Parking off road for long periods

Joined
22 May 2015
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Location
Lanarkshire
Country
United Kingdom
Any advice welcome on the pitfalls, especiallymechanically, of Parking my car in a Spanish airport for upto 45 weeks in the year, will this only invite problems with the car not moving for such long periods?

Thanks in advance I look for to you reply
 
Sponsored Links
would it not be cheaper to hire a car
what are the parking charges??
road tax or other annual non millage costs off running a car ??
 
Park it under cover if you can......expect the battery to be low on power, depending if the car has an alarm as well as an immobiliser (some systems flatten the battery after 3 weeks).
Consider a solar panel for keeping the battery charged?
There shouldn't be major issues in a dry climate but you could park with the handbrake off.
John :)
 
Sponsored Links
would it not be cheaper to hire a car
what are the parking charges??
road tax or other annual non millage costs off running a car ??

Thanks for your reply, I'm way past the deciding whether to rent or buy stage although you have a point having done all the homework if it was a purely financial decision the figures don't add up, the sensible thing to do would be to rent, however, car lover that I am common sense has gone out of the window and I'd like have my own car in Spain and being no mechanical whizz kid I'm concerned about how the car would respond mechanically to lying dormant for such long periods
 
Presumably it won't move/be started for that continual 45 week period?

Thanks for the reply, no it wouldn't lie continuously at any one time for 45 weeks but I'd only be using it for 2-3 weeks at Easter, 4 weeks in the summer, 1 week in October and 1-2 weeks at Xmas so the most it would likely to be lying at any one time would be 5 months if I don't travel at Xmas.
 
Park it under cover if you can......expect the battery to be low on power, depending if the car has an alarm as well as an immobiliser (some systems flatten the battery after 3 weeks).
Consider a solar panel for keeping the battery charged?
There shouldn't be major issues in a dry climate but you could park with the handbrake off.
John :)

Thank you John for your very useful tips I am just concern that mechanical moving parts that are designed to move that subsequently don't move for months at a time would then seize up or not work properly
 
Five months is an awful long time for a vehicle to be idle, and certainly the battery wouldn't be happy at all (solar charger, maybe?)
You could consider a fuel stabiliser (unleaded goes off quicker than leaded fuel) but you may not need it.
John :)
 
I fear I can foresee problems with parking it under cover AND fitting a solar battery charger! :LOL: I think it might have to be one or the other!

That aside, no, it doesn't do them any good to be laid up for long periods. They tyres are likely to develop flat spots (which might sort themselves out after a few miles, but don't always). As has been said, the battery is likely to go flat. Even disconnected for 5 months, it might still partially discharge itself. Oil will drain from surfaces that it normally clings to for several days, resulting in higher wear rates on startup As the car will be started up fewer times though, this will partially be offset, I guess. Some of the surfaces (e.g. cam lobes) at the top of the engine, might develop a bit of rust if they lose their protective coating of oil for any length of time. Also, things that rely on oil mist lubrication won't get that and might get stiff. The seals in the aircon compressor (if it has one) might dry out and it might lose its refrigerant sooner than it otherwise might. Brake caliper pistons might stick in their cylinders if you're unlucky. The clutch friction plate might rust itself to the flywheel slightly. Disconnecting the battery will help it hold charge, but the various onboard computers (mainly the engine management one) is likely to lose it's learned settings and will have to start from scratch again.

That's a fairly bleak take on it, of course, but they're all things that COULD happen, to varying extents. I think it's fair to say that it doesn't do them any good though.

Would it be a British car? I think you'd have to re-register it in the country it was going to stay in if it was there for more than (I forget now - 6 months?) of the year. Not sure what the implications with insurance would be.
 
I've left cars for extended periods a couple of times for various reasons. Admittedly older type cars. As already said it doesn't do them any good at all. Once upon a time car handbooks gave a procedure for storing a car for the "Winter layup". That included things like changing the oil after flushing. Oiling the cylinders draining fuel, putting the car on stands or blocks with the wheels off the deck, and removing the battery with regular charging while it was off.
I could be wrong, but I can't see a modern car being just left for a year is going to be an easy proposition to get going properly again.
I wouldn't do it if it was at all avoidable.
 
I've left cars for extended periods a couple of times for various reasons. Admittedly older type cars. As already said it doesn't do them any good at all. Once upon a time car handbooks gave a procedure for storing a car for the "Winter layup". That included things like changing the oil after flushing. Oiling the cylinders draining fuel, putting the car on stands or blocks with the wheels off the deck, and removing the battery with regular charging while it was off.
I could be wrong, but I can't see a modern car being just left for a year is going to be an easy proposition to get going properly again.
I wouldn't do it if it was at all avoidable.

Many thanks to each and everyone who took the time to post your advice I very much appreciate it and as a result have been able to make an informed decision, Great forum by the way will certainly use it again.
Cheers to you all
 
Sponsored Links
Back
Top