yankees

All,

How can I store my car outdoors for the winter in New England weather? No funds for a tent either.

I need to be able to keep out mice and other rodents as well as keep the car dry and prohibit rust.

Do they make water/snow proof covers? Unfortunately I don't have a garage and indoor storage is costly.


Anyone else in the same situation?

frankr442

Top of my head I can only suggest two things. Dryer sheets (such as "Bounce") on the floor, in the trunk and under the hood, to keep mice away, and park on a solid surface, such as concrete or asphalt, to minimize moisture getting underneath. I have to park my parts cars and daily drivers on dirt and grass. The constant dampness and resulting rust is unbelievable. Can't pave my own driveway, some BS about water runoff. Thank you town bylaws, hope they choke on my tax payment. Sorry for the rant, good luck.

jfb

hey buddie here is a suggestion that will cost about 40 to 50 bucks total. 1. there is a large silver grey cover by harbor freight usually on sale for about 35 to 40 bucks 21 by 34 i believe but there outdoor garage size check its size for pricing. 2. the car should be on the driveway with fencing around it and tie it down with overlap with the cover also under it and go from there poof 1 cheap shelter. 3 this works and it has overhang for the underneath of it. do not forget good rope to tie with.

oldcutlass

All above are good suggestions, I don't know how to keep rodents out. Seems whatever you do they may get in there. I will add, try and start it once a month and drive it to full operating temp. Also add a good fuel stabilizer to the tank.

RetroRanger

I use a product called damp rid to minimise the moisture in the car a couple bags in the interior and one in the trunk, I usually end up changing them about mid winter or whenever there is a lot of moisture in the collector.

As mentioned above park on asphalt or concrete if you can, if you cant use thick plastic to park on to keep the moisture away from the under side of the car, dont use a 'blue' tarp as they are woven and they will let moisture thru. If you park on dirt try to put something like plywood under each tire to keep them from sinking in the dirt and freezing into the dirt

the 12x20 portable garages are only ~$350 at aubuchon or tractor supply if you pick up theres no shipping charges if you use one see above to keep down moisture

Mice are another thing, last year I used bounce everywhere in my shed and still got 'some' mouse activity around my bikes. This year its no mercy I spread several of the kill bait in the area and no surprise I have several confirmed kills they sell electronic mouse traps ~$25 and up but you need to check them daily and reviews vary

If you spray any exposed metal w WD40 it helps prevent corrosion from starting while the machine is in storage and its thin enough that it can be cleaned away easily after its out of storage.

In my area (west of boston) its about $75 / month for dry secure rodent controlled storage

I dont have much experience w covers, I have one I got at Walmart that fits nice but I only use it in the garage to keep the dust and BS off it

yeah OC has a good point fill the tank and use stabilizer at 2x the reccomended amount

yankees

I have a covercraft cover and I dislike not having a garage. I think I'm going to fork over the 100 a month from November until April. It's my wife's grandmother's garage kept Cutlass and it would kill me to see it rusted up. Mice another story... I put 3 boxes of moth ***** in the car last year and didn't have any problems. 1 in the engine compartment, 1 in the cabin and 1 in the trunk. I just put mothballs in the shed just over a month ago and sure enough the mice appear to be controlled, but it stinks beyond belief.

ELY442

Take a look into this site. www.carbag.com