Long term storage.

[Tonifyd]

Hi guys.
Unfortunately I'm gonna have to store the M for a few months.
I read up on some long term storage threads, but there were a lot of differing opinions. Could u guys be kind enough to provide a detailed list of what needs to be done?

I was also thinking of getting one of these instead of just a cover. The garage that I'm about to store it in has a lot of ants and spiders.

Oh and BTW the car only has about 3700 miles, driven for about 5 months.

[Ridonculous]

You should clean and get the car detailed first before storage. I'm not a big fan of covers unless it's really for long term storage where you won't be touching the car - covers can add scratches to the paint when put on and taken off. I've never seen the kit you posted, but that looks like the car will be air sealed with nothing touching the paint. Looks like a good solution. How much does one of those cost?

[Envious Eric]

I went to vegas and the guy had that around his lambo countach! pretty legit, but pricey, especially for an M-car (lambo is 4 times the price of your car).

I would detailing the M, throw on a few coats of a sealant, then cover it up with a snug fit car cover. If you get one that is loose, it will flop around. One of my clients has a Aston Martin DBS and his cover is really tight, yet super soft and made out of microfiber. That thing is legit!

[disapr]

You should look for a place like this

http://blog.driversource.com/storage


If you can't find one or want to pay for it then the capsule could work. Most of those capsules require a consistent power supply so I'd be concerned about the capsule losing power, deflating, and the plastic getting hot and sticky against the paint.

California Car Covers makes some very soft and protective indoor covers that are worth looking into if you can store the car in a dry/sealed environment.

[Tonifyd]

The reason I was going to get the capsule was because the garage I'm
storing it in, although dry, has millions of ants and spiders. I've heard some horror stories from people that had ant farms in their cars so I'm trying to avoid that. Is there any other car cover that encloses the car completely? A ginormous ziplock bag would be awesome. Lol.

[disapr]

How about you cover it with a California Car Cover 'DUSTOP' Cover and then zip it into a CarBag http://www.carbag.com/support/jacket_technology.html

I used a DUSTOP cover on my old black Camaro and as long as the car is super clean it will not scratch! Just clean, cover, zip and leave it alone and you'll be fine.

Don't forget to deal with your battery and possibly your fuel.

[Tonifyd]

damn.. just looked at the prices.
If I get a california car cover and the carbag, it's gonna be roughly the same if not more than the bubble! jesus!

[Tonifyd]

What if I were to just get the car bag?
If I wash the car right before, and won't touch it till it comes off, and since it's gonna be in the garage where there's no wind, isn't that somewhat ok?

[disapr]

The bag will be abrasive against your paint if it moves for any reason e.g. wind or even enclosing the car. It would be best to cover the car and then seal it in the bag.

I stored a car in an outside (enclosed) storage unit and I had rat poo under the hood and in very odd places. If I were to do it again I'd probably get one of these bags and I already have the cover.

[Envious Eric]

oh, and I forgot to mention, if you want me to keep the fluids running through the lines, you can store it at my place....I'll drive it around for you and of course Ill go ahead and hook it up with a detail as well! Deal?

[Tonifyd]

Originally Posted by Envious Eric

oh, and I forgot to mention, if you want me to keep the fluids running through the lines, you can store it at my place....I'll drive it around for you and of course Ill go ahead and hook it up with a detail as well! Deal?

I'd love to do that, but unfortunately the leave is indefinite; it could be from 3 months to even over a year. Also it might just end up getting sold and I don't have cash to pay for anything up front.. sigh.. sorry.

[Tonifyd]

Originally Posted by disapr

The bag will be abrasive against your paint if it moves for any reason e.g. wind or even enclosing the car. It would be best to cover the car and then seal it in the bag.

I stored a car in an outside (enclosed) storage unit and I had rat poo under the hood and in very odd places. If I were to do it again I'd probably get one of these bags and I already have the cover.

Good point. both it is...

[Tonifyd]

I suppose the battery tender/trickle charge thing has to be attached when it's in the car? How much do those cost?

[roy@acuteperformance]

Originally Posted by Tonifyd

I suppose the battery tender/trickle charge thing has to be attached when it's in the car? How much do those cost?

Those are cheap. You can just buy one from habor freight. They run like $10.

[SchnellM3]

Originally Posted by roy@acuteperformance

Those are cheap. You can just buy one from habor freight. They run like $10.

Watch which ones you get if you go to harbor freight, I got one for my bike when I put the other charger on the Super Duty and it turned out that the battery needed to be fully charged as it was just a float maintainer. No big deal for me since the bike was charged but just a heads up.

Make sure you run the tank of fuel down get fresh gas and add stabilizer while at the station and let it run through the system. Also fill up the tires to max pressure to avoid flat spotting or jacks if it could be a year....