Your classic and winter weather

Storage checks

Few want to put their car into enforced storage – it’s rarely what a car is purchased for. Occasionally models are bought as an investment, but most drivers want to drive their vehicles. So it can be with a heavy heart that many classics get tucked up into an automotive version of hibernation – even if it is a necessary decision.

With the colder weather comes large amounts of grime on the road. The mud is the least of concerns, despite the visual effect it has on your classic’s bodywork. Think instead of the salt that is spread to keep roads open in icy weather.

Ensure that your classic is washed soon after driving it in conditions that may have included salt on the surface, to help prevent the effect it has on metalwork underneath. It also makes sense to clean inside too; ensuring that it is clean and tidy means that it is able to be driven as soon as the weather turns, but more importantly, means any wildlife is unlikely to come hunting for an errant bit of food.

If possible, put the car in a carcoon or similar, to help keep everything out that shouldn’t be there during storage. If not, it’s effectively essential to keep a car under cover, in a dry environment, and even a tarp or car cover inside can help matters. If ultimately impossible, make sure the car is covered well as it stands outside. Basically, keep bird poo and bugs off the surfaces.

Before covering it, ensure that the car is dry, especially if it has been washed recently. Letting it stand will help, but the more you can do with a micro-fibre cloth, getting any moisture out of places like door handles and sills, rubber seals, and the like. Also, a good clean and polish of the leather (where applicable) will help keep it supple and strong over the winter.

It sounds simple, but a thorough and careful clean, with plenty of elbow grease, will be rewarded ten-fold when the weather clears and you can get the car out of storage.

Maintain maintenance

There are a few mechanical considerations to put into place too, for stress-free storage. Ideally, jack the car up and put it on axle stands, to keep the weight off the suspension and bearings when sitting idle and not being used, as well as helping protect the tyres. Keep these inflated, especially if your car is prone to a slow puncture or two. As well as protecting tyres and other elements, this is an ideal opportunity to take a good look at the condition of the brakes, shoes, and a myriad other elements that are normally tucked away in a tricky to view place.

Make sure that everything that is supposed to move – from bearings to door locks – are lubricated where possible, to ensure that there are no surprises in a few months’ time. Another benefit of putting the car on stands is that it removes the requirement to put the brakes on. Putting the handbrake on for a long amount of time can cause it to seize, so even if you can’t put it up, use chocks and leave it in gear to keep it from rolling away.

Similar things can be said about the windscreen wipers – pull them away from the glass to ensure the rubber is good, and doesn’t stick over time – while disconnecting the battery will likely save it from losing all its charge; either that, or put it on a trickle charger to make sure it’s in a good state to use again in spring.

The most contentious issue when storing a car is whether to empty the tank or not. Some advocate filling the tank as much as possible, to prevent air getting in and potentially corroding the tank with the inherent moisture. Others say that it’s best to drain it dry, and then putting fresh fuel in before starting it up again. There is no consensus here, so do whatever you feel best.

Winter trips

Of course, you don’t have to store your classic, and many can be used perfectly well throughout the winter. Naturally, greater care is required than with modern cars, since many developments over the years have dealt with making vehicles safer. As such, a classic’s skinnier tyres will grip less, there will be no ABS for many models let alone traction control, headlights aren’t as bright, the heaters aren’t as efficient, and the steering is likely to be heavier.

But as long as greater care is taken than with most modern cars – which the majority of drivers will simply hop in with barely a second’s thought and drive off in all but the most inclement of weather – then a classic can be an enjoyable set of wheels. If in doubt, leave it at home, but otherwise, enjoy the car in the way it was intended. Afterall, at one stage, it was a modern car, used to tackle winter weather.

In fact, there are often a number of rallies that take place during winter months, to help encourage you to get your classic out of the garage and visit somewhere new.