Winter Preparation

[Copperman05]

How do you do yours?

My car gets used year round so I try to take precautionary steps to reduce deterioration over the winter months. Beyond the obvious waxing of wing bottoms and sills how do you prepare your car? And I don't mean leaving it in a garage for 6 months...[]


Edd

 

[Hairyarse]

I tend not to drive it in the snow []

 

[Hairyarse]

.....sorry couldn't resist that although tbh I don't do much more than drive it and put a cover over it when not. I replaced all wish bones and ball joints on my old square dash and was surprised after only one winter how rusty they looked. I guess making sure the underside is clean and well undersealed is a good start and maybe the occasional hosing down of the underside if you've been driving on our salty, winter roads

 

[Frenchy]

Edd, get some anti corrosion wax sprayed on underneath on the the vunerables, Biltnammer seems to get a good reveiw, a good coating of quality wax on the body,wash the car on a regular when they are sling it on the roads, and if you see agritter lorry coming your way try to shoot off down a side street []

 

[zcacogp]

ORIGINAL: Frenchy
... if you see agritter lorry coming your way try to shoot off down a side street []

Yeah, that's a nice cheap way to get your car chipped. Only not not in the usual sense of the word ... []


Oli.

 

[T3rra]

I had a grittier lorry smash my drivers side window. Copper grease over everything, nut and bolt wise,

 

[david924s]

My S2 is my daily driver and although I try not to use it in deep snow if I can help it, it does get used all year round.

My Winter prep is to:
change the washer water for winter screen wash
check my coolant/antifreeze
clean rotor arm and distributor cap and leads and spray with WD40 (leads not inside cap)
clean/replace spark plugs
check my battery connections and contacts are clean and vaseline battery contacts
lube all the locks with WD40
lube the bonnet release and all headlight and wiper linkages with motorcycle chain lube
check my lights and wiper blades and replace wipers if worn
apply light coat of vaseline onto door seals to prevent freezing shut and snapping door handle

That's about it I don't bother about greasing up bolts or waxoiling the underside, I just make sure I wash it top and bottom regularly using a caravan gutter cleaning adaptor for my Karcher (like a 90deg bend fixed hose) to wash of salt and road filth.

 

[J4CKO]

I have bought a new dust pan and brush to sweep mine up off the drive in the spring.

 

[zcacogp]

ORIGINAL: J4CKO

I have bought a new dust pan and brush to sweep mine up off the drive in the spring.

http://www.bilthamber.com/cavity-waxes/dynax-s50

[]

 

[Hilux]

That's about it I don't bother about greasing up bolts or waxoiling the underside, I just make sure I wash it top and bottom regularly using a caravan gutter cleaning adaptor for my Karcher (like a 90deg bend fixed hose) to wash of salt and road filth.

That is absolutely key.

My old 1992 Landcruiser was sold still with the factory paint intact on all the chassis and suspension members with no component rust and only minor surface rust where paint was chipped off.

I used to religiously jet wash it underneath during the winter (2 or 3 times) to remove the deposits including loosening any wheel arch liners/deflectors to flush behind them - it really is the only way.