Some car storage tips

Dos and donts

• Increase your tyre pressures: putting 40psi into your tyres will reduce flat spots.
• Leave plenty of fresh fuel in the fuel tank, at least a third of a tank
• Don’t short run when exercising your car.
• Always run your engine up to normal operating temperature outside on a dry day: At least 20 minutes of run time should do this.
• While doing this keep a fast idle of about 2000rpm and give the braking system light use. Operate the handbrake several times and test the essential electrical systems on your vehicle.
• If you have a working air conditioning system then run it all the time your engine is running as the seals can dry out and leak when they are not in use.
• Not a hard and fast rule but light exercise like this is recommended once a month.
• Putting a cover on your car will keep it clean but never put a cover on a hot car or a dirty car. Either could do damage to the paintwork.
• Airflow covers are the best if a little expensive but they usually come with very good trickle chargers which offsets their extra cost. Airflow covers with a stand alone framework give you the best protection as the cover will never touch your car so there is no danger of the smallest foreign body scratching your paintwork.
• Your battery should be on trickle charge. Experience has taught me that the battery is best disconnected from the vehicle so that there is no chance of a power supply problem causing a flat battery.