We leave cars in summer/winter homes for 6 months or more and don't take extreme precautions: clean oil, trickle charger on the battery, stabilizer in a full tank of gas. Taking the weight off the tires helps them not be greatly out-of-round when you return. Rodents can be a big problem.....they can get into amazingly small gaps----nesting in the interior, in the air cleaner, chewing wiring, etc. Plugging the exhaust is a good idea - - along with plugging air intakes. We find that they don't much like moth balls and scatter a few under the hood, on top of engine.......as well as the interior. Yes, even better to take tires off and store indoors.....along with battery. But should be a problem leaving car for several months......better to NOT run it rather than starting occasionally: that will load-up the exhaust with moisture unless you run it to full hot long enough to dry everything.
Here's how I store car outside in the winter. I place a LARGE sheet of heavy plastic on the ground. I drive the car onto it. I place a car cover over the car and using Gorilla (brand name) tape I pull that large sheet of plastic up and tape it to the car cover. Once that is done I cover the entire car with another sheet of that plastic and secure it to the bottom cover again using the tape so I have effectively kept moisture from getting to the bottom and the top of the car. I have never had an issue with moisture inside the plastic and in the spring I remove everything. The car is as shiny and clean as when I parked it. I hook up the battery, put the key in the ignition, and drive away.
If the car is to stand for a long time you should actually REMOVE the wheels as they will get flat spots from sitting in the same position. The Engline should be started weekly to keep the seals oiled, Remove the battery in between starts and keep it in a warm place.
Snow, ice and water will not hurt the tire. Sunlight will. You may want to use something to stop the UV light. I think wrapping the tires/wheels in plastic will hold water (at least moisture) and possibly rust the rims.
You might better, jack each wheel off the ground, block the suspension up with wood or jack-stands and let the tires hang freely off the ground then cover the whole tire up.
you can let it sit for the winter, but take out the battery. Plugging the exhaust is good idea. Ive had birds make nests in them. Starting it every couple weeks is good. In which case i would just unhook the battery.
The sun will cause condensation inside the bag and could help the tires to rot.
I do and the car tire stores put them in plastic bags.
So its better to just let the snow and ice get it?
I have a classic car that I want to store this winter, unfortunately I do not have a garage. So I bought a Noah Car cover which has tons of great reviews etc but I know that it will not cover the tires and part of the rims. So in order to protect them can I cover them in like trash bags, just to keep snow and ice off the rubber of the tires and rims. Also what are other tips.. Full tank of gas and stabilizer.. but do you start every week and let it run for a while, or just let it sit the whole winter and plug the exhaust up?
