winter blues

Fill the gas tank to reduce condensation; add fuel stabilizer and run the engine for a few minutes to get the stabilizer through the fuel system; pump up the tires to keep the sidewalls from cracking and prevent flat spots; wash and wax the car; maybe rodent repellent inside or underneath; put a cover on.

Drink beer for the next few months, and resist going out to your garage and starting the car once in a while, while sitting in it pretending it is summer.

Those are the basics from my perspective.

The gas stabilizer is really important AND running your car for 5-10 minutes after addig it gets it into the carbs to protect them.  I use "Star Tron" but "Sta-Bil" for Marine use works well, too (it's gray).  Add it at the gas station and then drive home and you'll be all set.   Decide at home if you need to top off the tank - you really want it full.  It's great for all your yard equipment, too.  

Go to Walmart or Autozone etc. and get a "Battery Tender".  About $20 - $60 bucks and it trickle charges your battery all winter.  One amp or so is fine - Hook it up and walk away. 

You could change the oil before storage, while some people change the oil in the spring - you decide.  

Do not put moth balls inside your car.  For one, they don't really work and for two, the car will smell like moth balls in the Spring.  Use Bounce Dryer sheets instead (but I'm not really convinced that they work either).

Do you have a full-car cover?  If not, just throw a blanket or sheet over it to keep the dust off.

Personally, I don't start mine up from time to time during the winter - I just let her sleep until the first run in the Spring.

That's all I can think of in addition to that mentioned above.

Thanks for all your input , will take your advice , and probably move to florida soon , the taxes are killing me and I can drive all year , miss my car already 

Heat the garage. Sorry, nobody wants to hear that, but it's true.

After you get your Baby all tucked away for winter do as Bob says grab a few beers or a couple cocktails an pull a chair up to the computer and get on Speedsterowners.com. It got me threw the summer after a couple surgeries I learned some stuff and it’s definitely entertaining!! 

I set a lot of rodent traps in the garage.  There's nothing worse than the mess that a mouse family will make, especially if they chew on stuff.

I fill a bucket about 1/3 with water, then dangle a bottle cap full of peanut butter over it from a stick the mice can climb from the outside but not the inside.    I check on it every week.   Without heat, it may freeze, though.   In one of my out buildings, I get over a dozen mice each winter.  It's the building with my 4-wheelers, tractor and mower.  I don't want mice making their winter homes inside any of my vehicles.  It also discourages feral cats since they don't have anything to hunt.

I’ve been using this the last couple of years in my car and my equipment at work seems to work and doesn’t smell that bad.

Jethro posted:

I set a lot of rodent traps in the garage.  There's nothing worse than the mess that a mouse family will make, especially if they chew on stuff.

I fill a bucket about 1/3 with water, then dangle a bottle cap full of peanut butter over it from a stick the mice can climb from the outside but not the inside.    I check on it every week.   Without heat, it may freeze, though.   In one of my out buildings, I get over a dozen mice each winter.  It's the building with my 4-wheelers, tractor and mower.  I don't want mice making their winter homes inside any of my vehicles.  It also discourages feral cats since they don't have anything to hunt.

Mix antifreeze in the water and it won’t freeze. It’ll still kill the mice just fine. 

Just make sure that you keep any dogs out of the garage.

Why do you folks insist in living in where it's cold most of the year?

Here in the Deep South we have about 3 weeks of winter. Usually doesn't start until December, but tonight it's supposed to be 20 degrees. Must be that global warming I've hear'd about; by February, it's Spring time. Now we'll have some cold days, but just a few compared to some of ya'll. About 40 years we had some zero weather, but not lately.

Several years ago I had a friend from NY down here in the Test & Balance business. He came in to my office one day and said; "Jim, I'm moving back to NY. I want to do some farming and the farm land down here is just too expensive." Guess he was going to be one of them "Hobby Farmers" when he retired.

Nobody retires to New York. They all come South. You can't find a native born Floridian in Florida. Seems they're mostly from NY & NJ. I've lived lots in Florida. I would discourage you from going there.

I lived in BelAir, MD for a while and really liked the country until one day, during a snow storm, I saw my neighbors shoveling snow. It was snowing so hard that if you held your shovel out it would fill up. Next day I had two feet of ice on my car; it didn't move for a week.

Ya'll might to rethink your living situation.

P.S. It get's real hot and humid down here. You need an A/C in your Speedster, not a heater. I don't have one.

Hmm. So why do I live in NY?

Born here. I'm at the tail end of a good career, and don't plan to stay here permanently. We have family here though, so we'll keep the house if we can.

Looking at western NC, great roads, people, climate. We live in the Hudson Valley with mountains around, so terrain is a must.

After 30 years of working outside, I'm done with NY winter. 

Captain, as Stan said, there is no substitute for a heated garage. I have electric heat in mine, and took the time to insulate. It really makes the meter spin, but it's nice to turn it on and go work in comfort. I always have a project or three to do on the car over the winter.

All good points above: Stabil, fill the tank, dryer sheets, battery tender. I'll add that you can air the tires up to Max pressure, and/or roll the car periodically for flat spot prevention.

Don't start the car and idle. Worst thing to do to it. If you start it, DRIVE it, and get it good and hot before putting it away. Overheating is bad for an aircooled engine, just as well as not warming it all the way up. The engine and oil needs to get HOT enough to burn off impurities and moisture. If it doesn't all that moisture and acid starts to work on the engine internals.

I took mine out yesterday, and topped off the tank and put the Stabil in. Went to see my interior/top guy to see if my top can be modified to fit over the headrest fairing. Not bad with half-tonneau, butt-heaters and Webasto on full blast. Yup, the top can be made to fit. See, there's my winter project.

I tried some stuff a few years ago called Mouse Magic , in which the main ingredient is mint. It seemed to work as we had no mouse damage where it was applied. I guess they hate that.  The stuff was kind of expensive and there was only 4 packets.

The following year we learned about making the packets ourselves.  Just mint oil on a cotton pad, wrapped in aluminum foil with a few holes poked in it lets  it evaporate slowly.  I put them in the cars' frunks , engine compartments, inside and under.  Lucky so far.

The cars smell minty fresh when you uncover 'em, which is way better than moth balls.

Just today I saw an add for a spray mouse repellent , which is also mint based. I might try that as well.    

@Al Gallo When I had hair on my head I used Mouse Magic, and it did wonders with styling my 'fro. Wait a minute...you said Mouse Magic NOT Mousse Magic. 

No wonder my hair fell out!