Winter car cover

[Beev]

I did a search and didn't find anything specifically about this...

My girlfriends car is rarely used these days, and with winter coming, she wants to get a car cover to keep snow and ice off. What's the "best" brand of cover? Basically the car will be sitting in the same place for the entire season.

 

[LTC8K6]

Well, you certainly don't want the car sitting outside for the entire season. Not without a lot of prep. You will need to drive it now and then.

 

[Beev]

Well, you certainly don't want the car sitting outside for the entire season. Not without a lot of prep. You will need to drive it now and then.

Why? I'm fairly ignorant about cars in general.

 

[JCH13]

Off the top of my head...

-Fuel stabilizer, otherwise it will go bad after 60 days or so
-Cylinder/top end lube to keep surface rust from developing inside the engine
-Pull out battery and/or put a tender on it to keep it from self-discharging too low
-Rodent-proof it, i.e. mothballs or traps or something to keep rodents from making it their home if that's a concern in your area
-Put on junk tires or roll the car around periodically to keep the tires from flatting (doesn't always happen, but can)

 

[LTC8K6]

You need to either prep it for long term inactivity, or plan to drive it a good distance at least once a month.

If you plan to drive it once a month, then have some plan to keep the battery charged, or plan ahead by hooking a charger up to it the day before you intend to drive it.

Your best bet is to get a good cover, and plan on driving it once a month, imo. You can work the drives in during good weather days, it doesn't have to be exactly once a month. You need to do more than start it and run it around the block when you drive it. You want to get the all the fluids up to normal temps. Say a 20 minute drive with some highway time.