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With winter quickly approaching, us poor sods living in the Midwest can look forward to some COLD weather, which puts a damper on convertible driving.
My questions concern the possible 3 to 4 month cruising hiatus.
1) Should I disconnect the battery? Does doing so save any charge or just something to remember come spring?
2) Should I add a fuel preservative, i.e StaBil etc. or is modern gas stable enough for sitting that long? My mom always added it to the fuel for her boat motor over the winter before storing it.
3) Should I jack the car up and put it on stands to prevent flat spots on the tires and bearings or do flat spots only show up over longer periods of time.
4) I’m storing it in a private garage not on my property, but out in the country. Should I put moth balls or deodorant soap around it to deter critters (mice) from moving in? They get in to farm equipment being stored and TEAR THEM UP!:x I’ve heard mice don’t like unnatural smells and avoid areas that are too “human”.
Any other ideas would be GREAT!
Thanks to EVERYONE!
Amor Conquista Todo
1. Disconnect the battery? A good idea.
2. Fuel preservative? I highly recommend draining the tank and use that gas in your car. Then run the TDr until it stops, insuring that there is no more gas in the carburetor or the lines.
3. Jack up off tires? Can’t hurt. Especially if you have bias ply tires. Bearings are of no concern.
4. Mice? Consider taking the seats out. Store them in your spare bedroom. How to protect the rest of the upholstery? I don’t know—I’ve had mothballs fail.
I can’t really disagree with Roy.
But…since 1982, I’ve ignored some of the shared wisdom and followed a different routine:
1. Kept the car on a Battery Tender. (Actually, it’s always on the tender. Unit is bolted to tunnel under my seat. When I get home, I plug her in.)
2. Add Sta-Bil, then fill the tank as far as possible and drive home (this helps mix the Sta-Bil and gets the mixture into the carbs.
3. Sits on her tires 24/7, 365 days a year.
4. Lives in my attached garage now, so mice are no longer a problem. The car used to live in an outside shed. I never successfully kept all the mice out. Moth balls. Dryer sheets. You name it, I googled it and tried it. Thankfully, I’ve never had any permanent damage. Some carpet chewed in a corner of the trunk and some seat foam chewed where it makes no difference. Just lucky I guess.
Paul Mossberg
Former Owner of a 1981 Classic Roadsters Ltd. Duchess (VW)
2005 Intermeccanica RoadsterIf you own a TDr and are not in the Registry, please go to https://tdreplica.com/forums/topic/mg-td-replica-registry/ and register (you need to copy and paste the link)
2x on battery tender if it is possible.
If not, maybe take the battery home w/ you and trickle-charge it there.I’ve had good luck with Stabil in a near-full tank over the winter.Never jacked the car for the winter. I would push it back and forth a foot or so once or twice in the off season. In my case this has happened naturally as I needed to get something past the car in the garage. But I’d not worry about the tires.Mice? At our house they come in the kitchen. About once every other year we get one or two. I’ve yet to see any evidence of them in the garage. Like Paul: just lucky so far.Start it 2 times a month if you don’t drain tank . Something I do I buy low watt light bulbs and clip on lamps one on front bumper pointing back one on back pointing forward use a car cover all the way to the floor . We had -20 degree day car stayed above freezing .( My garage is insolated )
Never tried it myself, but I had a guy that had built a lot of hot rods tell me he used peppermint extract to keep mice out of carpets,etc. Not sure if he put the drops of extract on the carpets or on a rag and then put the rag(s) where he wanted them. Guess the mice don’t like the smell of peppermint.
Sam
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