LAYING UP ESSENTIAL STORAGE ADVISE

LAYING UP YOUR CAT

Most classic & performance car owners put their pride and joy into hibernation for the winter months. Sometimes cars are stored for much longer, for a variety of reasons.

Once the leaves start falling off the trees and the frost arrives, it is hard to get enthusiastic about taking a few precautions to ensure your vehicle will be ready to hit the road in the Spring. Bitter experience has proved that failure to take precautions can have very costly consequences! There are a number of sites offering laying up advice, but there are a few Jaguar specific precautions to consider.

GENERAL PRECAUTIONS

ANTIFREEZE Make sure adequate antifreeze protection is taken. Most antifreeze deteriorates with time and most needs changing every two years. It may also have been diluted if leaks or work has been carried out on any part of the cooling system. If in any doubt, drain and refill with the manufacturers recommended type and concentration. It is also worth noting that the correct antifreeze protects the engine against corrosion that could destroy the head or block!

BRAKES The handbrake should always be left in the fully off position. This will help to prevent seized brakes when taking it out of storage. The same applies to trailers etc. Obviously care needs to be taken that the car will not roll.

TYRES The best solution is to put the car on axle stands to avoid damage to the tyres. Also taking the wheels off the car and storing somewhere cool and dry will further protect them plus it will also make theft of the car more difficult!

BATTERY If you just leave the battery connected, it will almost certainly be deeply discharged after a few months, or sometimes much sooner. Even with everything turned off, most car batteries have various circuits still connected that draw current, such as Alarms, Trackers and Imobilisers. The battery either needs disconnecting, that may cause issues with security, radio codes and also some ECU's. Make sure you understand what will be affected by disconnecting the battery and what action you will need to take to restore everything when reconnecting it.

The other alternative is to trickle charge the battery with a good quality charger designed for this purpose, or a Solar Panel. The advantage of Solar is that it is totally independent of mains supply. Either way the small investment will ensure your battery is fully charged and security remains operational. A deeply discharged battery will either suffer permanent deterioration leading to reliability issues or need immediate expensive replacement.

ENGINE COMPARTMENT Old engine oil contains contaminants that could cause deterioration of components over time, therefore an oil and filter change would be a good idea.

The windscreen washer bottle should be emptied to avoid freezing, or water/screen wash going stale. Apart from anything else this can really smell bad!!!

BODYWORK Make sure the car is clean and polished to avoid staining and dispelling moisture. Chrome etc. should have some kind of water dispelling product applied to them. Some people recommend Waxoil , others WD40 (both messy). I have used silicon polish. I would not however recommend this on paintwork as it can make future body repairs very difficult.

If the car is in a dry garage a dust cover may help to protect the paint, but avoid any materials that may trap moisture between the cover and paint surface. Covers and tarpaulins etc. can cause damage to vehicles in a number of ways. I bought an XJS once that had deep paint damage all over due to a flapping tarpaulin that had been on the car for some time (outside)!

INTERIOR Make sure the interior is clean and dry before laying up. Treat leather with a good quality product. Make sure carpets and underlay are dry (including boot).

LONGER TERM STORAGE Brake calipers tend to stick or seize after prolonged storage. This is made worse if the seals, dust covers and pistons have deteriorated prior to laying up. Moisture gets past the dust covers and the chrome on the piston lifts and rusts. After time with no movement, total seizure can occur. This may be avoided by using the car (brakes) periodically, but the real answer is to overhaul any calipers that are sticking or show any signs of deterioration of the seals or plating on the pistons. Obviously any signs of fluid leaking needs immediate attention before the car is driven on the road! It is worth noting that inboard rear brake calipers and handbrake calipers are very difficult to work on or remove!

Lubricate all locks, hinges etc.

It may also be worth releasing tension on drive belts before laying up, but NOT CAMBELT.

OUTSIDE STORAGE (or damp garage) All of the above obviously applies, but additional care is needed to avoid water ingress.

Many Jaguars have recessed petrol filler compartments that can and often do fill up with water! This is due to dirt and debris collecting in the drain tube or filter. Despite the rubber seal on filler cap the water invariably finds its way into the tank! The amount of damage this can cause could easily render the car a write off! Recently we have had to change both tanks, senders, fuel pump, valves, filter, injectors, pressure regulator and most fuel pipes due to blocked filler drain tubes! The car was stored in a damp garage! This problem of course can affect any car with this type of filler, whether laid up or not!

Another common cause of water ingress on many Jaguars is blocked drain tubes on the recess under the wiper motor assembly. This recess also provides external air for ventilation etc. If the water level exceeds a certain depth, the blower assemblies and footwell fill with water!

Poorly sealed windows, doors and boot lids also commonly cause water ingress, and as with most cars the problem is much worse on Convertibles.

RECOMMISIONING

Careful inspection of all safety areas is essential, including: Make sure the brake fluid level is correct and that the pedal feels firm. Then check that all wheels rotate freely i.e. brakes are not binding.

It may be worth removing spark plugs and inhibiting the ignition whilst initially turning the engine after lay up. This will make it easier for the starter to turn and will make sure the oil pressure comes up before the engine roars into life!

Run the engine until its up to normal temperature whilst checking all the time for unusual noises or leaks.

Check all the lights and that all the gauges and warning lights are in their normal mode.

Remember to re-tension drive belts, check all fluids & tyre pressures etc before taking the car for a very cautious test drive. Try the brakes several times before slowly taking it onto the road.

Any suggestions to add to the above would be appreciated!

Essential Precautions for Classic Car Winter Storage

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