage I put the batteries on trickle chargers and plug the chargers into a wall timer that turns them on for about 1.5 hours a day. I'd go for even less, but the cheapo chargers tabs don't get closer together than that. Probably 15 miutes would be fine.

 

I heard from a hillbilly that if you put bananas in the tailpipes it will keep the moisture out....

 

Many boat winterizers plug the exhaust outlets and intakes to reduce moisture in the combustion chambers. They don't use bananas but plugging the exhaust is a reasonably common procedure.

I agree with some of the folks here - for 70 days of "storage," I'd do nothing at all.

 

hee hee

 

- Ctek battery charger (have been shown to be the best), I have very good luck with these
- add fuel stabilizer and drive car afterwards to be sure it mixes in and runs through the engine
- change fluids prior to storage (oil has acid in it), no need to change fluids when it comes out.
- pump tires to maximum on sidewall (40 lbs?)
- make sure car is clean and dry ( do not want to have contaminants on the paint or moisture trapped while in storage
- good time to put some leather conditioner on
- unless you will turn the engine over at least once a week, best not to run. If you do run, make sure oil gets to operating temperature
- if you can, roll the car a few inches each week to help protect the tires (not critical)
- moisture and rodents are the enemy.

 

Having lived in WV for a time I can qualify as a "hillbilly" and the reason we put stuff up the tail pipe was to keep critters from making nests (never heard the banana one, seems counter productive). Also, the WV variety of mice,rabbit and other rodents seem to love wiring harness plastic and rubber. Down right consider wiring insulation the filet minon. A friend had to replace the wiring harness on his Honda Fit. Eaten! And he kept the car in a barn.

 

So if you were going to write a barn storage prep instructions guide, step one MIGHT be:

1. install banana in tail pipe

Or, to upgrade that "procedure", try

1. remove banana from tail pipe
2. install cat in barn

 

So, you lived on a farm? But are you a "hillbilly"?

 

70 days (assumedly inside) is not a big deal. I'd wash it, fill the gas tanks and disconnect the ground on the battery. In a cold climate unheated garage, I'd take the battery inside. Upon return, I'd pull the fuel pump relay and crank the engine until the oil pressure came up. Then fire her up.

 

For this period on my car I'd only throw the battery switch to kill the system if I remembered, but I never forget to fill the moat. Critters like wiring, but they frequently won't swim to get to it

I've had other cars sit for 6 months at a shot and I fire them up and roll. My motorcycle once sat for close to a year. I hadn't intended to store it that long but it happened. It barely started (due to battery) when I got to it so I took it for a 100 mile ride. That was several years ago, no harm no foul. The one thing I do keep in mind when shutting down a car for that long is no short trips before. I'd probably take it on a nice long trip through the country and put it away hot. The car will be well lubricated with the least amount of moisture in the oil as possible.

 

Ah Ha! I think someone understands.

For those that need visual reference....
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